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NEW EDITION—IMPROVED AND ENLARGED, WITH 
ENTIRELY NEW ENGRAVINGS. 


THE 


UNION 



BIBLE DICTIONARY, 


FOR THE USE OP 


Tfumls, Clams, an!) Jfamilifs. 


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PREPARED FOR THE AMERICAN SUNDA Y-S CHOOL UNION, 


BY THE AUTHOR OP “THE TEACHER TAUGHT.” 


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School Union, in the Clerk’s Office of the District Court of the 
United States for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. 


I 






PREFACE 


to tb:e present edition. 


Since the Union Bible Dictionary was first published, 
several works upon a similar plan have been issued, but none 
of them occupying the same ground. Some have a decided 
denominational character, and are avowedly designed to pro¬ 
pagate denominational views. Others embrace a class of tech¬ 
nical theological terms not found in the Scriptures; and others 
still would better subserve the purposes of severe biblical critics 
than of the ordinary readers or students of the sacred writings. 
So that the Union Bible Dictionary still holds its own place, 
and will, it is hoped, in its new and improved character, find a 
greatly enlarged sphere of usefulness. 

It is not a compilation, properly speaking; for though the 
author has of course drawn from various sources the materials 
of this volume, and in some instances used them without elabo¬ 
ration, yet most of the leading articles are strictly original, and 
prepared with much labour and care. The whole work corres¬ 
ponds IN PRINCIPLE, CHARACTER AND USES TO THE OTHER PUB¬ 
LICATIONS of the Society, and is intended so to connect 
THEM TOGETHER, AS TO MAKE, OF THE WHOLE, A COM¬ 
PLETE BIBLICAL CYCLOPiEIIA. 

The services of one of the most distinguished biblical scholars 
in the country were employed in a general revision of the ori¬ 
ginal edition and many of the most important articles also re- 

3 



4 


PREFACE. 


ceived a critical examination from several others, both clergy¬ 
men and laymen, in whose competency and fidelity the utmost 
confidence may be felt. 

The following general principles have been observed in the 
preparation of this work:— 

I. No word is introduce^, as the subject of an article, which 
is not found in the canonical books of the common translation 
of the Bible, and at least one passage is cited in which the 
word occurs. Of course such words as Africa, Apocrypha, 
Antelope, Apocalypse, Deluge, Dead Sea, &c. are excluded. 
Any other rule would be too indefinite for practical application. 

II. No word is introduced simply for the purpose of defining 
It, unless it has a peculiar scriptural use or signification, which 
would not be found in a common defining dictionary. 

III. Whatever could be regarded as sectarian by any deno¬ 
mination of evangelical Christians, is, of course, scrupulously 
avoided. This rule excludes no Bible terms, nor any matter 
involving what is read in Holy Scripture or may be proved 
thereby. 

IV. No word is admitted into the body of the Dictionary of 
which all that can be said is found in immediate connection 
with the word itself. For example, Ard (Gen. xlvi. 21) is men¬ 
tioned as one of the sons of Benjamin; and as the passage itself 
contains all that can be said of him, the word is omitted. 

V. The leading articles embrace, as far as practicable, the 
various topics that properly fall under it. For example: under 
the word Dwellings will be found the principal facts in rela¬ 
tion to the structure of Eastern houses, as the court, roof, win - 
dows, doors, parlours, chambers, &c., so that the article is in 
itself a concise history of the subject. The various topics are 
generally distinguished, however, by putting the principal words 
in italics, thus enabling the reader to select them at pleasure 
So of the articles, Arms, Book, Burial, Clothes, Feasts, 
Hebrews, Sacrifices, &c. 


PREFACE. 6 

VI. Though each article is complete in itself and as full as it 
may be in a work of this size, we hope that most biblical in 
quirers will be disposed to seek still further information. This, 
we apprehend, is afforded, in a good degree, by other publications 
of the Society, which are or may be within the reach of all. 
To the particular volume from which such further information 
may be obtained, reference is made in the proper place. 

By this feature of the work, we open to the teacher or student 
very copious fountains of biblical knowledge on the cheapest 
terms, in the simplest and most available form, and of a char¬ 
acter supposed to be unexceptionable to every evangelical mind. 

VII. We have made all practicable use of the information 
furnished by modern travellers in the East, and especially by 
American missionaries, to whose journals frequent references 
will be found. 

VIII. It is confidently believed that in no volume of the 
kind are there fewer errors in references. Great care was taken 
to have the copy accurate in this respect; the proofs were read 
by the author, and at the same time by a very accurate and 
experienced proof-reader, and by both was every reference care¬ 
fully examined by the Bible; and since the work was stereo¬ 
typed the whole has been read again, and every reference 
re-examined and compared with the Bible. 

With a grateful sense of God’s goodness, in giving so large a 
measure of success to the work, this new and improved edition 
is commended to His gracious disposal, in the hope that it may 
be eminently useful to teachers and students of the Bible, long 
after the author has gone to appear before the judgment-seat 
of Christ. F. A. P. 

Iggy- The books to which the reader is referred for further 
information, under various articles, are all published by thr 
American Sunday-School Union. 




!• 


MAPS 






ACCOMPANYING THE 

UNION BIBLE DICTIONARY. 


PAOl 


Countries mentioned in the Bible. 7 

The Acts of the Apostles, and the remaining Books of 

the New Testament...~. 24 

Palestine (Syria) under the Maccabaean and Idumaean 
Princes, and illustrative of the period of Christ and 
his Apostles. 166 

Canaan as divided among the Twelve Tribes, from the 

Time of Joshua to the Accession of David. 31V 

Journeyings of the Israelites from Egypt to Canaan.... 396 

The Kingdom of Israel in the Time of David and So¬ 
lomon. 619 


6 

















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A 


DICTIONARY 


OP THE 


p0lg 


AAR 

ARON, (Ex. yi. 20,) the first 
high priest of the Jews, was 
the son of Ainram, of the tribe 
of Levi, and was born about the 
year 2430. He was three years 
older than his brother Moses, and 
being a more ready speaker, he 
was appointed by the Lord to 
assist Moses in guiding and con¬ 
trolling the Israelites, in their 
journey from Egypt to Canaan. 

The relation which Aaron sus¬ 
tained was thus expressed by the 
Lord to Moses:— He shall be thy 
spokesman unto the people. He 
shall be to thee instead of a mouth, 
and thou shalt be to him instead 
of God. (Ex. iv. 16.) I have 
made thee a God to Pharaoh; and 
Aaron thy brother shall be thy 
prophet. (Ex. vii. 1.) 

Aaron married Elisheba, the 
daughter of Amminadab, and had 
four sons, Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, 
and Ithamar. The two former 
were punished with death for a 
heinous sin, and the priesthood 
remained in the other two. (See 
Abihu.) 

As most of the important events 
in the life of Aaron are intimate¬ 
ly connected with his brother’s 
history, they will be reserved for 
that article. (See Moses.) Those 


AAR 

in which Aaron was only or prin¬ 
cipally concerned, are briefly the 
following. 

At an early period after the de¬ 
parture of the children of Israol 
from Egypt, Aaron and his sons 
were set apart by God’s direction, 
and with the most solemn cere¬ 
monies, to minister in the priest’s 
office, which Aaron continued to 
fill until his death. (Heb. v. 4.) 
See Priest. 

Before his consecration, and 
while Moses was in the mount, 
receiving the law from God, the 
people became impatient, and be¬ 
sought Aaron to make them idol 
gods. He thereupon commanded 
them to break off the golden ear¬ 
rings of their wives and children; 
which being collected and brought 
to him, he made out of them an 
idol in the shape of a calf, like one 
of the idols of Egypt. (See Calf.) 
Before this image the people 
danced and shouted, saying,— 
These be thy gods, 0 Israel, which 
brought thee up out of the land of 
Egypt. This act, and the aggra¬ 
vating circumstances connected 
with it, (Ex. xxxii. 25,) involved 
Aaron in great guilt. His two sons, 
Nadab and Abihu, were soon after¬ 
wards destroyed in a most sudder 
S’ 






AAE 

iind fearful manner. At a later 
period, Aaron, with his sister Mi¬ 
riam, spoke reproachfully con¬ 
cerning Moses, and God was very 
angry with him; but upon the con¬ 
fession of his sin, he was pardon¬ 
ed. (See Miriam.) 

Korah and others were offend¬ 
ed with Moses and Aaron, and 
charged them with taking upon 
themselves authority which be¬ 
longed as much to otners as to 
them. Moses expostulated with 
them, and especially with Korah; 
but his remonstrances were all in 
vain, and the next day the rebel 
and his companions were sudden¬ 
ly destroyed. (See Korah.) 

Immediately after this fearfu. 
exhibition of the anger of God, 
and while we should suppose the 
terror of such judgments would 
still possess their minds, the peo¬ 
ple of Israel renewed their mur- 
murings against Moses and Aa¬ 
ron. (Num. xvi. 41.) A dreadful 
plague having appeared suddenly 
in the midst of them, which threat¬ 
ened the people with utter and im¬ 
mediate destruction, Aaron, at the 
command of Moses, took a censer 
with incense, and ran quickly into 
the midst of the congregation, and 
stood between the living and the 
dead, until he had made an atone¬ 
ment for them, and the plague 
Was stayed. (Num. xvi. 44-50.) 

A signal attestation was grant¬ 
ed to Aaron’s official authority in 
the following manner. Twelve 
rods or branches of the almond 
tree were taken, one for th6 head 
of each house, or tribe, of Israel; 
and upon the rod of the tribe of 
Jjevi was written the name of Aa¬ 
ron. The rods were laid together 
in a particular place in the taber¬ 
nacle ; and the next day, when 
Moses went into the tabernacle, 
8 


AAR 

the rod which had Aaron s name 
upon it “was budded, and brought 
forth buds, and bloomed blossomsj 
and yielded almonds.” This won¬ 
derful miracle was made known 
to the people by an exhibition of 
the rod; but it was immediately 
taken back into the tabernacle, to 
be kept there forever, for a token 
against the rebels, (or the children 
of rebellion.) (Num. xvii.,10.) 

When the supply of water was 
miraculously furnished in the de¬ 
sert of Zin, Aaron neglected to ac¬ 
knowledge the power of God, and 
for this was denied the privilege 
of entering into the promised land. 
In the fortieth year after he had 
left Egypt, he was commanded to 
go up with Moses his brother and 
Eleazar his son, into Mount Hor, 
in sight of all the congregation, 
that he might die there. (Num. 
xx. 28.) The place of Aaron’s 
death is called Mosera, in I)eut. 
x. 6 ; but the same spot is denoted 
in both passages. Burckhardt 
tells us that Mount Hor stands 
upon the western side of a valley 
once called Mosera. Josephus 
and other historians place the 
sepulchre of Aaron on Mount Hor, 
where it is still venerated by the 
Arabs. A modern traveller visited 
the place, and found a tomb called 
Aaron’s, in the care of a crippled 
Arab, eighty years old. The mo¬ 
nument is about three feet high, 
and is protected by a small, whito 
building, with a cupola. (See 
Hor.) 

The ciicumstanees of Aaron’s 
death are peculiarly interesting 
and impressive. On his way to 
the mount his official robes were 
transferred to his son and succes¬ 
sor in the priesthood, and he died 
in the top of the mount, b. c. 1451- 
52, aged one hundred and twenty- 



AAR 

three years. (Num. xxxiii. 39.) 
When Moses and Eleazar came 
down, and the people saw that 
Aaron was dead, they mourned 
for him thirty days, even all the 
house of Israel. (Num. xx. 29.) 

Aaron is called the saint of the 
Lord. (Ps. cvi. 16.) Some have 
supposed that he assisted Moses 
in writing parts of the Penta¬ 
teuch, and thus they account for 
any supposed difference of style, 
Ac. His history is given us in 
the books of Exodus, Leviticus, 
Numbers, and Deuteronomy. 

AARONITES. (1 Chron. xii. 
27.) Levites of the family of 
Aaron : the priests who served the 
sanctuary. Eleazar, Aaron’s son, 
was their chief. (Num. iv. 16.) 

AB. (See Month.) 

ABADDON. (Rev. ix. 11.) 
The Hebrew name for the angel 
of the bottomless pit, and answer¬ 
ing to the Greek name Apollyon. 
They both signify the destroyer. 

ABANA, (2 Kings v. 12,) pro¬ 
bably should be AMANA, which 
signifies perennial. A river of 
Syria, near Damascus, supposed to 
be one of the branches of the Bar- 
radi, or Chrysorrhoas. It rises at 
the foot of Mount Lebanon ; di¬ 
vides into several small streams 
eastward of Damascus, watering 
the whole country in the vicinity ; 
then they unite again, and the 
river continues its course till it 
empties into a small marshy lake, 
called the Lake of the Meadow, 
fifteen or twenty miles distant 
from the city. 

This and the river Pharpar 
supplied an abundance of water, 
and rendered the country around 
Damascus, though on the edge 
of a desert, one of the most beau¬ 
tiful and fertile spots in the world; 
while the streams of Judea or 


ABE 

Israel, with the exception of the 
Jordan, are nearly dry the great¬ 
er part of the year, and, running 
in deep and rocky channels, give 
but partial fertility to the land 
through which they flow. This 
may well account for the question 
of Naaman :—“ Are not Abana 
and Pharpar, rivers of Damascus, 
better than all the waters of Is¬ 
rael ?” 

ABARIM. (Deut. xxxii. 49.) 
A general name given to a moun¬ 
tainous ridge, running from north 
to south, east of Jordan, and be¬ 
fore the northern border of Moab. 
Nebo was one of the conspicuous 
mountains in the chain, and Pis- 
gah was one of the highest of the 
summits of Nebo. The modern 
Mount Dhana is supposed to be 
a part of Abarim. Ije-abarim, 
(Num. xxi. 11,) meaning “heaps 
of Abarim,” is another name for 
the same chain. 

ABBA. (Rom. viii. 15.) The 
Hebrew word ab, from which 
abba is derived, signifies, in its 
root, acquiescence. The title, abba, 
was not allowed to be used by 
servants or slaves when address¬ 
ing the head of the family,—a 
circumstance which gives much 
force to the term in the passage 
cited. The full meaning of this 
term cannot be expressed in our 
language. It implies a high de¬ 
gree of love, confidence, and sub¬ 
mission, as well as a most en¬ 
deared and intimate connection 
and fellowship. (Mark xiv. 36. 
Gal. iv. 6.) The word ab (mean¬ 
ing father) is mentioned as one 
of the first and simplest words of 
infancy. (Isa. viii. 4.) 

ABEDNEGO. (Dan. i. 7.) 
The Chaldee name which was 
given by an officer of the King of 
Babylon to Azariah, one of the 
9 



ABE 

four children or youth? of Judah, 
taken captive at Jerusalem about 
the year 3398, and ordered by 
the king to be trained for his par¬ 
ticular service. (See Daniel.) It 
was customary for masters to give 
new names to their servants or 
captives. The other three were, 
Daniel, (or Belteshazzar,) Hana- 
niah, (or Shadrach,) and Michael, 
(or Meshach.) 

After Daniel’s promotion to be 
ruler over the whole province of 
Babylon, his three companions 
were, at his request, elevated to 
places of trust. Nebuchadnezzar 
the king saw fit to make a golden 
image ; and having dedicated it 
with great pomp, he commanded 
that, at a certain signal, the peo¬ 
ple of all nations and languages 
should fall down and worship the 
image, and that those who refused 
should be cast into the midst of 
a burning furnace. In this act 
of idolatry, Shadrach, Meshach, 
and Abednego would not unite, 
though commanded by the king 
himself. They replied that they 
were not anxious to answer the 
king in this matter, as the God 
whom they loved and served was 
able to deliver them, to whatever 
extremity they might be reduced. 

The king was filled with fury, 
and commanded the furnace to 
be heated sevenfold hotter than 
was usual; and the strongest men 
were employed to bind them, and 
cast them into the flames. Such 
men were ordinarily employed 
for this purpose, to meet any re¬ 
sistance that might be attempted; 
but some think that the phrase 
“ most mighty men,” used here, 
means the chief officers of the 
army, who were selected to make 
the punishment more imposing 
and exemplary. 

10 


ABE 

With all their garments on, 
they were cast into the furnace, 
and so intense was the heat that 
the executioners were destroyed 
by it. The king was present to 
witness the execution of the sen¬ 
tence ; and, though the three men 
at first fell down bound in the 
midst of the flames, yet when hi 
looked, expecting to see them de¬ 
stroyed, he beheld them loosed 
from their bonds, walking unhurt 
in the midst of the fire, and a 
fourth person with them whose 
form was “like the Son of God.” 
This was the king’s language, 
and whatever he might have in¬ 
tended by the term, “ Son of 
God,” the fourth person, to whom 
he refers, was probably an angel 
of God, sent for this purpose, as 
he was afterwards sent to shut the 
mouths of lions for the protec¬ 
tion of his servant Daniel ; or it 
might have been the eternal and 
uncreated Son of God, appearing 
to protect and deliver his faithful 
servants in the time of their cala¬ 
mity. (Matt, xxviii. 20.) 

Upon the call of the king from 
the mouth of the furnace, these 
three servants of the most high 
God came forth, in the presenco 
of the princes and rulers of the 
country: and so completely had 
they been protected by the mighty 
power in which they trusted, 
that not a hair was singed ; the 
colour of their coats was not 
changed, nor was there even the 
smell of fire upon them. The fol¬ 
lowing rude representation of this 
miraculous deliverance of God’s 
faithful servants, is found among 
the symbolic pictures in the cata¬ 
combs of Rome, graven some fif¬ 
teen hundred or two thousand 
years ago. (See page 11.) 

The r&onarch, astonished at 



this evident interposition of the 
Almighty in their behalf, forth¬ 
with passed a decree, threatening 
to punish in the severest manner 
any one who should speak against 
the God of Shadrach, Meshach, 
and Abednego ; because (said he) 
there is no other God that can de¬ 
liver after this sort; and the men 
were restored to their places in 
the province. (Dan. iii.) 

ABEL (Gen. iv. 2) was the 
second son of Adam and Eve. 
He was occupied as a keeper or 
feeder of sheep; and in process 
of time brought of the firstlings, 
or first-fruits of his flock, an of¬ 
fering unto the Lord. It is sup¬ 
posed that besides a thank-offer¬ 
ing, Abel brought a sin-offering, 
and thus evinced his penitent 
6ense of sin, as well as his faith 
in a promised Saviour. This may 
be a reasonable conjecture, but 
has not scriptural authority. God 
was pleased, however, to accept 
his offering, and to give him evi¬ 
dence of it. (Heb. xi. 4.) Not 
with Cain. Either his sacri¬ 
fice, or the manner of presenting 
it, was offensive to God, and the 
offering was rejected. (1 John 
iii. 12.) Cain was exceedingly 
angry, and, filled with envy, he 
ambraced an opportunity when 


they were in the field together, to 
take his brother’s life. (Gen. iv.) 

Our Saviour distinguishes Abel 
by the title righteous, (Matt, xxiii. 
35.) He is also one of the faith¬ 
ful “elders” mentioned in the 
epistle to the Hebrews, (ch. xi.) 
and is justly called the first mar¬ 
tyr. 

Blood op Abel. (Heb. xii. 
24.) The blood of sprinkling, or 
the blood of Jesus Christ shed for 
the remission of sins, speaks bet¬ 
ter things than the blood of Abel, 
inasmuch as the latter speaks 
only of the malice and madness 
of the heart of man,, and cried to 
God from the ground for ven¬ 
geance on the murderer’s head ; 
while the blood of Christ, which 
flowed freely for the guilty and 
ruined sinner, speaks peace and 
pardon for every penitent and 
believing soul. (1 John i. 7.) 

ABEL— GREAT STONE OF, (1 
Sam. vi. 18,) was in the field of 
Joshua of Beth-shemesh, whore 
the ark of the Lord rested when 
it was returned by the Philistines 
to Kirjath-jearim. 

ABEL-BETH-MAACHAH. (2 
Kings xv. 29.) A city in the north¬ 
ern district of the tribe of Naph- 
tali, lying south-east of Cesarea- 
Philippit To this place Sheba, 

















































































































































ABE 

tho son of Bichri, fled and posted 
himself, when pursued by Joab, 
general of the army of David. 
The citizens, however, who feared 
a siege if they harboured him, cut 
off his head, at the suggestion of 
a woman, and threw it over the 
wall to Joab. (2 Sam. xx. 14- 
22.) The city was afterwards 
captured. (1 Kings xv. 20. 2 

Kings xv. 29.) Perhaps the 
phrase mother in Israel, (2 Sam. 
xx. 19,) if it was designed to ap¬ 
ply to the place at all, may denote 
its size and importance. 

ABEL-MAIM (2 Chron. xvi. 
4) is called Abel-Beth-maachah, 
(1 Kings xv. 20,) and appears to 
have been the same place. (See 
Abel-beth-maachah.) 

ABEL-MEHOLAH. (Judg.vii. 
22. 1 Kings xix. 16.) A town in 
the plain of Jordan, about ten 
miles south of Bethshean, and be¬ 
tween that and Shechem; dis¬ 
tinguished as the birthplace of 
Elisha, and as the refuge of the 
Midianites when pursued by 
Gideon. 

ABEL-MIZRAIM (Gen. 1. 11) 
means the mourning of the Egyp¬ 
tians. It was probably in the 
plains of Jericho, and is placed 
by ancient writers between the 
city of Jericho and the river Jor¬ 
dan. Tho threshing-floor of Atad 
was here, and the name Abel-miz- 
raim was derived from the cir¬ 
cumstance, that here Jtseph and 
his company halted seven days to 
mourn, as they were passing from 
Egypt to Canaan to bury Jacob. 
(Gen. 1. 10, 11.) The term “ be¬ 
yond Jordan,” which is used in 
describing the place, refers to the 
situation of the sacred writer at 
the time of writing. As he was on 
tho east of the river, Abel-mizraim 
>vas beyond or on the west side. 

12 


ABT 

ABEL-SHITTIM, or SmrriM, 
(Num. xxxiii. 49; xxv. 1.) A 
town, six or seven miles distant 
from the east bank of the Jordan, 
opposite to Jericho. It was the 
place of one of the last encamp¬ 
ments of Israel, on that side of 
the river. Some have supposed 
(and modern geographers confirm 
the opinion) that Shittim was a 
village, and Abel-shittim the plain 
or valley in which it was situated 
It was at this place, almost at the 
end of their miraculou* journey- 
ings, that the people of Israel fell 
into the snares of the daughters 
of Moab, and committed the 
grossest idolatry, for which they 
were visited with a desolating 
plague which destroyed 24,000 
people. Hence, perhaps, the name 
Abel, from the mourning that 
such mortality must have occa¬ 
sioned. The spies whom Joshua 
sent to Jericho went from Shittim. 
(Josh. ii. 1.) 

ABIA, course of. (Luke i. 
5.) In 1 Chron. xxiv. we have 
an account of the divisions of the 
priests into twenty-four classes, 
courses, or orders, who ministered 
at the altar in rotation. The 
courses were distinguished by the 
name of the most prominent 
member of the family trom which 
the course was taken. The eighth 
of these courses fell to the family 
of Abia, or Abijah ; and to thia 
course belonged Zechariah, the 
father of John the Baptist. 

ABIATHAR. (1 Sam. xxii. 
20.) The tenth high priest of the 
Jews, and fourth in descent from 
Eli. Doeg, at the command of 
King Saul, fell upon the priests 
of the Lord at Nob, and slew 
them. Among the slain was Ahi- 
melech. His son Abiathar es¬ 
caped from the carnage, and 



ABI 

taking with him some part of the 
priest’s garments, fled to David 
at Keilah, and told him what Saul 
had done. David received Abia- 
thar, and protected him, and he 
afterwards became high priest. 
Thus there were two high priests 
in Israel at the same time,— 
Abiathar in the party of David, 
and Zadok in the party of Saul, 
(2 Sam. viii. 17;) but, in conse¬ 
quence of his supporting Adonijah 
in his pretensions to the throne 
of David, Solomon, upon becom¬ 
ing king, thrust Abiathar out of 
the priesthood, (1 Kings ii. 27,) 
and conferred the office exclu¬ 
sively upon Zadok. (See Zadok.) 
Thus was fulfilled the word of 
God to Eli, (1 Sam. ii. 31;) for 
Abiathar was the last of the 
priests of the house of Ithamar, 
to which Eli belonged; and Za¬ 
dok, who succeeded him, was of 
the family of Eleazar; and so the 
priesthood passed into its former 
channel. Abiathar, mentioned 
in Mark ii. 26, has been supposed 
by some to be the same with 
Ahimelech. Others have thought 
(though without much reason) 
that the evangelist refers to some 
“ history of the days of Abiathar” 
then extant, in which the conduct 
of David and Ahimelech in the 
matter of the shew-bread was re¬ 
corded, and that the allusion was 
well understood by those who 
heard it. The most probable so- 
.ution of the difficulty is, that as 
both officiated at the same time, 
and both received the title, the 
name of either was used to desig¬ 
nate that period. The facts to 
which the gospel alludes, in the 
passage cited, are fully stated in 
1 Sam. xxi. (See Life of Da¬ 
vid, pp. 85-87, and 104.) 

ABIEZER. (Judg. viii. 2.) 

2 


ABI 

The passage contains a highly 
figurative expression. 3ideon 
was of the family of Abiezer. 
The Ephraimites complained be¬ 
cause they were not called upon 
to go out to battle against the 
Midianites. Gideon attempted to 
pacify them; representing hi* 
own victory, with a force of three 
hundred men, chiefly of the fa¬ 
mily of Abiezer, as of very little 
importance, in comparison with 
the capture of two of the princes 
of Midian, which the men of 
Ephraim had accomplished. 
Though the latter, in respect to 
numbers might be as the glean¬ 
ing of the vineyard, yet in the 
glory and importance of it, it was 
more than the whole vintage 
which the men of Abiezer had 
gathered. 

ABIGAIL. (1 Sam. xxv. 3.) 
The wise and beautiful wife of 
the churlish and wicked Nabal. 
When her husband had exposed 
himself to the anger of David by 
his rude and contemptuous treat¬ 
ment of his messengers, Abigail 
hastened to meet him, while he 
was on his way with four hun¬ 
dred men to revenge the insult. 
She managed the affair with so 
much prudence as to pacify Da¬ 
vid, and obtain his blessing. 
About ten days after her return 
the Lord visited Nabal with sick¬ 
ness, and he died, and Abigail 
became David’s wife. A beauti¬ 
ful sketch of this portion of sa¬ 
cred history may be found in the 
Life of David, and in Notable 
Women of Olden Time. 

ABIHU. (Ex. xxviii. 1.) One 
of the sons of Aaron, who, with 
his brothers, Nadab, Eleazar, and 
Ithamar, were separated or set 
apart by God to the office of th* 
priesthood. Soon after they en 
13 




ABI 

tered on their sacred duties, Na- 
dab aDd Abihu were guilty of a 
violation of God’s commands re¬ 
specting the manner of offering 
incense, and were instantly con¬ 
sumed. (Lev. x. 1, 2.) This 
event happened in the wilderness 
of Sinai. The nature of their 
offence is rery obvious ; they used 
common fire instead of the fire 
which they were required to use ; 
and some suppose they were 
drawn into this presumptuous sin 
by the too free use of wine. 

ABIJAH. 1. (1 Kings xiv. 1.) 
A son of Jeroboam, who died 
under interesting circumstances in 
early life. (See Jeroboam.) 

2. Abijah or ABIJAM, (2 Chron. 
xiii. 1,) the son of Rehoboam 
and Michaiah, succeeded his fa¬ 
ther as King of Judah. He made 
war against Jeroboam, King of 
Israel, and defeated him, with a 
loss of 500,000 men. He began 
to reign in the 18th year of Jero¬ 
boam, and was succeeded by his 
eon Asa in the 20th year of Jero¬ 
boam, so that he reigned only a 
part of three years. There is an 
apparent contradiction in respect 
to the parentage of this person, 
as it is given in 1 Kings xv. 2, 
and 2 Chron. xiii. 2, which may 
be explained as follows. Abisha- 
lom is the same with Absalom. 
(2 Chron. xi. 21.) The term 
daughter is given indifferently in 
the Bible, not only to one’s own 
child, but to a niece, grand-daugh¬ 
ter, or great-grand-daughter. Re¬ 
hoboam had already taken two 
wives from the family of David, 
(2 Chron. xi. 18,) and of course 
would find no difficulty in taking 
a third wife from the same family, 
in the line of Absalom. We have 
only to suppose then that Maa- 
•hah and Michaiah mean the 
14 


ABI 

same person; and that sne wa« 
the daughter of Uriel, and the 
grand-daughter of Absalom, and 
the whole difficulty is removed. 

ABILENE. (Luke iii. 1.) A 
province of Syria, lying west of 
Damascus and north of Galilee, 
of which Lysanias was tetrarcb 
in the time of John the Bap¬ 
tist. 

ABIMELECH, 1. (Gen. xx. 2, 
and xxvi. 1,) was King of Gerar, 
and being deceived by Abraham, 
he sent and took Sarah, Abra¬ 
ham’s wife, to be his wife. God 
warned him, however, in a dream, 
of Sarah’s relation to Abraham, 
and thus withheld him from the 
commission of sin, because he did 
it in ignorance. (Gen. xx. 6.) 
Abimelech, having rebuked Abra¬ 
ham, restored Sarah to him with 
many gifts, and offered him a 
dwelling-place in any part of-the 
land. God afterwards remitted 
the punishment of the family of 
Abimelech. At a subsequent pe¬ 
riod, Abimelech (or his successor 
of the same name) was deceived, 
in like manner, by Isaac, respect¬ 
ing his wife Rebekah, while they 
dwelt in Gerar during a time of 
famine in Canaan. 

2. (Judg. viii. 31.) A son of 
Gideon, who, after the death of 
his father, persuaded the men 
of Shechem to make him king. 
(Judg. ix. 18.) He afterwards 
put to death seventy of his bro¬ 
thers who dwelt in his father’s 
house at Ophrah, leaving only 
Jotham, the youngest, alive. Af¬ 
ter several defeats he was at last 
mortally wounded by a piece of a 
mill-stone thrown upon his head 
by a woman from the top of a 
tower in Thebez. That it might 
not be said a woman slew him, 
he called to his armour-bearer tc 




ABI 

stab him with his sword, and thus 
he died. (Judg. ix. 54-57.) 

ABINADAB. 1. (1 Sam. xvi. 
8.) One of the eight sons of 
Jesse, and one of the three ox his 
sons who followed Saul in battle. 

2. (1 Sam. xxxi. 2.) One of 
Saul’s sons who was slain at the 
battle of Gilboa. 

3. (1 Sam. vii. 1, and 1 Chron. 
xiii. 7.) A Levite of Kirjath- 
jearim, with whom the ark of the 
Lord was deposited when it was 
brought back from the Philis¬ 
tines. 

4. (1 Kings iv. 11.) One of 
the twelve officers appointed by 
Solomon to provide alternately, 
month by month, food for the 
king and his household. 

ABIRAM. 1. (Num. xvi. 1.) 
One of the sons of Eliab, the Reu- 
benite, who were destroyed with 
Korah for a conspiracy against 
Moses. (See Korah.) 

2. (1 Kings xvi. 34.) The first¬ 
born of Hiel, the Bethelite. 

ABISIIAG. (1 Kings i. 15.) 
A fair woman of Shunem in the 
tribe of Issachar, who was select¬ 
ed by the servants of David to 
minister to him in his old age, 
and to chei'ish him. After Da¬ 
vid’s death and the ascension of 
Solomon to the throne, Adonijah 
desired Abishag in marriage, but 
Solomon perceived his policy, (see 
Adonijah,) and caused him to be 
put to death. (1 Kings ii. 25.) 

ABISHAI. (2 Sam. ii. 18.) A 
son of Zeruiah. He was a ne¬ 
phew of David, and among the 
chief of his mighty men. He 
accompanied David to the camp 
of Saul, and counselled him to 
take Saul’s life. See a full ac¬ 
count of this interesting scene, 
with an illustrative engraving, in 
the Life of David, chap. xvi. 


ABN 

Abishai-, with Joab his Drother, 
attacked and defeated the Syri¬ 
ans and the children of Ammon. 
(2 Sam. x.) David appointed 
him, in conjunction with Joab and 
Ittai, to the command of the peo¬ 
ple when they went forth to bat¬ 
tle against Israel, in the wood of 
Ephraim. (2 Sam. xviii. 2.) 

Abishai afterwards rescued Da¬ 
vid from the giant Philistine, 
Ishbi-benob, whom he smote and 
killed. (2 Sam. xxi. 16, 17.) 

The victory over the Edomites 
in the valley of Salt, which i» 
ascribed to David in 2 Sam. viii. 
13, is ascribed to Abishai, in 1 
Chron. xviii. 12. Probably Abi¬ 
shai actually obtained the victo¬ 
ry j but as he was an officer under 
David, it might also with pro¬ 
priety be spoken of as David’s 
achievement. 

Abishai was associated with 
Joab in the assassination of Ab¬ 
ner. (2 Sam. iii. 30.) 

ABJECTS. (Ps. xxxv. 15.) 
Low, base persons, and, as some 
suppose, hired assassins. 

ABNER, (1 Sam. xiv. 50,) the 
son of Ner, was a near relative 
of Saul, and a faithful and dis¬ 
tinguished general of his armies. 
We first hear of him, particular¬ 
ly, as the captain of the host, of 
whom Saul inquired concerning 
the stripling, David, whose vic¬ 
tory over Goliath had excited his 
astonishment; and after a little 
time Abner introduced David to 
Saul, with the head of the giant 
Philistine in his hand. 

It was through the want ot 
vigilance in Abner that Saul’s 
life was placed in David’s power 
in the wilderness of Ziph. (1 
Sam. xxvi. See David, Saul.) 

After David was anointed King 
of ludah, Abner procured the ap- 



ABN 

poiatment of Ishbosh'eth, Saul’s 
son, as King of Israel; and in pro¬ 
cess of time the army of David, 
under Joab, and the army of Is¬ 
rael, under Abner, arrayed them¬ 
selves on either side of the pool 
of Gibeon. While occupying this 
position, twelve men of each army 
met and fought desperately. This 
contest was followed by a general 
battle, which resulted in Abner’s 
defeat. He fled, but was pursued 
by Asahel, who “ was light of foot 
as a wild roe.” When in the heat 
• of pursuit, Abner counselled him 
to desist, and threatened to turn 
upon him and slay him if he did 
not; but Asahel refused to turn 
aside, and Abner, “ with the hind¬ 
er end of his spear,” smote him so 
that he died. Joab and Abishai 
were also engaged in the pursuit, 
but at Abner’s entreaty they de¬ 
sisted and returned. 

As David’s strength increased, 
the house of Saul, though faith¬ 
fully served by Abner, became 
gradually weaker, till at length 
Ishbosheth charged Abner with 
an offence against Saul’s family. 
He was exceedingly irritated by 
the charge, and immediately for¬ 
sook the interests of Saul’s house, 
and espoused the cause of David. 
David received him cordially, and 
6ent him away in peace to per¬ 
suade Israel to submit to David’s 
government. 

While he was gone on this er¬ 
rand, Joab returned; and hearing 
what had been done, he went to 
the king and warned him against 
Abner as a spy and traitor. Soon 
after, and without David’s know¬ 
ledge, Joab sent for Abner; and 
wnen he arrived, took him aside 
privately and murdered him, in 
revenge of the death of his brother 
Asahel; and they buried him in 
16 


ABO 

Hebron. The estimation in which 
he was held by the king and peo¬ 
ple appears from the sacred his¬ 
tory. The king wept and refused 
his food, and all the people wept; 
and the king said unto his ser¬ 
vants, Know ye not that there is 
a prince and a great man fallen 
this day in Israel ? (2 Sam. iii. 

38 ) 

ABOMINABLE, ABOMINA¬ 
TION. 1. (Gen. xlvi. 34.) An 
abomination, or an abominable 
thing, is a thing hateful or de¬ 
testable, as the employment or 
calling of shepherds was to the 
Egyptians. 2. (Lev. xi. 13, and 
Deut. xxiii. 18.) Under the Mo¬ 
saic law those animals and acts 
are called abominable, the use or 
doing of which was prohibited. 

3. (Jer. xliv. 4, and 2 Kings xxiii. 
13.) Idolatry of every kind is 
especially denoted by this term. 

4. (Isa. lxvi. 3.) So of sins in 
general. 

The abomination of desola¬ 
tion (Matt. xxiv. 15, and Dan. iv. 











ABR 

27, and xii. 11) probably refers to 
the ensigns or banners of the Ro¬ 
man army, with the idolatrous, 
Rnd therefore, abominable images 
upon them, as in the foregoing cut, 
the approach of which would warn 
the city of its desolation. When 
the city should be besieged, and 
these idolatrous standards should 
be seen “in the holy place,” or 
more strictly, in the vicinity of 
the holy city, thus threatening a 
complete conquest and speidy de¬ 
struction, it would be time for the 
men of Judea to flee to places of 
refuge to save themselves from 
tribulation and death. 

ABRAM, ABRAHAM. (Gen. 
xi. 27,) was the son of Terali, and 
was born at Ur, a citj' of Chaldea, 
the location of which is uncertain, 
about A. m. 2008. While he was 
dwelling in his father’s house at 
Ur, God directed him to leave his 
country and kindred, and go to a 
land which should be shown him ; 
promising, at the same time, to 
make of him a great nation, and to 
bless him, and to make his name 
great, and that in him all the fami¬ 
lies of the earth should be blessed. 

Obedient to the heavenly call¬ 
ing, Abram took Sarai his wife, 
and with Terah his father and 
other members of the family, left 
Ur to remove to Canaan; and 
stopped at Ilaran. 

It is supposed by some that 
while they dwelt in Ur, Abram 
fell into the idolatrous practices 
which prevailed around him; but 
in the absence of all evidence on 
this point, the contrary may sure¬ 
ly be inferred from the readiness 
with which he obeyed God, and 
the faith he manifested in a man¬ 
ner so exemplary and rare. 

While they were dwelling at 
Haran, in Mesopotamia, Terah 
2* B 


ABR 

died. Abram, who was then sev¬ 
enty-five years old, pursued hi* 
journey to Canaan ; and having 
reached Sichem, one of the oldesi 
cities of Palestine, (see Shechem,) 
the Lord appeared to him, and 
repeated his promise to give him 
the land. 

A grievous famine soon visited 
the country, and Abram was 
obliged to go into Egypt. Fear¬ 
ful that Sarai’s beauty might at¬ 
tract the notice of the Egyptians, 
and that, if they supposed her to 
be his wife, they would kill him 
to secure her, he proposed that 
she should pass for his sister. It 
happened as he expected. The 
servants of Pharaoh, the King of 
Egypt, commended her beauty so 
much, that he sent for her, and 
took her into his house, and load¬ 
ed Abram with tokens of his fa¬ 
vour ; but the Lord punished him 
severely, so that he sent away 
Abram and his wife, and all that 
he had. 

Having become very rich in 
cattle, silver and gold, he return¬ 
ed from Egypt to Canaan. Lot, 
his nephew, had been with him, 
and shared bis prosperity ; and it 
happened that his servants fell 
into some strife with the servants 
of Abram. As it was evident that 
their property was too great for 
them to dwell together, Abram, 
though in every respect entitled 
to deference, generously proposed 
to his nephew to avoid controver¬ 
sy by an amicable separation Ho 
offered Lot his choice of the terri¬ 
tory, on the right or left, as it 
pleased him. A rare illustration 
of meekness and condescension. 
Lot chose to remove to the east¬ 
ward, and occupy that part of the 
fertile plain of Jordan where So¬ 
dom and Gomovrah stood. 

17 



ABR 

Then toe Lord appeared again 
to Abram, and renewed the pro¬ 
mise of the land of Canaan, as his 
inheritance, in the most explicit 
manner. He thence removed his 
tent to the plain of Mamre in He¬ 
bron. In an invasion of the cities 
of the plain by several of the 
petty kings of the adjoining pro¬ 
vinces, Sodom was taken, and Lot 
and his family carried captive. 
When Abram received intelligence 
of it, he armed his trained ser¬ 
vants, born in his house, (three 
hundred and eighteen in number,} 
pursued the kings, and defeated 
them, and brought Lot and his 
family and their substance back 
to Sodom; restoring to liberty the 
captives who had been taken, 
with all their property, of which 
he generously refused to take any 
part as the reward of his services 
or as the spoils of victory. On 
his return he was met by Melchi- 
sedek, King of Salem, and priest 
of the most high God, to whom he 
gave a tenth of all that he had. 
(See Melchisedek.) 

Two or three years after this, 
the Lord appeared again to Abram 
in a vision ; repeated to him the 
promises, and accompanied them 
with the most gracious declaration 
of his favour. He appointed a 
certain sacrifice for him to offer, 
and towards night caused a deep 
sleep to fall upon him, attended 
by a horror of great darkness, 
during which there were revealed 
v o him some of the most import¬ 
ant events in his future history, 
and in that of his posterity, which 
were all accomplished in due time, 
and with wonderful exactness. 

The revelation related, 1. To 
the captivity of Israel by the 
Egyptians, and their severe and 
protracted bondage: 2. To the 
18 


ABR 

judgments which Egypt should 
suffer because of their oppression 
of God’s chosen people, and the 
circumstances under which they 
should leave Egypt; 3.To Abram’s 
death and burial; and 4. To the 
return of his posterity to the pro¬ 
mised land. 

In the same day the covenant 
respecting the land of promise 
was renewed, and confirmed with 
the strongest expressions of divine 
favour. Sarai however was child¬ 
less, and she proposed to Abra¬ 
ham that Hagar, an Egyptian 
woman living with them, should 
be his wife; by whom he had a 
son whom ho called Ishmael. 

At ninety-nine years of age, he 
was favoured with another most 
remarkable vision. The Almighty 
was revealed to him in such a 
manner that he was filled with 
awe and fell upon his face, and 
we are told that. “ God talked with 
him.” The promise respecting 
the great increase of his posterity, 
and their character and relation 
to God, as well as respecting the 
possession of Canaan, was repeat¬ 
ed in the most solemn and expli¬ 
cit terms; his name was changed 
from Abram {a high father) to 
Abraham, (father of a great mul¬ 
titude,) and the circumcision of 
every male child, at eight days 
old, was established as a token of 
the covenant between him and 
God. (See Circumcised.) At the 
same time the name of Sarai {my 
princess) was changed to Sarah, 
{the princess,) and a promise was 
given to Abraham that Sarah 
should have a son, and be the 
mother of nations and kings. 

It seemed so entirely out of the 
course of nature that they should 
betnme parents at their advanced 
age, that Abraham, filled with 




ABR 

roverenco and joyful gratitude, 
fell upon his face, and said in his 
heart, Shall a child be born unto 
him that is a hundred years old ? 
and shall Sarah, that is ninety 
years old, bear ? 

Nevertheless against hope he 
believed in hope; and, being not 
weak in faith, he staggered not at 
the promise of God, but was fully 
persuaded that what he had pro¬ 
mised ho was able .also to per¬ 
form ; and his faith was imputed 
to him for righteousness. (Rom. 
iv. 18-22.) 

Abraham, finding that the bless¬ 
ings of the covenant were to be 
bestowed on his future offspring, 
immediately thought of Ishmael, 
in whom he had probably before 
supposed the promises were to be 
fulfilled, and he uttered the so¬ 
lemn and affecting prayer— Othat 
Ishmael might live before thee! 
God heard him, and almost while 
he was yet speaking, answered 
him by making known to him 
his great purposes respecting Ish¬ 
mael. (Gen. xvii. 20, and xxv. 
16.) 

As soon as the vision had 
closed, Abraham hastened to obey 
the divine command, and with 
Ishmael his son, and all the men 
of his house, was circumcised in 
the self-same day. He was not 
long without another divine com¬ 
munication. As he sat in the 
door of his tent in the heat of the 
day, three men approached him. 
He received them with all the 
courtesy and hospitality which 
distinguished eastern manners, 
and after they had refreshed them¬ 
selves they inquired of him re¬ 
specting Sarah, and repeated the 
romise respecting the birth of 
er son. 

It was on this occasion, or in 


ABR 

connection with tnese circum¬ 
stances, that a divine testimony 
was given to the patriarchal cha¬ 
racter of Abraham. (Gen. xvih. 
19.) It was because of his faith¬ 
fulness that he was favoured w itb 
a revelation of God’s purposes, 
respecting the devoted cities of 
the plain, and with an opportuni¬ 
ty to plead for them; and it waa 
for Abraham’s sake, and probably 
in answer to his prayers, that Lot 
and his family were rescued fron< 
the sudden destruction which 
came upon Sodom. 

After this, Abraham removed 
to Gerar, and here he made a se¬ 
cond attempt to have Sarah taken 
for his sister. (See Abimelech.) 
Here, also, the prediction was ful¬ 
filled, respecting the birth of a 
son. Sarah had a son, whom he 
called Isaac, and who was duly 
circumcised on the eighth day. 

Abraham was much tried by an 
unhappy occurrence, in which 
Hagar and Ishmael were princi¬ 
pally concerned; but God sup¬ 
ported him by an explicit promise, 
that in Isaac his seed should be 
called. (Gen. xxi. 10-13.) 

Abraham so obviously enjoyed 
the favour and blessing of God in 
all that he did, that Abimelech, the 
king, proposed to make with him 
a covenant of perpetual friend¬ 
ship; and a matter of wrong about 
a well, of which Abimelech’s ser¬ 
vants had violently deprivod 
Abraham, was thus happily ad¬ 
justed. This transaction was at 
a place which was thereafter call¬ 
ed Beersheba— the well of the 
oath, or the well of swearing 
(Gen. xxi. 23-31.) 

We now come to one of the most 
interesting and important pas 
sages in the patriarch’s history. 
God was about to try him, that ha 
19 




AI3R 

n tgnt exhibit to the world in all 
following time, an illustrious ex¬ 
ample of the power of faith. He 
wap commanded to take his son— 
his onlv son Isaac, whom he lov- 
*d, and in wnom all the promises 
if God were to be accomplished 
—and to offer him up for a burnt- 
offering upon a distant mountain. 
Without an inquiry or murmuring 
Word, and with a promptness 
which showed the most entire 
submission, Abraham obeyed the 
mysterious command. A journey 
of three days was accomplished. 
Every preparation for the offering 
was made, and the knife was in 
his hand, which was uplifted to 
slay his son, when his purpose 
was arrested by a voice from hea¬ 
ven, requiring him to spare the 
lad ; inasmuch as the proof of the 
father’s faith and obedience was 
full. A ram was provided in the 
neighbouring thiclcet, which he 
took and offered up; and, after 
hav ng been favoured with spe¬ 
cial tokens of the divine approba¬ 
tion, he returned with his son to 
Be( rsheba. This grand trial and 
illustration of the patriarch’s faith 
took place, as it is supposed, upon 
Mount Moriah. (See Jerusalem 
& Map.) In commemoration of 
it, he gave to the place the name 
Jehovah-jireh, (the Lord will see 
or provide,) intimating a general 
truth respecting the divine faith¬ 
fulness and care; and in prophe¬ 
tical allusion, as some suppose, to 
the great sacrifice which, in ful¬ 
ness of time, was to be offered 
upon that same spot for the sins 
of men. (Gen xxii. 14.) 

At the age of one hundred and 
twenty-seven years Sarah died, 
and Abraham purchased the cave 
of Maehpelah, in the field of 
Ephron, near Hebrcn, for a fa- 
20 


ABS 

mily burial-place, and there buried 
his wife. 

Isaac had now arrived at ma- 
.lire age, and Abraham Called one 
of his servants, probably Eliezer, 
(Gen. xv. 2,) and made him swear 
that he would obtain a wife for 
Isaac, not among the Cauaanites, 
(where they then dwelt, and who 
were to be cut off according to the 
revealed purpose of God,) but in 
Abraham’s native country, and 
from among his own kindred. 
This enterprise terminated suc¬ 
cessfully and every desire of the 
patriarch respecting Isaac’s mar¬ 
riage was answered. 

Abraham married a second time, 
and had several sons ; but he made 
Isaac his sole heir, having in his 
lifetime distributed gifts among 
the other children, who were now 
dispersed; and at the great age 
of one hundred and seventy-five 
years he died in peace, and was 
buried by Isaac and Ishmacl, in 
the same sepulchre with Sarah, A. 
m. 2183. (See History of Abra¬ 
ham.) 

Abraham’s bosom. (See Bo¬ 
som.) 

ABSALOM (2 Sam. iii. 3) was 
a son of David, by Maacah, daugh¬ 
ter of Talinai, KingofGeshur. He 
was remarkable for his beauty, 
and for his hair, which is said to 
have weighed 200 shekels when 
cut off every year. As to the pre¬ 
cise meaning of this weight, how¬ 
ever, there has been much specu¬ 
lation. It is supposed that the 
ihekel by which its weight is ex¬ 
pressed, means a lighter weight, 
by one-third or one-half, than the 
common shekel. Others suppose 
that the value, and not the weight, 
is denoted; and others, still, con¬ 
tend that what with goldrdust and 
powder, which were both profusely 




ABS 

used in dressing the hair, the 
weight (supposing weight to be 
meant, and the common shekel to 
be used) is not at all incredible ; 
being, according to Michaelis, not 
quite three pounds Troy weight, 
though it may be sufficiently re¬ 
markable to be noticed by the 
historian. 

Absalom had a fair sister whose 
name was Tamar; and Amnon 
his half-brother having injured 
her, Absalom was revenged by 
taking Amnon’s life at a feast, to 
which he had invited him, (2 
Sam. xiii. 29,) and immediately 
after this he fled to the house of 
Talmai, his mother’s father, at 
Geshur. 

Joab, in order to secure Absa¬ 
lom’s return and restoration to 
his father’s favour, employed a 
woman of Tokoa to appear before 
David, and feign a case similar, 
in its leading circumstances, to 
the situation of Absalom, and 
having obtained his decision, to 
apply the principle to the real 
jase. After a favourable decision 
jvas obtained in the feigned case, 
the woman began to plead for 
Absalom’s return. The king im¬ 
mediately suspected Joab’s con¬ 
cern in the plot, and the woman 
confessed that it was wholly plan¬ 
ned by him. 

David, however, directed Joab 
to go to Geshur, and bring Absa¬ 
lom back to Jerusalem, after an 
absence of three years; but lii3 
fathor would not receive him inti 
favour, nor admit him to his pre¬ 
sence ; nor did he see his face for 
cwo years more. 

Wearied with his banishment, 
A.bsalom often attempted to ob¬ 
tain an interview with Joab; but 
for some cause Joab was not dis¬ 
posed to go to him. To compel 


ABS 

him to come, Absalom resorlvJ to 
a singular expedient; he directed 
his servants to set fire to Joab’s 
fields. Joab immediately came 
to Absalom; was persuaded to 
plead with the king in his behalf; 
succeeded in his effort, and Absa¬ 
lom was received into full favour. 

But with a proud and wicked 
heart, he could not cease do 
evil. His father’s throne became 
the object of his ambition, and he 
procured chariots and horsemen, 
and other appendages of rank 
and royalty; and stood in the 
public places courting the favour 
of the people by the meanest arts; 
persuading them that their rights 
were not regarded by the govern¬ 
ment, and that it would bo for 
their interest to elevate him to 
power, that equal justice might 
be administered to all. By these 
and other means, Absalom stole 
the hearts of the men of Israel. 

In pursuing his wicked and 
traitorous design, and with a pre¬ 
tended regard to filial duty, he 
asked his father’s permission to 
go to Hebron, and pay a vow 
which he said he had made. The 
unsuspicious king consented, and 
Absalom immediately sent men 
throughout Israel, who were, at a 
given signal, to proclaim him king 
in Hebron. 

He also took two hundred men 
with him from Jerusalem, though 
they did not know his plan; anJ 
then sent for Ahithophel, who 
was David’s counsellor, that he 
might have his advice and assist¬ 
ance. 

Absalom’s party increased ra¬ 
pidly, and intelligence of the con¬ 
spiracy was communicated to the 
king, and so alarmed him, that 
he fled from the city. 

At length David persuaded 

21 



ABS 

Hushai to go to Absalom, who 
had now come back to Jerusalem 
with his party, and become his 
servant; and when opportunity 
occurred, to give such counsel as 
should defeat Ahithophel’s plans, 
and bring confusion and discom¬ 
fiture upon Absalom. 

By a train of singular providen¬ 
tial interpositions, (an account of 
which belongs rather to the life 
of David, than to this article,) 
Absalom’s ruin was hastened. 

Before David’s men went out to 
battle with the revolted party, he 
gave them special charge respect¬ 
ing Absalom, and commanded 
them to deal gently with him for 
his father’s sake. 

The two parties met in the wood 
of Ephraim, and the battle was 
severe and bloody. Absalom rode 
upon a mule, and in passing un¬ 
der the thick boughs of an oak, 
he was caught by his head in the 
fork or angle of two branches, and 
the mule passed onward, leaving 
him suspended in the air. Joab, 
one of David’s chief captains, be¬ 
ing informed of it, took three 
darts and thrust them through the 
heart of Absalom, while he was 
yet alive in the midst of the oak; 
and they took his body and cast 
it into a pit in the wood, and cov¬ 
ered it with stones. A. m. 2981. 
(See “ Life of Absalom,” and 
w The Warning from the Oak.”) 

Absalom, pillar of. (See Pil¬ 
lar, Jerusalem. See also the 
Life of David, ch. xiii.) 

ACCAD. (Gen. x. 10.) A city 
in Shinar, built by Nimrod Mo¬ 
dern travellers have intimated the 
probability that the ruins of this 
ancient city are to be seen about 
six miles from the present Bag¬ 
dad. 

ACCHO, now Acca or Acre, 

22 


ACE 

(Judg. i. 31,) or Ptolemais, (no 
called after the first Ptolemy, King 
of Egypt, into whose hands it fell 
about one hundred years before 
Christ,) was a seaport town, on 
the Bay of Acre over against 
Mount Carmel, about thirty miles 
south of Tyre. It was in the ter¬ 
ritory assigned to the tribe of 
Asher, and one of the cities from 
which they were unable to expel 
the Canaanites; and it is even 
now considered the strongest place 
in Palestine. It is mentioned in 
Acts xxi. 7. Its population is 
from 10,000 to 15,000, chiefly Jews. 
The remains of this ancient city 
are very numerous. Buckingham, 
who visited it in 1816, found se¬ 
veral fragments of buildings, that 
he had no doubt were constructed 
in the earliest ages, especially 
thresholds of doors, and pillars 
for galleries or piazzas, and slabs 
of fine marble, which he supposed 
were used for the pavement of 
courts. These ruins are now used 
in the erection of new buildings, 
and all appearances of ancient 
grandeur are fading away. The 
place has been noted in modern 
times for the successful resistance 
it made under Sir Sidney Smith 
to the French army in 1799. In 
1832, the place was under the do¬ 
minion of the Pacha of Egypt. (See 
Biblical Geography, page 172.) 

ACCURSED, CURSED. 1. 
(Josh. vi. 17.) Devoted to de¬ 
struction. 2. (1 Cor. xii. 3.) A 
deceiver. 3. (GaLi. 8, 9.) Sepa¬ 
rated from the church. (See 
Anathema. See also Biblical 
Antiquities, ch. v. § 1.) 

ACELDAMA. (Acts i. 19.) A 
fie,d for the burial of strangers, 
which the chief priests bought 
with the money returned by Ju¬ 
das, as the price of the Saviour’* 



AOH 

blood (Matt, xxvii. 6-8.) Hence 
it? name Aceldama, or field of 
blood. It was just without the 
wall of Jerusalem, south of Mount 
Zion, and was originally called 
the potter’s field, because it fur¬ 
nished a sort of clay suitable for 
potter’s ware. Hence, too, the 
burial-place for strangers, which 
is attached to many large cities, 
is called potter’s field. Aceldama 
is now used as a burying-place 
by the Armenian Christians in 
Jerusalem. (See Map op Jeru¬ 
salem.) 

ACHAIA. (Acts xviii. 12. Rom. 
xvi. 5. 2 Cor. xi. 10.) In the 

most comprehensive use this term 
was applied to all the region ly¬ 
ing south of Thessaly and Mace¬ 
donia as far as the Morea, and 
sometimes included the whole of 
Greece ; but in a limited use it 
embraced only the district between 
Macedonia and the Peloponnesus, 
of which Corinth was the capital. 
(See Corinth.) 

ACHAN, or ACHAR. (Josh, 
m. 18.) A son of Carmi, of the 
tribe of Judah, who secretly took 
and concealed several valuable 
articles from among the spoils of 
Jericho, in direct violation of the 
divine command. (Josh. vi. 17, 
18.) For this sin judgment came 
upon the whole camp of Israel. 
(See Ioshua.) By a process 
which God appointed, Achan’s 
guilt was discovered, and he was 
taken into a valley north of Jeri¬ 
cho, thence called the valley of 
Achor, (See Achor,) and was 
there stoned to death. 

ACHISH. (1 Sam. xxi. 10. A 
King of Gath, to whom David 
fled, and with whom he after¬ 
wards formed an alliance, through 
fear of Saul. 

ACIIMETHA. (Ezra vi. 2.) 


ACT 

The Ecbatana of ancient Media, 
and the place where the records 
of the kingdom were preserved. 
The place is occupied, as it is 
supposed, by the modern city Ila- 
madan, in Persia. It was sur¬ 
rounded by seven walls, and at 
one period was considered the 
strongest and most beautiful city 
of the East, except Nineveh and 
Babylon. 

ACHOR, valley of. (Hosea 
ii. 15.) A place in the vicinity of 
Jericho, where Achan was stoned 
for an offence which brought trou¬ 
ble upon the whole camp. (See 
Achan.) The figurative use of 
the word in the passage cited is 
susceptible of divers interpreta¬ 
tions. The most common is, that 
as the valley of Achor was the 
place of great distress and trouble 
to Israel on their first entrance to 
Canaan, it would become a place 
of hope and joy on their return 
from the captivity which they 
were then enduring. This opinion 
is perhaps confirmed by Isa. lxv. 
10 . 

ACHSHAPH. (Josh. xii. 20.) 
A city conquered by Joshua, and 
afterwards assigned to the tribe 
of Asher. It was not far from 
Accho. (Josh. xix. 25.) 

ACHZIB. 1. (Josh. xix. 29.) 
A city of the tribe of Asher. (Judg. 
i. 31.) Its present name is Zib. 
It is found near the seacoast, ten 
or twelve miles north of Ptole- 
mais, and is known to modern 
travellers. 2. (Josh. xv. 44, and 
Mic. i. 14.) A town of Judah. 

ACRE. (1 Sam. xiv. 14.) In 
the passage cited, it is supposed 
to be used proverbially for a very 
small space. 

ACTS. The fifth book in the 
order of the New Testament i* 
calle d “ The Acts of the Apostles,” 
9.2 



ACT 

and is commonly referred to as 
The Acts, and sometimes Acts — 
without the article. It is supposed 
to have been compiled by Luke 
the evangelist, as early as a. d. 
64, and may be regarded as a con¬ 
tinuation of his Gospel. It was 
originally written in Greek ; and 
contains the history of the Chris¬ 
tian church during the interesting 
period which elapsed from the as¬ 
cension of our Saviour, to the im¬ 
prisonment of Paul at Rome—a 
period of about thirty years. It 
contains a minute history of the 
descent of the Holy Spirit on the 
day of Pentecost; the manner and 
success of the preaching of the 
apostles; and the gathering and 
establishing of Christian churches 
by them, both among Jews and 
Gentiles; the conversion of Paul, 
and the travels and labours of 
himself and his companions; the 
trials and sufferings they endured 
in propagating the gospel, and 
the signs and wonders which were 
wrought in attestation of their 
authority. 

This book is particularly valu¬ 
able as containing a vast body of 
evidence of the divine power and 
mission of Jesus Christ, and of 
his grace and faithfulness; by 
which the religion he taught was 
established and widely propa¬ 
gated, and the salvation offered 
by his Gospel was most clearly 
and gloriously illustrated. 

This book is called by some of 
the oldest writers the Gospel of 
the Holy Ghost, and the Gospel of 
our Saviour’s resurrection 

Many pretended copies of this 
book, or other records of the apos- 
toVc acts, have been introduced 
to the world; but have been soon 
proved to be spurious. 

The book of Acts has been sub- 
24 


ADA 

jected to very rigid and critical 
examination in connection with 
the apostolic epistles, and the 
genuineness of both are proved 
by coincidences so minute and 
yet so undesigned, so obvious and 
yet so remote, that no intelligent 
mind can entertain a doubt of 
their truthfulness. 

The period of time embraced in 
this history is about thirty-three 
years, and includes the reigns of 
the Roman Emperors Tiberius, 
Caligula, Claudius and Nero. (See 
Life of Paul.) 

ADAM. (Gen. ii. 19.) The 
great ancestor of the human fa¬ 
mily. On the sixth and last day 
of the work of creation, man was 
made of the dust of the ground, 
yet in God’s image and after his 
likeness. The Lord God breathed 
into his nostrils the breath of life, 
and caused him to become a liv¬ 
ing soul. He also gave him do¬ 
minion over the fish of the sea, 
and the fowls of the air, and every 
living thing that moves upon the 
earth. The complete dominion 
which was given to him is ex¬ 
pressed in a variety of forms. 
(Gen. i. 26-30, and ii. 16-20.) 
Nothing can be more interesting 
than the history of man’s crea¬ 
tion. The fabric of this beautiful 
world was finished; the firmament 
was established; the mountains 
were fixed upon their deep inun¬ 
dations, and to seas and oceans 
were assigned the bounds which 
they should not pass; the heaven* 
were stretched out like a curtain, 
and the sun, moon, and stars ap¬ 
pointed to their courses. The 
earth was adorned with grass and 
herbs and trees, suited for the 
comfort and sustenance of the 
living creatures, cattle, and creep, 
ing things that had just com- 




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ADA 

menced their existence upon its 
surface, and all had been pro¬ 
nounced good by the infinite Cre¬ 
ator himself. 

To enjoy this glorious revela¬ 
tion of divine power, wisdom and 
goodness—to have dominion over 
this vast multitude of living crea¬ 
tures, and more than all to be the 
happy subject of God’s govern¬ 
ment—bearing his image and 
likeness, and having communion 
with him, as the former of his 
body and the father of his spirit, 
man was formed; not born, but 
created—not in feeble, helpless 
infancy, but in the maturity of 
his physical and intellectual na¬ 
ture ; not a sinful, diseased, dying 
creature, but in the image and 
after the likeness of the perfectly 
holy and eternal Creator. 

... A creature, who, not prone 
And brute as other creatures, but endued 
With sanctity of reason, might erect his sta¬ 
ture— 

And upright, with front serene, 

Govern the rest—self-knowing: and from 
thence 

Magnanimous to correspond with heaven. 

A garden was planted by the 
hand of God for the residence of 
Adam. Every tree that was plea¬ 
sant to the sight, or good for food, 
grew there. And it was refreshed 
and fertilized by a river that flow¬ 
ed through the midst of it. 

This garden was committed to 
his care to dress it and to keep 
it, and of every tree but one he 
was allowed to eat; but of the 
tree of knowledge of good and 
evil he was forbidden to eat, under 
the penalty of death. As soon as 
he was fixed in this happy abode, 
God brought to him the beasts of 
the field and the fowls of the air 
which he had created, and Adam 
gave them names; and whatsoever 
Adam called every living crea¬ 
ture that was the name thereof. 

3 


ADA 

But it was not good that 
should be alone, and his Creator 
formed a companion for him, 
bone of his bone, and flesh of hir 
flesh;—a help-meet for him,—that 
is, as a friend and associate fitted 
to aid and comfort him, and, like 
him, pure and immortal. They 
were perfectly happy in each 
other, and in the favour and com¬ 
munion of God— 

Reaping immortal fruits of joy and love, 
Uninterrupted joy—unrivalled love— 

In blissful solitude. 

We are not informed how long 
they continued in this pure and 
happy state, but we know they 
lost it. Adam disobeyed the sim¬ 
ple and reasonable command of 
God. At the suggestion of Eve, 
his wife, w r ho had been herself 
tempted by the serpent to eat, he 
partook with her of the fruit of 
the only forbidden tree, and thus 
they incurred the displeasure of 
their Maker, and the penalty of 
his just law. 

The first indication of guilt was 
the consciousness of shame; and 
the next a vain attempt to hide 
themselves from the presence of 
Him whose eyes are in every 
place, beholding the evil and the 
good. 

Without delay each of the par¬ 
ties to the fatal transaction re¬ 
ceived a dreadful doom. (See 
Serpent, Eve.) As for man, the 
ground was cursed for his sake, 
and he was condemned to eat 
bread in the sweat of his face till 
he should return to the dust of 
which he was formed, or suffer 
the death to which he was now 
sentenced. Not only should his 
body decay and perish, but the 
death to which he was thus doom¬ 
ed included separation from the 
favour of God, and condemna- 
25 



ADJ 


ADA 

fcion to endless sorrow and suf¬ 
fering. 

Thus by one man sin entered 
into the world, and death by sin. 
Their nakedness, which was now 
their shame, being covered, the 
fifst pair were driven from their 
happy home in Eden, never to re¬ 
turn : and, in the hardship of toil 
and labour, and in the sorrow 
and sufferings of childbirth, they 
began at once, respectively, to 
feel the woes in which their trans¬ 
gression had involved them. 

In a little while the dreadful 
power of sin and its temporal 
consequences were shown them in 
a combined and most revolting 
form. Abel—the righteous Abel 
—their beloved son, was cruelly 
and wantonly murdered by the 
hand of his brother ! 

The history of Adam closes ab¬ 
ruptly. At the age of one hun¬ 
dred and thirty he had a son 
whom he called Seth; and who 
was born in his own likeness and 
after his own image, (no longer 
in the likeness and after the im¬ 
age of God.) He lived eight hun¬ 
dred years after the birth of Seth, 
making the whole term of his life 
nine hundred and thirty years— 
and he died B. c. 3074. (For a 
simple and beautiful history of 
the creation and of the fall of 
man, see Bible Sketches, and 
the First Man.) 

ADAMANT. (Ezek. iii. 9.) 
One of the hardest and most cost¬ 
ly of precious stones. The origi¬ 
nal is elsewhere translated dia¬ 
mond. It is employed as an 
emblem of the heart of the wicked. 
(Zech. vii. 12.) Some suppose it 
was used for cutting, engraving, 
and polishing other hard stones 
and crystals. (See Diamond.) 

ADAR. (See Month.) 

26 



ADDER. 1. (Gen. xlix. 17.) 
A venomous serpent whose poison 
is very subtle, and almost in¬ 
stantly fatal. The word transla¬ 
ted adder, in various passages of 
the Bible, does not always mean 
what the English word denotes. 
In Gen. xlix. 17, the original 
word denotes a serpent of the vi¬ 
per kind, of the colour of sand, 
which lurks in the tracks of the 
wheels, and bites the unwary tra¬ 
veller or his beast. 2. In Ps. 
lviii. 4, and xci. 13, the word 
translated adder is supposed to 
mean an asp. 3. In Ps. cxl. 3, 
some suppose the spider or taran¬ 
tula is meant, and others the asp. 
(Rom. iii. 13.) 4. In Prov. xxiii. 
32, the word may be rendered 
cockatrice with equal propriety. 

It is remarked of the adder or 
asp, that he is not moved or af¬ 
fected by sounds which fascinate 
other serpents ; and some suppose 
that the most venomous of the 
adder spocies is naturally deaf 
Hence the allusion in Ps. lviii. 4. 
(See Asp.) 

ADJURE. 1. (Josh. vL 26., 
To bind under a curse. 2. (Matt, 
xxvi. 63.) Solemnly to require 
a declaration of the truth at the 
peril of God’s displeasure. Such 
is the interpretation of the lan¬ 
guage of the high-priest, “I adjure 
thee,” &c. or, “I put thee to thy 
oathaddressed to our Saviou* 
when He declined to answer the 
false accusations of his porsecu 





ADM 

tors. (Matt. xxvi. 63. Compare 
1 Sara. xiv. 24, 38, and 1 Kings 
xxii. 16, with Josh. vi. 26.) 

ADMAII. (Deut. xxix. 23.) 
The most easterly cf the five cities 
of the plain or vale of Siddirn, 
which were miraculously destroy¬ 
ed by firo, because of their great 
wickedness. Some infer from Isa. 
xv. 9, the last clause of which is ! 
translated by the Septuagint, and 
upon the remnant of Adama, that 
Admah was not entirely destroy¬ 
ed ; but the more probable suppo¬ 
sition is, that another city of the 
same name was afterwards built 
near the site of the former. 

ADONI-BEZEK. (Judg. i. 5.) 
Lord or King of Bezek. He fled 
from the armies of Judah, but 
was caught and disabled by hav¬ 
ing his thumbs and great toes cut 
off, so that he could neither fight 
nor fly. He was then carried to 
Jerusalem, where he died. He 
seems to have regarded the maim¬ 
ing he suffered as a just requital 
of his own cruelty, he having muti¬ 
lated seventy kings or chieftains 
in the same inhuman manner. 

ADONIJAH. (2 Sam. iii. 4.) 
David’s fourth son. He was born 
it Hebron, and after the death of 
his brothors Amnon and Absalom, 
oe made pretensions to the throne 
of his father. He prepared him- 
jelf with horses and chariots, and 
ttber marks of royalty, and took 
counsel with Joab and Abiathar 
how he could best accomplish his 
purpose. 

Bathsheba, Solomon’s mother, 
fearing that her son’s title to the 
throne might be disturbed, imme¬ 
diately informed the king of 
Adonijah’s revolt; and Nathan 
the prophet, confirming the state¬ 
ment of the matter, David gave 
Bathsheba the strongest assur- 


ADO 

ance* that her son should reign 
after him; and he caused Solo¬ 
mon to be actually anointed and 
proclaimed king with great shout, 
ings. (1 Kings i. 39.) 

Adonijah was just ending a 
feast when he heard the noise of 
the shouting, and Jonathan came 
in and told him all that had taken 
! place. His guests fled precipi¬ 
tately, and Adonijah himself ran 
and caught hold of the horns of 
the altar, which seems to have 
been regarded as a place of safety 
from violence. 

After David’s death, Adonijah 
persuaded Bathsheba to ask So¬ 
lomon her son, who was now on 
the throne, to give him Abishag 
for his wife. Solomon at once 
saw through the policy of Ado¬ 
nijah, and his self-interested ad¬ 
visers. He knew that he might 
as well have asked for the king¬ 
dom itself as to ask for the 
king’s widow; for then, being the 
elder brother, he could make a 
plausible claim to the throne at 
the first favourable juncture; 
which would directly contravene 
the express appointment of God 
made known to David, and pro¬ 
bably to his family also. (1 Chron. 
xxviii. 5.) So he caused him to 
be put to death by the hand of 
Benaiah. 

ADONIRAM. (See Aroram.) 

ADONI-ZEDEK. (Josh. x. 1.) 
King of Jerusalem, at the time 
the country was entered by the 
Israelites. Hearing of Joshua’s 
victories over Ai and Jericho, and 
finding that the inhabitants of 
Gibeon (one of the most import¬ 
ant cities of the kingdom) had 
made a leaguje with him, he called 
four other kings of the Ammonites 
to his aid, and laid siege to Gibe¬ 
on w ; th a view to destroy it, be- 
27 




ADC 

cause it had made | eace with 
Joshua and the children of Israel. 

But the Lord was against them, 
and with the edge of the sword 
and a violent bail-storm which 
overtook them, they were com¬ 
pletely overthrown and destroyed. 
The victory was attended with a 
Bignal miracle. (See Joshua.) 

Adoni-zedek, with his allies, 
fled and concealed themselves in 
a cave at Makkedah. They were 
soon discovered, however,* and 
were confined and watched, until 
the last of their adherents was 
either cut off or driven into some 
fortress. They were then called 
out of the cave, and brought be¬ 
fore Joshua. 

In the presence of the men of 
Israel, who were summoned for 
the purpose, Joshua required the 
captains of his army to put their 
feet upon the necks of the captive 
kings, declaring at the same time, 
that such would be the doom of 
all the enemies of Israel. He 
then caused them to be slain, and 
to be hanged on separate trees 
until evening, and then their bo¬ 
dies were taken down, and cast 
into the cave in which they had 
concealed themselves. (Josh. x. 
27.) 

ADOPTION (Gal. iv. 5) is an 
act by which one is received into 
a man’s family as his own child, 
and becomes entitled to the pecu¬ 
liar privileges of that connection, 
as fully and completely as a child 
by birth. (Ex. ii. 10, and Esth. 
ii. 7.) 

In the figurative use of the 
term by the sacred writers it im¬ 
plies that relation which we sus¬ 
tain to God, when, by his grace, 
we are converted from sin to holi- 
noss. The spirit of adoption is 
reoeived, and we are made the 

is 


ADR 

children, (or sons) and heirs of 
God, and joint-heirs with Christ. 
(See Biblical Antiquities, ch. 
vi. $ ii.) 

ADORAM. 1. (2 Sam. xx. 24.) 
An officer of the customs under 
David. 

2. An officer of Rehoboam’* 
treasury, (perhaps the son of the 
former,) who was stoned to death 
by the people of Israel who fol¬ 
lowed Jeroboam. (1 Kings xiL 
18.) Some suppose him to have 
been the same with Adoniram, (1 
Kings v. 14,) who was over the 
customs in Solomon’s reign : and 
that the people were so indignant 
at the oppression they had suffer¬ 
ed through his agency, that they 
took this method of revenge. 

ADRAMMELECH. 1. (Isa. 
xxxvii. 38.) A son of Sennache¬ 
rib king of Assyria. He and his 
brother Sharezer killed their fa¬ 
ther while he was in the act of 
idolatry. Their motive for this 
parricidal deed is notknown. They 
both fled to Armenia, and Esar- 
haddon succeeded to the crown. 

2. (2 Kings xvii. 31.) An idol 
god of Sepharvaim, supposed to 
represent the sun, while another 
idol called Anammelech repre¬ 
sented the mo'on. Sacrifices of 
living children were made to these 
idols. 

ADRAMYTTIUM. (Acte 
xxvii. 2.) A seaport of Mysia, 
opposite the island of Lesbos, in 
the northwestern part of Asia Mi¬ 
nor. It is known by the modern 
name of Edremit, or Ydramit, and 
lies about sixty or eighty miles 
north of Smyrna. It was in a ship 
belonging to this port that Paul 
embarked, when he was about tG 
go from Cesarea to Rome as a pri¬ 
soner. 

4DRIA (Acts xxvii. 27) is now 



ADR 

tho gulf which lies between Italy 
on one side, and the coast of Dal¬ 
matia on the other. It is called 
tho gulf cf Venice. In the apos¬ 
tles’ time it is supposed to have 
denoted the whole breadth of the 
Mediterranean sea, from Crete to 
Sicily. 

ADRIEL. (See Merab.) 

ADULLAM. (Josh. xv. 35.) 
An ancient and celebrated city of 
Judah, southwest of Jerusalem. 
The king of the place was slain 
by Joshua. It was fortified by 
Rehoboam, and probably on ac¬ 
count of its strength was called 
the glory of Israel. (Mic. i. 15.) 
In a cave of this name David se¬ 
creted himself when he fled from 
Achish. A cave, which is sup¬ 
posed to be the same, was visited 
by Mr.Whiting, an American mis¬ 
sionary, April 17, 1835. He de¬ 
scribes it as uneven, intricate, and 
very capacious ; and says it is 
perfectly plain that four hundred 
men might conceal themselves in 
the sides of the cave, as David’s 
men did, and escape observation. 
(1 Sam. xxii. 1.) 

ADULTERY. (Jer.iii.9. Matt, 
v. 28.) A crime expressly prohi¬ 
bited by the seventh command¬ 
ment, and always obnoxious to 
severe penalties, both by divine 
and human laws. The tern is 
often employed with great fcrce 
in the Bible, to denote the unfaith¬ 
fulness and idolatry of the people 
of God, and their violation of the 
most sacred engagements. 

ADIJMMIM. (Josh. xv. 7.) A 
rising ground at the entrance of 
the wilderness of Jericho. The 
name signifies red or blxndy, in 
allusion, as it is supposed, to the 
frequent murders committed in 
its vicinity. There are circum¬ 
stances to show tnat the scene of 
3 * 


AGA 

our Saviour’s parable of the good 
Samaritan was laid here. (Luke 
x. 30-36.) 

ADVOCATE. (1 John ii. 1.', 
One that pleads another’s cause. 
It is one of the official titles of 
Jesus Christ the righteous, and its 
import may be learned from John 
xvii. Rom. viii. 34, and Heb. viL 
25. 

iENON. (See Enon.) 

AFFINITY. (1 Kings iii. 1.) 
Relation by marriage, in contra¬ 
distinction from consanguinity, 
which is relation by blood or 
birth. The degrees of affinity, or 
the nearness of relationship which 
should prevent marriage under 
the Mosaic law, may be found in 
Lev. xviii. 6-17. This subject is 
regulated in the United States by 
laws of the several States. 

AGABUS. (Acts xi. 28.) A 
prophet who foretold (a. p. 43) 
the famine, which, as profane his¬ 
tory informs us, took place the 
following year. A few years af¬ 
ter, (Acts xxi. 10,) he met Paul 
at Cesarea, and warned him of the 
sufferings he would endure if he 
prosecuted his journey to Jerusa¬ 
lem. Some have supposed that 
Agabus was one of the seventy 
disciples, and that he suffered 
martyrdom at Antioch. 

AGAG (Num. xxiv. 7) was a 
king of the Amalekites. Some 
think this was the common name 
of their kings, as Pharaoh was 
the common name of the kings of 
Egypt. From the allusion to him 
in the prophetic passage above 
cited, we may suppose him to 
have been one of the greatest 
kings of the earth. 

Another person of the same 
name was captured by Saul at the 
time the Amalekites were destroy¬ 
ed, (1 Sam. xv. 8;) but his life 
29 



AGA 

was apared, and ho was after¬ 
wards brought to Samuei, who 
hewed him in pieces, (1 Sam. xv. 
33,) a punishment not uncommon 
in other places and later times. 

Hammedatha, Hainan’s father, 
is called an Agagite, (Esth. iii. 
1,) probably because he was an 
Amalekite. 

AGAR or HAGAR. (Gal. iv. 
25.) The history or condition of 
Hagar is used allegorically in this 
passage to illustrate the nature of 
the dispensation from mount Si¬ 
nai. Mount Sinai is called Agar 
by the Arabians. (See IIagar.) 

AGATE. (Ex. xxviii. 19, and 
xxxix. 12.) A precious stone, 
semi-transparent, and beautifully 
variegated. It often presents a 
group of figures disposed with so 
much regularity as to seem like 
a work of art j such as trees, 
plants, rivers, clouds, buildings, 
and human beings. The name is 
supposed by some to be derived 
from the river Achates in Sicily, 
where the stone was formerly 
found in great abundance. The 
word translated ayate (Isa. liv. 
12, and Ezek. xxvii. 16) is sup¬ 
posed to denote the ruby. 

AGRIPPA. (Acts xxv. 13.) 
Son and successor of Herod the 
persecutor. (Acts xii. 1.) Por¬ 
cius Festus, the successor of Fe¬ 
lix in the government of Judea, 
came to Cesarea ; and while there, 
Agrippa, (who was governor or 
king of several of the eastern pro- 
virces of the Roman empire) 
came, with his sister Bernice or 
Berenice, to pay him a visit of 
congratulation upon his accession 
to office. The conversation be¬ 
tween them turning upon Paul, 
who was then in confinement at 
Cesarea, and whose remarkable 
history must have been very no- 
30 


AHA 

torious, Festus stated the whole 
matter to Agrippa, and greatly ex-, 
cited his curiosity to see and hear 
him. 

Festus, to gratify his friends, 
but under the pretence of getting 
from Paul the subject-matter of 
his complaint, that he might com¬ 
municate it to the emperor, to 
whom he had appealed, took the 
judgment-seat with great pomp j 
and, surrounding himself with the 
chief men of the city 7 , ordered 
Paul to be brought into his pre¬ 
sence. 

When the devoted apostle ap¬ 
peared before them, Festus, ad¬ 
dressing himself particularly to 
Agrippa, assigned the reasons for 
requiring Paul to appear at that 
time, and then gave the prisoner 
an opportunity to state his own 
case, which he did with unparal¬ 
leled force and eloquence. Festus 
could only meet his arguments 
with the charge of madness ; but 
Agrippa, to whose conscience he 
made an abrupt, though not the 
less respectful and irresistible ap¬ 
peal, was compelled to make that 
memorable exclamation, “Almost 
thou persuadest me to be a Chris¬ 
tian.” Paul closed his address 
by a most affectionate exhortation 
to the king; the assembly then 
separated, and we hear nothing 
more of Agrippa but an expression 
of his regret (Acts xxvi. 32) that 
the faithful and eloquent apostle 
could not be set at liberty. (See 
Life of Paul, ch. xvii.) Agrippa 
died about a. d. 90, aged seventy 
years. 

AHAB. 1. (1 Kings xvi. 29.) 
The son of Omri, and his succes¬ 
sor as King of Israel. He reign¬ 
ed twenty-two years, and the seat 
of his kingdom was at Samaria. 
He married Jezebel, a Zidonian 




AHA 

woman of proverbially wicked 
character She was a gross ido¬ 
later, and A nab followed her in 
all her idolatrous practices; be¬ 
came at once a worshipper of 
Baal, and even made a grove and 
built an altar for this abominable 
service. At a very early period 
of his history, the sacred histori¬ 
an says of him, that he did more 
to provoke the Lord God of Is¬ 
rael to anger than all the kings 
of Israel that were before him. 

lie was warned by the prophet 
Elijah of approaching drought 
and consequent famine, which 
was very sore in Samaria. In the 
third year of the famine, Ahab 
called Obadiah, the governor of 
his house and a godly man, to 
pass through half the land, while 
he would pass through the other 
half, and see if they could not 
collect grass enough on the mar¬ 
gins of fountains and brooks, to 
save their horses and mules from 
perishing. 

In the course of his journey, 
Obadiah met Elijah, who had been 
commanded by God to show him¬ 
self to Ahab, and at Elijah's re¬ 
quest Ahab came to meet him. 

When Ahab appeared in Eli¬ 
jah's presence, he abruptly said 
to him—Art thou he that trou- 
bleth Israel? The prophet re¬ 
plied by a faithful rebuke of the 
king’s idolatry, and proposed to 
demonstrate to him that the gods 
he was serving were no gods. To 
this end he persuaded Ahab to 
gather the prophets of Baal, whom 
he worshipped, into one company 
in mount Carmel, and there the 
folly of their idolatry was exposed 
in a most signal manner. (See 
Elijah.) The prophets of Baal 
were all taken and destroyed at 
Elijah’s command, and before 


AHA 

Ahab could return to Samaria 
there was a great rain. 

About six years after this, Ben- 
hadad king of Syria, with a vast 
army, bosieged Samaria, but Ahab 
sallied out upon him by surprise 
—cut off a large proportion of hi# 
array, and put to flight the resi 
due ; Benhadad himself escaping 
upon a horse. 

The king of Syria, supposing 
that his defeat was owing to^jpmo 
advantage of location which 
Ahab’s army enjoyed, flattered 
himself that if he could go to bat¬ 
tle in the plain, he should con¬ 
quer him. Accordingly in about 
a year he laid siege to Samaria 
again. Of this Ahab had an inti¬ 
mation from the prophet immedi¬ 
ately after the former victory, and 
he had prepared himself accord¬ 
ingly. God again gave him the 
victory, and the Syrians lost 100,- 
000 footmen, in one day, besides 
27,000 who were killed by a wall 
which fell upon them at Aphek, 
whither they fled. Benhadad was 
among the captives, and after 
making a treaty with the victori¬ 
ous Ahab, he went his way. 

Ahab was immediately inform¬ 
ed that he had been guilty of a 
great sin in suffering the king of 
Syria to escape, inasmuch as he 
had been delivered into his hands 
by a marvellous interposition of 
God’s providence, and his cha¬ 
racter and conduct had been such 
as to mark him for the divine dis¬ 
pleasure. Besides this, the mo¬ 
tives of Ahab in making the 
treaty may be regarded as ambi¬ 
tious, if not corrupt; and he was 
therefore informed that his own 
life should go for the life of Ben¬ 
hadad, and his people for Benha- 
dad’s people. 

Heavy and fearful as this sen- 

31 





AHA 

tenet was, we find the wicked 
king of Israel sinking deeper and 
deeper in guilt. Naboth, one of 
his neighbours, had a vineyard, 
which was situated just by Ahab’s 
palace ; and as it was a conveni¬ 
ent and desirable spot for him to 
possess, he asked Naboth to give 
it to him, promising at the same 
time to give him a better vine¬ 
yard, or the worth of it in money, 
as might choose. All this 
seemed very fair, but Naboth did 
not wish to part with his vineyard 
on any terras. It was the inhe¬ 
ritance he had received from his 
fathers, and for this and other 
causes its value to him was pecu¬ 
liar, and such as neither money 
nor any other vineyard in ex¬ 
change could compensate. He 
therefore declined the king’s pro¬ 
posal. 

Mortified and disappointed by 
Naboth’s refusal, he laid down 
upon his bed, and refused to eat. 
Jezebel, his wicked wife, inquired 
the cause of his sadness, and as¬ 
sured him that he might set his 
heart at rest, for he should have 
his desire; and she forthwith 
commenced a train of measures 
which resulted in the murder of 
Naboth ; and Ahab then took 
possession of the vineyard. 

But his judgment lingered not. 
Elijah was sent to charge him 
with the sin to which he had been 
accessary, and to forewarn him, 
not only 01 his own fearful doom, 
but of the certain and utter de¬ 
struction of his posterity : In the 
place where dogs licked the blood 
of Naboth shall dogs lick thy 
blood, even thine. 

Guilty as Ahab was, he had not 
yet lost all sense of sin, and when 
the judgments of God were so 
aear him, he humbled himself 
32 


AHA 

and fasted; and for this be was 
exempted from the punishment in 
his own person, but it was inflict 
ed on his son. 

The circumstances of Ahab’s 
death are deeply interesting and 
instructive. He proposed to Je- 
hoshaphat king of Judah, to make 
war on Ramoth-gilead which was 
in the possession of the king of 
Syria. Jehoshaphat expressed 
his willingness to join him, hu* 
suggested the propriety of first in 
quiring what the will of the Lord 
was respecting the enterprise. So 
Ahab summoned his four hundred 
false prophets, and they all pro¬ 
phesied favourably. 

Jehoshaphat seems to have 
been suspicious of the character 
of Ahab’s prophets, and he there¬ 
fore inquired if there was no pro¬ 
phet of the Lord besides them. 
Ahab referred to Micaiah, ex¬ 
pressing at the same time his 
aversion to him, because his pro¬ 
phecies were always evil. How¬ 
ever, Micaiah was sent for, and 
the messenger (having probably 
been instructed to tha„ eifect by 
Ahab) informed him of what had 
been done, and desired him to 
prophesy favourably, as the other 
pi-ophets had done. 

When Micaiah came before the 
two kings, who were seated each 
on a throne at the entrance of the 
gate of Samaria, and all the pro¬ 
phets before them, the question 
was proposed to him as it had 
been proposed to the other pro¬ 
phets,—Shall we go against Ra¬ 
moth-gilead to battle, or shall we 
forbear? The prophet advised 
him to go, but evidently with such 
a tone and manner as indicated 
that he was not speaking in the 
spirit of prophecy. He therefore 
solemnly and earnestly urged him 



AHA 

to tell him nothing hut the truth, 
in the name of the Lord. Mi- 
caiah then disclosed to him the 
whole matter, and showed him, 
not only that his enterprise against 
Ramoth-gilead would be defeated, 
but that God had suffered the pro¬ 
phets who had prophesied favour¬ 
ably of it, to be tilled with a lying 
spirit, that they might lead him 
on to the certain ruin which await¬ 
ed him. 

Ahab sent the faithful prophet 
back to Samaria, and ordered him 
to be imprisoned till his return 
from the battle. So the infatu¬ 
ated kings of Israel and Judah, 
in the face of the counsel of the 
Almighty, went up to battle 
against the king of Syria at Ra¬ 
moth-gilead. 

In order to secure himself 
against the direct aim of the ene¬ 
my, Ahab entered the battle in 
disguise. But a certain man drew 
a bow, as be supposed, at a ven¬ 
ture, yet the arrow was directed 
with unerring aim to the heart of 
the wicked Ahab, and the blood 
flowed out into the chariot, so that 
he died that night. His army was 
scattered, in literal accordance 
with Micaiah’s prophecy. His 
body was carried to Samaria to be 
buried, and the blood was washed 
from the chariot in the pool of 
Samaria, and the dogs licked it 
as it was foretold. (1 Kings xxi. 
19.) 

2. (Jer. xxix. 21, 22.) A son of 
Kolaiah, and a false prophet, who, 
with Zedekiah, another false pro¬ 
phet, prophesied falsely to the 
children of Israel, when in capti¬ 
vity at Babylon. Jeremiah was 
commanded to make known to 
them that they shou;d be deliver¬ 
ed into the hands of the king of 
Babylon, who would slay them 


AHA 

and so dreadful would be their 
end, that thereafter it should be 
a form of cursing,— The Lord 
make thee like Zedekiah and like 
Ahab, whom the king of Babylon 
roasted in the fire. This was a 
common Chaldean punishment 
(Dan. iii. 6.) 

AHASUERUS. 1. (Dan. ix. 
1.) The father of Darius the Me¬ 
dian, and the same with Astyages. 

2. (Ezra iv. 6.) Supposed to 
be the son and successor of Cyrus. 

3. (Esth. i. 1.) The husband 
of Esther. Who this king was is 
alike uncertain and unimportant 
We are told that he reigned from 
India to Ethiopia, over one hun¬ 
dred and twenty-seven provinces; 
that his palace was in Shushan, 
the royal city of Persia, and that 
in the third year of his reign he 
made a splendid feast for* his 
princes, servants, and people, 
which is particularly described in 
Esth. i. 3-8. In the height of this 
magnificent entertainment, the 
king summoned Vashti his wife 
into the royal presence, that he 
might show his guests her great 
beauty. She declined going, and 
for that cause was separated from 
the king and from the royal es¬ 
tate, and was succeeded by Esther, 
the cousin and adopted daughter 
of Mordecai, a Jew 1 , who resided 
at the palace. 

Hainan, the chief officer of tho 
king’shousehold, consideringhim- 
self insulted by Mordecai, obtain¬ 
ed a royal decree that all the Jews 
of the kingdom should be destroy¬ 
ed. Esther, having received in¬ 
telligence of this cruel plot, em¬ 
braced a favourable opportunity 
to make it known to the king, and 
implore his protection of herself 
and her people. Tho king could 
not, indeed, reverse the decree, 
33 




AHA 

but tie caused Haman to be hurg, 
and Mordecai to be advanced to 
the highest post in the kingdom; 
and also despatched messengers 
in every direction to inform the 
Jews that they were at liberty to 
gather themselves together for 
self-defence, and to destroy all 
that should assault them. 

Availing themselves of the roy¬ 
al favour, the Jews were not only 
protected, but were enabled to 
slay between 70,000 and 80,000 of 
their enemies. Ahasuerus reign¬ 
ed forty-eight years, and there is 
reason to believe that Esther and 
Mordecai remained in favour with 
nim to the end. (Esth. ix. 31, 
and x. 3.) 

AHAVA. (Ezra viii. 15.) A 
river in Assyria, where Ezra as¬ 
sembled the captives who were 
returning from Judea, and where 
he proclaimed a fast. Some have 
supposed it to have been in the 
country called Ava. (2 Kings 
xvii. 24.) Its precise situation is 
not known. 

AHAZ (2 Chron. xxviii. 1) was 
the son of Jotham, and at the age 
of twenty succeeded him as king 
of Judah. 

Ahaz gave himself up to gross 
idolatry, and even sacrificed his 
own children to the gods of the 
heathen. This course of wicked¬ 
ness brought upon him, and upon 
his kingdom, severe judgments. 
They suffered under a succession 
of disastrous war3, and their allies 
often proved unfaithful, and in¬ 
volved them in great distress. 
Ahaz, at last, abandoned himself 
to the most desperate iniquity, 
and the kingdom of Judah was 
brought low and made waste be¬ 
cause of his great sin. 

Early in his reign (probably the 
second year) the kings of Syria 
34 


AHA 

and Israel, who, just at the close 
of Jotham’s reign and life, had 
confederated for the destruction 
of Judah, and actually invaded 
the kingdom with a powerful and 
victorious army, were about to 
lay siege to Jerusalem. 

At this juncture, God directed 
his prophet Isaiah to take his son, 
Shear-jashub, and go to Abas, 
who should be found at a particu¬ 
lar spot in the city of Jerusalem, 
and make known to him the coun¬ 
sel of the Lord. This favour was 
shown to the wicked king as the 
representative of the house of Da¬ 
vid, and for the people’s sake with 
whom God had made a covenant. 
(Isa. vii. 1.) 

Isaiah, having found Ahaz at 
the place designated, told him 
that the bounds of the invading 
army were fixed ; that their pur¬ 
pose respecting Jerusalem would 
be defeated, and that in a limited 
time the kingdoms from which 
they came should be destroyed; 
and to confirm the prophetic tes¬ 
timony, the king was told to ask 
any sign which would satisfy him. 
Probably from a wicked indiffer¬ 
ence, but professedly from a bet¬ 
ter motive, he refused to ask a 
sign ; but God saw fit to give him 
one of unerring import: “Behold,” 
said he, “a virgin shall conceive 
and bear a son, and shall call his 
name Immanuel.” (Isa. vii. 14. 
Matt. i. 23. Luke i. 31-35.) “But¬ 
ter and honey shall he eat, that he 
may know to refuse the evil and 
choose the good. For before the 
child shall know tc refuse the evil 
and choose the good, the land that 
thou abhorrest shall be forsaken 
of both her kings.” Some have 
understood this remarkable pro¬ 
phecy to mean that notwithstand¬ 
ing the extraordinary conception 



AHA 

and birth of the promised child, 
he shall eat butter and honey as 
other children do, and like them 
shall gradually advance from one 
degree of knowledge to another; 
but before he shall have attained 
that measure of discrimination 
which would enable him to choose 
between good and evil, the land 
of the Israelite and the Syrian 
who cause your distress and per¬ 
plexity, shall be forsaken of both 
her kings. Others have inter¬ 
preted the prophecy differently, 
and receive the idea that the child 
to whom it relates should be born 
in a time of war, but before he 
was two or three years old he 
should eat butter and honey, 
which in time of peace were com¬ 
mon articles of food in Judea, and 
the abundance of which was sig¬ 
nificant of peace and prosperity. 

Again, various opinions exist 
as to the child to which allusion 
is made in Isa. vii. 16; some sup¬ 
posing that it denotes the boy 
whom the prophet took with him, 
and others that it refers to the 
child Jesus, as in v. 14; and that 
the meaning is, that in less time 
than would be required, after the 
birth of the promised Immanuel, 
for him to attain to the capacity 
of distinguishing good from evil, 
(that is, within the space of two 
or three years,) the enemies of 
Judah should perish. 

We know that within three or 
four years after the prophecy was 
utttfred, the kings of both Israel 
and Syria were _ destroyed. (2 
Kings xv. 30, and xvi. 9.) This 
was probably the primary accom¬ 
plishment of the prophecy, but it 
received its far more striking and 
literal fulfilment in the birth of 
Immanuel; for Herod the Great 
was the last who oould be called 


AHA 

the king either of Judah or Israel, 
and, though he lived till Imma¬ 
nuel was born, he died while he 
was yet an infant; and then, Shi¬ 
loh being come, the sceptre de¬ 
parted finally from Judah, as it 
had long before departed from Is¬ 
rael. (Gen. xlix. 10.) 

Though Ahaz and his kingdom 
wero thus saved from the hands 
of the Syrians and Israelites, he 
had warning of the terrible judg¬ 
ments which were in store for him 
because of his idolatry; but nei¬ 
ther mercy nor judgment could 
divert him from the wicked pur¬ 
poses of his heart. 

He sent ambassadors to Tig- 
lath-pileser king of Assyria, and 
made him a magnificent present 
of all the gold and silver of the 
temple, which he collected for 
that purpose, and besought his 
assistance against the Syrians, 
who still harassed him. In com¬ 
pliance with his wishes, the king 
of Assyria besieged Damascus, 
and took it, and slew the king. 
Ahaz went thither to congratulate 
Tiglath-pileser on his victory, and 
to thank him for his seasonable 
aid; and there he saw an altar, 
the fashion of which particularly 
pleased him, and he ordered one 
to be made and put up in the 
stead of God’s altar, which he re¬ 
moved into an obscure place. 
Here ho sacrificed to the gods of 
Damascus, saying, “ Because the 
gods of the Icings of Syria help 
them , therefore will I sacrifice to 
them that they may help me; but 
they were the ruin of him and of 
all Israel,” says the sacred histo¬ 
rian. 

So greedy was this abandoned 
man to commit iniquity that he 
wantonly mutilated and abused 
the furniture of the temple; broke 
35 


I 



AHA 

the vessels in pieces; made him 
altars in every corner of Jerusa¬ 
lem, and seemed resolved to show 
how utterly reckless he was of the 
consequences of sin. 

His purposes were cut off, how¬ 
ever, and he was taken away in 
his iniquity at the early age of 
thirty-six, and was succeeded by 
his son Hezekiah. (2 Chron. xxviii. 
27.) 

Though he was buried in the 
city of Jerusalem, his body was 
not admitted to the sepulchres of 
the kings, but was treated with 
ignominy, as were the bodies of 
Jehoram and Joash before him. 

AHAZIAH, 1. (1 Kings xxii. 
40,) was the son and successor of 
Ahab king of Israel. So wicked 
was he, that when Jehoshaphat 
king of Judah had joined with 
him to build a fleet at Ezion-geber 
for the Tarshish trade, God sent 
his prophet to tell him, that be¬ 
cause of his alliance with Aha- 
ziah, even in this secular enter¬ 
prise, his fleet should be destroy¬ 
ed ; and the ships w^ere accord¬ 
ingly shattered to pieces by the 
winds. 

Ahaziah had a fall in his house 
at Samaria, which occasioned a 
fit of sickness, and he sent to an 
idol god, at Ekron, to inquire if 
he should recover. His messen¬ 
gers were met by the prophet 
Elijah, who informed them that 
Ahaziah’s sickness would be fatal, j 
They returned, and made the oc¬ 
currence known to the king, who, 
supposing from the description, 
that Elijah was the man they met, 
forthwith sent an officer and fifty 
men to seize him. The prophet 
was sitting on the brow of a hill 
when the officer approached and 
announced the king’s summons. 
At the prayer of Elijah, the offi- 
36 


AHA 

cer and his men were instantly 
consumed by fire from heaven. 
The same doom came upon a se¬ 
cond officer and his party of fifty 
men. The third officer fell on hi? 
knees before Elijah, and besought 
him to spare his life and the livet 
of his men. At an intimation 
from God, Elijah went down with 
them and told the king in person 
that he should not recover; and 
he soon after died, and Jehoram 
his brother succeeded him. 

2. (2 Kings viii. 25.) Called 
also Azariah, (2 Chron. xxii. 6,) 
was a son of Jehoram and Atha- 
liah, and at the age of twenty-two 
succeeded his father as king of 
Judah; though in 2 Chron. xxii. 
2, it is said he was forty-two years 
old when he began to reign. 

Joram the king of Israel was 
wounded in a battle with the king 
of Syria at Ramoth-gilead, and 
was carried to Jezreel to be heal¬ 
ed. There Ahaziah visited him, 
and Jehu, who was left to sustain 
the siege, (and who was in the 
mean time anointed king over Is¬ 
rael,) came down to Jezreel to 
execute the judgment of the Lord 
upon Joram the son of Ahab, and 
the representative of the house of 
Ahab. 

As soon as his approach was 
announced by the watchman, Jo¬ 
ram and Ahaziah went out, each 
in his chariot, to meet him. And 
j they met in the portion of Naboth , 
with which one of Ahab’s daring 
crimes was so closely associated. 
(See Ahab.) Jehu reminded Jo¬ 
ram of the iniquities of his house, 
and he, suspecting treachery, 
warned Ahaziah to flee. Jehu 
then smote Joram (or Jehoram, 
as he is called, 2 Kings ix. 24,) 
through the heart with an arrow. 
He pursued and slew Ahaziah 




AHI 

also, though he had strength to 
reach Megiddo, where he died, 
and was carried thence to Jeiu- 
saiera, and buried, from respect tc 
the memory of Jehoshaphat his 
ancestor. (See Jehu.) In 2 
Chron. xxii. the circumstances of 
the death of Ahaziah are stated 
differently, but the variation is 
not substantial, and therefore re¬ 
quires no particular notice. 

AIIIAH. 1. (1 Kings iv. 3.) 
The son of Shisha, one of Solo¬ 
mon’s scribes or secretaries. 

2. (1 Sam. xiv. 3, 18.) Sup¬ 
posed by some to be the same 
with Ahimelech, (1 Sam. xxi. 1,) 
was the son of Ahitub, and his 
successor in the priest’s office. 
(See Ahimelech and Ahitub.) 

•3. (1 Chron. viii. 7.) A descend¬ 
ant of Benjamin. 

AIIIJAH. (1 Kings xi. 29.) 
A prophet of God who lived at 
Shiloh. For the most interesting 
and important transactions with 
which Ahijah was connected, see 
Jeroboam. He lived to a great 
age. (1 Kings xiv. 4.) 

AHIKAM. (2 Kings xxii. 12.) 
A son of Shaphan, and the father 
of Gedaliah, was one of those 
whom Josiah sent to Iluldah, the 
prophetess, to inquire of her con¬ 
cerning the book of the law which 
had been found in the temple. 
His influence was of great service 
to the prophet Jeremiah. (Jer. 
xxvi. 24. See Life of Jeremiah, 
eh. vi.) 

AIIIMAAZ. (1 Sam. xiv. 50.) 
Son and successor if Zadok the 
priest. 

During the revolt of Absalom, 
Zadok, and Abiathar, another of 
the priests, stayed in Jerusalem 
with Hushai, David’s friond; 
while Ahimaaz and another young 
man, (son of Abiathar,) whose 
4 


AHI 

name was Jonathan, stationed 
themselves at Enrogel, a short 
distance from the city; and it was 
agreed that whatever Hushai 
should hear respecting Absalom’s 
plans he should communicate tc 
Zadok and Abiathar, and they to 
their sons Ahimaaz and Jonathan, 
by whom the intelligence should 
be communicated to David. 

As soon as Absalom had reject¬ 
ed the counsel of Ahithophel, and 
adopted that of Hushai, Zadok 
and Abiathar were promptly in¬ 
formed of it, and directed to send 
with all possible haste to David. 
But (perhaps to avoid suspicion) 
the message was sent by a female. 
The transaction was seen by a 
lad, who went immediately and 
informed Absalom. 

Ahimaaz and his companion 
set off at once, however, and when 
they came to Bahurim, the site of 
which is now uncertain, they con 
cealed themselves in a well, to 
escape the observation of their 
pursuers. The woman of the 
house near which they were con¬ 
cealed covered the mouth of the 
well with a blanket, on which she 
spread corn to dry; and when 
Absalom’s messengers came up in 
the pursuit, and inquired where 
they were, she deceived thim, and 
told them that the young men 
were in great haste, and had 
passed on. Thus they escaped, 
and, while their pursuers returned 
to Jerusalem, they hastened to 
David with their message. 

At his own urgent request, Ahi¬ 
maaz was employed to carry the 
intelligence of Absalom’s death to 
David his father. He outran 
Cushi, who had been previously 
despatched on the same errand. 
Before he had delivered his mes¬ 
sage, however, Cushi came up, and 
37 



AHI 

made known the sad event. The 
whole history of the transaction, 
rh recorded, (2 Sam. xviii. 19-33,) 
is of surpassing interest, but would 
be out of place here. (See David.) 

AHIMELECH (1 Sam. xxi. 1) 
i? supposed by some to be the 
same with Ahiah; but others sup¬ 
pose Ahiah to have been the son 
of Ahitub, and his successor in 
the priesthood, and Ahimelech to 
have been his brother and suc¬ 
cessor in the same office. It is 
immaterial which of these opi¬ 
nions is correct. David, in his 
flight from Saul, came to Nob, 
where Ahimelech the priest dwelt. 
He represented himself to be in 
great haste on the king’s urgent 
business, and by this means ob¬ 
tained from Ahimelech some of 
the hallowed bread, and also the 
sword of Goliath, which was pre¬ 
served among the sacred things. 

Doeg, the Edomite, a principal 
servant of Saul, who happened to 
be at Nob, and to be a witness of 
the interview between David and 
Ahimelech, told Saul of the mat¬ 
ter, who immediately summoned 
Ahimelech and all the priests that 
were with him (eighty-five per¬ 
sons) into his presence. He 
charged them with a conspiracy 
in aiding and abetting his ene¬ 
my ; and they replied by declar¬ 
ing their ignorance of any hostile 
views, on the part of David, to¬ 
wards Saul, or his kingdom. This 
defence (sufficient as it surely 
was) availed them nothing, how¬ 
ever ; and the king commanded his 
guard to slay them. The guard 
declining to lay violent hands on 
the priests of the Lord, the king 
commanded Doeg to fall upon 
them, and he did, and smote them, 
and also the city of Nob where 
they dwelt, and all the men, wo- 
33 


AHI 

men, and children, as well as all 
the beasts which were found there. 
Abiathar, Ahimelech’s son, was 
the only one who escaped, and he 
fled with an ephod in his hand, to 
David. (See Abiathar.) 

AHINOAM. 1. (1 Sam. xiv. 
50.) The daughter of Ahimaas 
and the wife of Saul. 

2. (1 Sam. xxv. 43.) A woman 
of Jezreel and one of David’s 
wives. She was taken captive by 
the Amalekites in the siege of 
Ziklag, and afterwards rescued 
from captivity by David. (1 Sam. 
xxx. 18.) 

AHIO. (2 Sam. vi. 3.) A son 
of Abinadab, who, with his bro¬ 
ther Uzzah, was intrusted by Da¬ 
vid with the transportation of the 
ark from Kirjath-jearim to Jeru¬ 
salem. (See Uzzah.) 

AHITHOPHEL. (2 Sam. xv. 
12.) A native of Giloh, and the 
familiar friend, companion, and 
counsellor of David. (1 Chron. 
xxvii. 33. Ps. lv. 12-14.) He 
was indeed one of the most emi¬ 
nent counsellors of the age. (2 
Sam. xvi. 23.) 

Absalom persuaded him to join 
in the conspiracy against his fa¬ 
ther David; but the cunning 
measures which Ahithophel pro¬ 
posed for the accomplishmet t of 
Absalom’s ambitious plans, were 
all defeated by the counsel of 
Hushai. Ahithophel, seeing that 
the probable issue would be the 
utter ruin of Absalom and his 
cause, which would almost neces¬ 
sarily involve his own destruction, 
returned, at once, to Giloh, and 
hung himself. 

AHITUB. 1. (1 Sam. xiv. 3.) 
The son of Phinehas, and grand¬ 
son of Eli. Some suppose that he 
succeeded Eli in the priesthood. 
(See Ahimelech.1 



Ano 

2. The name of Zadok’s father. 
(1 Chron. vi. 8.) 

AHOLIAB. (Ex. xxxv. 34.) 
Son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of 
Dan, who, with Bezaleel, was 
divinely appointed to construct 
the tabernacle and its furniture. 

AHOLIBAH and AHOLAH. 
(Ezek. xxiii. 4.) Symbolical 
names for Judah and Samaria. 

AHUZZATH. (Gen. xxvi. 26.) 
A particular friend of Abimelech 
king of Gerar, and one of those 
who attended him when he met 
Isaac, and made a treaty with 
him at Beersheba. 

AI, (Josh. vii. 2,) called also 
Aiath, (Isa. x. 28,) and Aija, 
(Nek. xi. 31,) was an elevated 
spot east of Bethel; the scene of 
Joshua’s defeat, and afterwards 
of his victory. (Josh. viii. See 
Joshua. See also Biblical Geo¬ 
graphy, p. 128.) 

AIN. (Josh. xv. 32.) Origi¬ 
nally a city of the tribe of Judah, 
but afterwards allotted to the 
tribe of Simeon. (1 Chron. iv. 
32.) It is supposed to have been 
near Hebron. 

AJALON. 1. (Josh. x. 12.) A 
village of Canaan, situated in the 
tribe of Dan, between Jerusalem 
and Ekron. In the vicinity of 
Ajalon is the valley of the same 
name, memorable for the miracle 
of Joshua. (See Joshua.) 

2. (Josh. xix. 42.) A town in 
the country of Zebulon, where 
Elon was buried. Its site is now 
anknown. 

3. (2 Chron. xxviii. 18.) A 
city in the south of Judah, cap¬ 
tured by the Philistines. 

AKRABBIM, ascent of, (Num. 
xxxiv. 4,) or Maaleh-Aerabbim, 
fJosh. xv. 3,) was a range of hills 
on the southern borders of Judah 
towards the Dead Sea. Its name 


ALE 

is supposed to denoto that it wai 
invested with scorpions. 

ALABASTER. (Matt. xxvi.7.) 
A fossil, of which there are seve¬ 
ral varieties. Its name is derived 
from the place Alabastrom, in 
Egypt, where that material was 
found, and where vessels were 
manufactured from it for holding 
perfumes. It is a bright and 
elegant substance, susceptible of 
a fine polish, and easily wrought 
into vessels of every form. The 
druggists in Egypt use it at the 
present day for the purpose of 
keeping medicines and perfumes. 
Theocritus, an ancient profane 
historian, speaks of gilded ala¬ 
basters of Syrian ointment. The 
phrase “ she brake the box,” used 
Mark xiv. 3, is supposed to mean 
that she opened or unsealed the 
vessel, as we say familiarly, “to 
break a bottle,” when we mean to 
open it by drawing the cork. It 
was the custom in the East then, 
as it is now all over the world, to 
seal with wax any thing from 
which it is desirable to keep the 
air, and this is especially neces¬ 
sary for the preservation of pre¬ 
cious perfumes and ointments. 
The breaking of the wax would 
be naturally denoted by the form 
of expression used in the sacred 
text. 

ALEXANDER. 1. (Mark xv. 
21 ) The son of Simon the Cy- 
renian. 

2. (Acts iv. 6.) A distinguish¬ 
ed Jew, who, with others, took 
part against Peter and John. 

3. (Acts xix. 33.) A Jew of 
Ephesus, who took a conspicuous 
part in the controversy between 
Paul and the populace of that 
city, and attempted, without suc¬ 
cess, to quell the commotion. 

4. (1 Tim. i. 19, 20, and 2 Tim. 

39 * 



ALE 

Ir. 14.) A coppersmith and apos¬ 
tate from Christianity, whom Paul 
mentions in terms of severe re¬ 
proach. 

ALEXANDRIA. (Acts xviii. 
24; xxvii. 6.) A celebrated city 
of Egypt, founded by Alexander 
the Great, about B. c. 333. It was 
situated on a strip of land on the 
southern coast of the Mediterra¬ 
nean, and between that and the 
lake Mareotis, rather south of the 
present city of the same name. 
Ancient Alexandria was at one 
time the centre of scientific know¬ 
ledge ; the rival of Rome in size, 
and the first commercial city of 
the earth. Historians tell us that 
Its free population exceeded 300,- 
000, and an equal number of 
slaves. Its ancient magnificence 
may be known from the ruins of 
spacious streets two thousand feet 
broad, and the fragments of co¬ 
lonnades, obelisks, and temples. 
After Alexander’s death it became 
the regal capital of Egypt, and 
was the residence of the Ptolemies 
for two hundred years. They en¬ 
riched it with numerous elegant 
edifices, and furnished it with a 
library of 700,000 volumes, which 
was burnt by the Saracens in the 
Beventh century. From the days 
of the apostles to the Saracen in¬ 
vasion, Alexandria was under the 
dominion of Rome, and as it af¬ 
forded an extensive market for 
grain, the centurion who had 
charge of Paul on his way as a 
prisoner ti Rome, readily “ found 
i ship of Alexandria, laden with 
corn, sailing into Italy” Some 
of the persecutors of Stephen were 
from this city, and so was the elo¬ 
quent Apollos. Here also lived 
Clement, Origen, and Arius, the 
founder of the sect of the Arians. 
And here, too, was the Greek or 
. 40 


ALL 

Alexandrian version of the Bible 
made by seventy-two learned 
Jews, and hence called the Sep- 
tuagint, or version by the seventy. 
(See Scriptures.) 

Modern Alexandria is built on 
the ruins of the ancient city. It 
contains a population of 15,000 
souls, and is merely the port of 
Cairo, where vessels touch, and 
exchanges of merchandise are 
made. It is one hundred and 
twenty-five miles northwest of 
Cairo, and is the residence of 
many European merchants and 
factors. 

ALEXANDRIANS. (Acts vi. 
9.) Jews from Alexandria, who 
were present at Jerusalem when 
Stephen preached there, and 
where they had a synagogue by 
themselves. Perhaps the Liber¬ 
tines and Cyrenians worshipped 
with them, or each sect or school 
might have had separate syna¬ 
gogues. In either case they are 
properly described as being cer¬ 
tain of the synagogue which is 
called the synagogue of the Alex¬ 
andrians , 4c. 

ALGUM. (See Almug.) 

ALIEN. (Ex. xviii. 3.) A fo¬ 
reigner or person born in another 
country, and not having the usual 
fights and privileges of the citi¬ 
zens of the country in which he 
lives. The force of the figure 
(Eph. ii. 12) is sufficiently ob¬ 
vious. 

ALLEGORY. (Gal. iv. 24.) A 
figure of speech, nearly resem¬ 
bling the parablo or fable, com¬ 
mon in the Scriptures and among 
all oriental nations. It personifies 
irrational and inanimate objects 
or moral qualities, and enforces or 
illustrates truth by their conduct 
or by a supposed conversation bo- 
tween them. Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s 



ALL 

Progress is a continued allegory ; 
so also are our Saviour’s discourses 
concerning the vine (John xv.) 
and the shepherd. (John x.) 

ALLELUIA, (Rev. xix. 1,) or 
HALLELUJAH, a Hebrew word 
signifying Praise ye the Lord. It 
was a common exclamation of joy 
and praise in the Jewish worship, 
and begins and concludes several 
of the Psalm3, as cvi., cxi, cxii., 
cxiii., cxvii., and cxxxv. 

ALMOND. (Gen. xliii. 11.) 
Called hazel. (Gen. xxx. 37.) A 
well-known fruit, and among the 
best that Canaan produced. The 
leaves and blossoms of the almond 
resemble those of the peach tree, 
and it is remarkable for its early 
maturity. A modern traveller 
states that it flowers in January 
and gives its fruit in April. The 



fruit is enclosed in a tough shell, 
and this again within a horny 
husk, which opens of itself when 
the fruit is ripe. It is cultivated 
with great care at the present day 
in England for its early and beau¬ 
tiful flowers, and in the south of 
Europe for exportation. Four 
hundred and fifty tons are annu¬ 
ally imported into Great Britain 
alone, paying a duty of $80,000. 
It blossoms on the bare branches, 

4 ,* 


ALO 

and hence the striking allusion 
of the poet:— 

The hope, in dreams of a happier hour, 
That alights on misery’s brow ; 

Springs out of the silvery almond flower 
That blooms on a leafless bough. 

The allusion in Eccl. xii. 5, is 
supposed to refer to the profuse 
flowering and white appearance 
of the almond tree when in blos¬ 
som. This snowy whiteness in 
the midst of winter affords a beau¬ 
tiful illustration of the hoary head 
of the aged man as he descend* 
to the grave. (Prov. xvi. 31.) 

ALMS, ALMS DEEDS. (Matt, 
vi. 1. Acts. ix. 36.) Deeds of 
charity, or (Luke xi. 41) the thing 
given in charity. The giving of 
alms is an important duty en¬ 
joined by the Scriptures, and the 
manner of it is prescribed with 
great precision. (See Acts x. 2- 
4, and the passages already cited.) 

ALMUG TREES, (1 Kings x. 
11,) or ALGUM TREES. (2 
Chron. ii. 8.) Two forms of the 
same word. One of the kinds of 
timber which Solomon ordered 
from Tyre for the building of the 
temple. Jewish historians de¬ 
scribe it as a fine, white, glossy 
wood, and it was used for musical 
instruments, and the ornamental 
work of the temple. Sandal 
wood answers best to the descrip¬ 
tion in the passage cited. Dr. 
Shaw supposes it to have been 
what we call the cypress, which 
is still used for harpsichords, and 
other stringed instruments. 

ALOES. (Sol. Song. iv. 14.) 
From the uses of the substance 
described by this term, we may 
infer that it was some strongly 
odoriferous plant essentially dif- 
fe^pnt from that which we know 
as the medicinal article under the 
same name. Probably different 
41 



ALT 

and Mark vi. 3, and Luke xxiv. 
10. (See James, Joses ) 
ALTAR. (Gen. viii. 20.) A 
structure appropriated exclusive¬ 
ly to the offering of sacrifices, un¬ 
der the Jewish law. (See Sacri¬ 
fices.) Though sacrifices were 
offered before the flood, the word 
altar does not occur until the time 
of Noah's departure from the ark. 

Among the ancient Egyptian 
pictures, lately discovered in the 
ruins of Herculaneum, wo have 
models of the altar. 



ALP 

substances or different species of 
the same substance may be de¬ 
noted by the same word. It is 
not likely that the drug called 
aloes was ever used for perfuming 
or embalming. (John xix. 30.) 

The term lign aloes, (Num. 
xxiv. 6,) is generally supposed to 
mean the aloe tree, whose quali¬ 
ties might strikingly illustrate the 
condition of the people of Israel. 
(See further, Natural Histo¬ 
ry of the Bible, article Lign 
Aloes.) 

ALPHA. (Rev. i. 8 ; xxi. 6, 
andxxii. 13.) Thenameofthe 
first letter of the Greek alpha¬ 
bet. “ ram Alpha and Omega , 
tl±e beginning and the end, the 
first and the last,” is the ex- 
ressive language employed 
y our Saviour in reference to 
himself. The phrase among 
the Jews to denote from first 
to last was, “ from Aleph to 
Tau,” which are the names of 
the first and last letters of the 
Hebrew alphabet. The ex¬ 
pressions in the passages cited 
denote the eternity and perfec¬ 
tion of the being to whom they 
are applied, and their force 
will appear by comparing them 
with Isa. xli. 4 ; xliv. 6, and xlviii. 
12 . 

ALPHEUS. 1. (Matt. x. 3; 
Mark iii. 18; Luke vi. 15; and 
Acts i. 13.) The father of the 
apostle James. 

2. (Mark ii. 14.) The father of 
Levi, or Matthew, as he is called. 
(Matt. ix. 9.) Many suppose that 
Alpheus was the same person as 
Cleopas, who is mentioned (John 
xix. 25) as the husband of Mary 
the sister of our Lord’s mother, 
and that hence James, his son^is 
called our Lord’s brother. (Com¬ 
pare Matt. xiii. 55, and xxviL 56, 
42 


Altars were of various forms, 
and at first very rude in their 
construction, being nothing more, 
probably, than a square heap of 
stones, or mound of earth. The 
altar on which Jacob made an 
offering at Bethel, was the single 
stone which had served him for 
a pillow during the night. (Gen. 
xxviii. 18.) The altar which Mo¬ 
ses was commanded to build, (Ex. 
xx. 24,) was to be made of earth. 
If made of stone, it was expressly 
required to be rough, the use of 
a tool being regarded as polluting. 
(Ex. xx. 25.) It was also to be 
without steps. (Ex. xx. 26. See 




























ALT 


also Deut. xxvil. 2-d and Josh, 
viii. 31.) 



The structures are different, as 
well as the apparent ornaments 
and uses. On most of them we ob¬ 
serve a projection upward at each 
corner, which represents the true 
figure of the horns. (Ex. xxvii. 
2 ; 1 Kings ii. 28; Rev. ix. 13.) 
They were probably used to con¬ 
fine the victim. (Ps. cxviii. 27.) 

The altars required in the Jew¬ 
ish worship were, (1.) The altar 
of burnt-offering, or the brazen 
altar, in the tabernacle in the 
wilderness. Thisaltar stood direct¬ 
ly in front of the principal en¬ 
trance, as seen in the figure under 
the article Tabernacle. 

It was made of shittim-wood, 
seven feet and six inches square, 
and four feet and six inches high. 
It was hollow, and covered or 
overlaid with plates of brass. The 
horns (of which there was one on 
each corner) were of wood, and 
overlaid in the same way. A 
grate or net work of brass was 
also attached to it, either to hold 
the fire or to support a hearth of 
earth. (Biblical Antiquities, 
vol. ii. ch. ii.) The furniture of 
the altar was all of brass, and 
consisted of such articles as a 
6bovel to remove the ashes from 
the altar, and a pan to receive 
them; the skins or vessels for re- 


ALT 

ceiving the blood of the victims, 
and hooks for turning the sacri¬ 
fice. At each corner was a brass 
ring, and there were also two 
staves or rods overlaid with brass 
which passed through these rings, 
and served for carrying the altar 
from place to place. 

The fire used on this altar was 
perpetually maintained. It was 
kindled miraculously, and the 
flame was cherished with the most 
devoted care. It was also a place 
of constant sacrifice : fresh blood 
was shed upon it continually, and 
the smoke of the burning sacrifice 
ascended up towards heaven with¬ 
out interruption. 

In the first temple, (which in 
its general plan was constructed 
after the pattern of the tabernacle 
in the wilderness, that being a 
tent and this a house,) the altar 
of burnt-offering stood in the same 
relative position as in the taber¬ 
nacle. It was much larger, how¬ 
ever, being thirty feet square and 
•fifteen feet high ; its particular 
plan being appointed expressly 
by divine authority. (1 Chron. 
xxviii. 11-20.) And in the se¬ 
cond temple it occupied the same 
position, though it was still larger 
and more beautiful than in the 
first. 

2. The altar of incense, or the 
golden altar, stood within the holy 
place, and near to the inmost veil. 
(Ex. xxx. 1-6.) It was made of 
the same wood with the brazen 
altar, and was eighteen inches 
square, and three feet high. The 
top, as well as the sides and horns, 
was overlaid with pure gold, and 
it was finished around the upper 
surface with a crown or border of 
gold. Ju-st below this border four 
golden rings were attached to each 
side of the altar, one near each 
43 














AMA 


corner. The staves or rods for 
bearing the altar passed through 
these rings, and were made of the 
same wood with the altar itself, 
and richly overlaid with the same 
precious metal. 

Upon this altar incense was 
burned every morning and every 
evening, (see Incense,) so that 
it was literally perpetual. (Ex. 
xxx. 8.) Neither burnt-sacrifice, 
nor meat-offering, nor drink-offer¬ 
ing, was permitted upon this al¬ 
tar, nor was it ever stained with 
blood, except once annually, when 
the priest made atonement. (Lev. 
xvi. 18, 19.) 

AMALEK. (Gen. xxxvi. 16.) 
He was the son of Elipliaz, and 
grandson of Esau. Some have 
supposed him to be the father of 
the Amalekites, but they are men¬ 
tioned as a powerful people long 
before the birth of Amaljk. (Gen. 
Xiv. 7.) The Arabians have a 
tradition that he was the son of 
Ham. 

44 


AMA 


AMALEKITES 
(1 Sam. xv. 6.) A 
powerful people, but 
of uncertain origin 
and residence. They 
are called (Num. 
xxiv. 20) the first of 
all the nations. They 
were signally defeat¬ 
ed in a contest with 
the children of Israel 
atRephidim; and for 
their guilt in oppos¬ 
ing the progress of 
God’s people, they 
became objects of 
his terrible judg¬ 
ments. They were 
afterwards defeated 
and repulsed by Gi¬ 
deon, ( Fudg. vii. 22,) 
and by Saul, (1 Sam. 
xv.) and by David, (1 Sam. xxx.;) 
till at last the word of the Lord 
was fulfilled to the very letter, and 
their name was blotted from the 
earth. (1 Sam. xxx. 17, and 1 
Chron. iv. 43.) 

‘AMANA. (Sol. Song iv. 8.) 
A southern peak of one of the 
mountains of Lebanon ; probably 
so called from a river of that 
name which flowed from it. 

AMASA. (1 Chron. ii. 17.) A 
son of Jether, who is elsewhere 
called Ithra. (2 Sam. xvii. 25.) 
Absalom placed him at the head 
of his troops in the rebellion 
against his father David ; but he 
was defeated by his cousin Joab. 
Afterwards, David recognising 
the relationship between them, 
not only pardoned Amasa, but 
made him captain of his host in 
the room of Joab. 

On the revolt of Sheba, David 
required Amasa to assemble the 
people within three days, and 
march with them to suppress it; 








AMA 

but in consequence of his delay, 
the king despatched Abishai with 
such an army as could be muster¬ 
ed at- the moment, and together 
with Joab they pursued after She¬ 
ba. At a particular place in Gi- 
beon, Amasa joined them. The 
envious and mortified Joab ap¬ 
proached to salute him, and seized 
the opportunity to give him a 
deadly wound. 

AMASAI. (1 Chron. vi. 25.) 
A Levite, and one of the sons of 
Elkanah. He was chief of a gal¬ 
lant party that came to the suc¬ 
cour of David, when he was fly¬ 
ing from Saul. (1 Chron. xii. 16- 
18.) David gladly availed him¬ 
self of their aid, and gave them 
commissions in his army. 

AMAZIAH, (2 Kings xiv. 1- 
20,) the eighth king of Judah, was 
son and successor of Jehoash. Ho 
commenced his reign in the twen¬ 
ty-fifth year of his age. His cha¬ 
racter is peculiarly described. He 
did that lohich wan right in the 
sight of the Lord, but not with a 
'perfect heart. (2 Chron. xxv. 2 ; 
2 Kings xiv. 3.) 

At the commencement of his 
reign, ho showed an outward re¬ 
gard to the law of the Lord; but 
power and ambition turned his 
heart; he fell into a snare, and 
was destroyed by the hand of 
violence. 

Amaziah resolved to make war 
upon the Edomites, who had re¬ 
volted from the kingdom of Judah 
several years before, (2 Kings 
viii. 20;) and for this purpose he 
raised an army of 300,000 men 
from among his own subjects, and 
hired 100,000 men of Israel, for 
whose services he paid a large sum. 
Before he commenced the expe¬ 
dition, however, he was directed 
by divine authority to dismiss his 


_ AMA 

hired soldiers, and was told that 
if he did not, he should certainly 
fall before his enemies. After 
some hesitation he dismissed the 
Israelitish army, and sent them 
home. 

Amaziah met the Edomites ia 
a place called the Valley of Salt, 
and gained a signal victory over 
them, slaying 10,000, and taking 
10,000 prisoners. Elated by his 
success, and forgetful of the God 
of battles who had given him the 
victory, he took the idols which 
his vanquished enemy had wor¬ 
shipped, and set them up as his 
own gods. The anger of the Al¬ 
mighty was kindled against him, 
and he sent a message to him, the 
very terms of which exposed and 
rebuked his sin. (2 Chron. xxv. 
15.) The king wat already har¬ 
dened enough to question the au¬ 
thority of God's messenger, and 
even to threaten him with death. 
He was warned of the destruction 
he would bring upon himself for 
his idolatry and unbelief. 

Thus given up to follow his 
own devices, he sought occasion 
of war with the king of Israel. 
The answer of the king to the 
challenge was given in the form 
of a fable, but was expressive of 
the utmost contempt, and con¬ 
tained at the same time a severe 
rebuke to the king of Judah for 
his pride and vain glory. 

Amaziah was not to be deterred 
from his purpose; and he met the 
army of Israel at Beth-shemesh 
in Judea, and it is said by Jewish 
historians, that the army of Ju¬ 
dah was suddenly seized with a 
panic, and fled before Israel with 
out a blow on either side. Aina- 
ziah, however, was taken prisoner 
by the king of Israel, who forth¬ 
with proceeded to break down a 
45 




AMB 

suction of the city wall six hun¬ 
dred feet in length, and marched 
through the breach; plundered 
the temple of its gold and silver 
vessels; seized the king’s trea¬ 
sures, and taking such hostages 
as he pleased, returned in triumph 
to Samaria, leaving the king of 
Judah to reflect on the folly and 
madness of rejecting the counsel 
and disobeying the command of 
God. (2 Kings xiv.) About fif¬ 
teen years after this disgraceful 
defeat, Amaziah fled from Jerusa¬ 
lem to Lachish to escape a con¬ 
spiracy ; but he was followed to 
the place to which he fled, and 
put to death, and his body taken 
back to Jerusalem, and buried 
with his fathers. (See Amos.) 

AMBASSADOR. (Isa. xxxiii. 
7.) A person "appointed to some 
business in a foreign country, in 
the transaction of which he repre¬ 
sents the government that ap¬ 
points him. (2 Chron. xxxii. 31.) 
The word is figuratively used (2 
Cor. v. 18-20) to denote those who 
are sent forth, by divine authori¬ 
ty, to proclaim the terms of par¬ 
don and eternal life to the rebel¬ 
lious and condemned subjects of 
God’s government. 

AMBASSAGE. (Luke xiv. 32.) 
A public message. The term may 
include the messenger or ambas¬ 
sador as well as his message. 

AMBER. (Ezek. i. 4, 27, and 
viii. 2.) A beautiful bituminous 
substance, susceptible of a fine 
polish, and presenting several 
colours, though chiefly yellow and 
orange. It is found in Prussia 
and near the shores of the Baltic 
sea. In the passages cited, the 
allusion is simply to the colour of 
amber, and does not imply that it 
is indestructible by fire. Some 
suppose that it was a composition 
46 


AMM 

of several metals and not a simple 

substance. 

AMEN. (Deut. xxvii. 15.) This 
word, though variously used, has 
substantially the same meaning. 
It is an affirmative response, and 
is used to denote assent, or entire 
acquiescence. (Deut. xxvii. lb- 
26.) It is sometimes translated 
verily, and was frequently used 
by our Saviour when he was about 
to utter some distinct, important, 
and solemn truth. Its repetition, 
“ verily, verily, I say unto you,” 
strengthens the assertion. 

It was the custom among the 
early Christians for all the wor¬ 
shippers to say amen about the 
close of the prayer, or at the giv¬ 
ing of thanks. (1 Cor. xiv. 16.) 
And Jewish writers say, “there 
is nothing greater in the sight of 
God than the amen with which 
the Israelite answers.” The pro¬ 
mises of God are amen, because 
they are made sure and certain in 
Christ. (2 Cor. i. 20.) Amen is 
one of the titles of our blessed 
Saviour, (Rev. iii. 14,) as he is 
the faithful and true witness. 

AMETHYST. (Ex. xxxix. 12.) 
One of the most valuable of the 
precious stones. It has a variety 
of colours, though purple prevails. 

AMMINADAB. (Ex. vi. 23.) 
Aaron’s father-in-law. The allu¬ 
sion to the chariots of Ammina- 
dab, or Amminadib, (Sol. Song 
vi. 12,) may refer to the known 
beauty and swiftness of the vehi¬ 
cles of some famous chieftain, or 
charioteer of that period. 

AMMONITES, or children of 
AMMON, (Gen. xix. 38,) were the 
descendants of Benammi, a son 
of Lot, by incest. He was born 
in the neighbourhood of Zoar, but 
his posterity spread northwardly, 
and occupied the mountainous re- 



AMM 

gions of Gilead, between the riv¬ 
ers Arnon and Jabbok. Original¬ 
ly their possessions were bounded 
north by the river Jabbok, west 
by Jordan, south by Arnon, and 
stretched eastwardly into Arabia. 
The Amorites, under Sihon their 
king, expelled them from the 
richest part of their possessions, 
which lay between the two rivers; 
but Moses recovered it from tho 
Amorites, and divided it between 
Reuben and Gad. The western 
boundary of the Ammonites then 
became a branch of the river 
Jabbok, (on which their capital 
city, Rabbah or Rabbath-Ammon, 
stood) and the mountains of Gi¬ 
lead bounded them on the east, 
while the main stream of the Jab¬ 
bok continued to be their northern 
boundary, and the land of Moab 
the southern. This last is intend¬ 
ed by the kingdom of Ammon as 
used in the sacred history. 

The children of Ammon were 
gross idolaters. (Judg. x. 6.) 
Their chief idol was Moloch sup¬ 
posed to be the same with Baal, 
Milcom, <fcc. and their history is 
full of the judgments which their 
sins brought upon them, though 
they were spared, by God’s ex¬ 
press command, when Israel pass¬ 
ed by them from Egypt. (Deut. 
ii. 19; 2 Chron. xx. 10.) 

Three hundred years afterwards 
the king of the Ammonites made 
war upon tho Israelites, under the 
pretence that they had taken their 
land, (Judg. xi. 13,) and after a 
severe battle the Ammonites were 
routed with great slaughter. 

In tho beginning of Saul’s 
reign, (1 Sam. xi. 1,) tie Ammo¬ 
nites, under Nahash their king, 
attacked Jabesh-gilead; but pro¬ 
posed to spare the inhabitants 
provided they would all consent 


AMM 

to lose the right eye. During the 
time allowed for their answer, 
they collected a sufficient force to 
meet the Ammonites, and so com¬ 
pletely routed them, that two of 
them were not left together. 

Fifty or sixty years after this, 
one of the kings of the Ammo¬ 
nites died, and David, who seems 
to have been under some obliga¬ 
tion to him, sent a message of 
condolence to his son and succes¬ 
sor. This friendly act was not 
received kindly, and the messen¬ 
gers of David were grossly abused 
and insulted. (See Hanun.) Ex¬ 
pecting that David would attempt 
to revenge the insult, they obtain¬ 
ed large supplies of men from tho 
Syrians; and when David heard 
of their preparation for war, he 
sent Joab, with a chosen troop 
from the army of Israel, to meet 
them. The result was fatal to 
the Ammonites. They and their 
allies were subdued, and fled. 
Rabbath, their capital, and all the 
rest of their cities, were after¬ 
wards destroyed by the Israelites; 
the king’s crown was taken from 
his head and put on David’s head, 
and the people were reduced to a 
state of abject servitude. (2 Sam. 
xii. 29-31.) 

In this condition they remained 
till the reign of Jehoshaphat, 
when they united with the Moab¬ 
ites and others, and made war 
upon Judah, and were miracu¬ 
lously cut off. (2 Chron. xx.) Jo* 
tham fought and prevailed against 
them, and made them tributary 
for several years. The most 
dreadful judgments were threat¬ 
ened against them and their chief 
city, because they seized and oc¬ 
cupied a part of the territory of 
Israel, (Jer. xlix. 1-6;) and again, 
because they insolently triumphed 



AMM 

over the Israelites in the days of 
their captivity, (Ezek. xxv. 2-7, 
10;) and every threat was exe¬ 
cuted to the very uttermost, in 
due time, as profane history abun¬ 
dantly attests. They soon be¬ 
came extinct as a nation, and 
Origen, a writer of the third cen¬ 
tury, assures us, that in his time 
they were only known under the 
general name of Arabs. Where 
their capital once stood is now the 
village of Amman, twenty miles 
southeast of the modern town of 
Szalt. 

AMMON-NO. (See No.) 

AMNON (1 Chron. iii. 1) was 
the eldest son of David, and was 
guilty of violating the chastity of 
his half-sister, Tamar. (2 Sam. 
xiii.) David was very angry, 
though he did not punish Amnon; 
but his brother Absalom deter¬ 
mined to revenge the injury; and 
after cherishing his purpose for 
two years, he finally executed it 
in his house at a feast to which 
he had invited Amnon, with the 
rest of hi? father’s family. (See 
Absalom.) 

AMON. (2 Kings xxi. 18-26.) 
The fourteenth king of Judah and 
the son and successor of Manas- 
seh. He was a wicked king, and 
died in his own house by the 
hands of his servants, who con¬ 
spired against him. He was suc¬ 
ceeded by his son Josiah. 

AMORITES. (Gen. x. 16.) A 
Syrian tribe descended from Ca¬ 
naan, and among the most for¬ 
midable of the tribes with whom 
the Israelites contended. They 
were of gigantic stature and great 
courage, (Amos ii. 9,) and inha¬ 
bited one of the most fertile dis¬ 
tricts of toe countr}’, being bound¬ 
ed on three sides by the rivers 
Arnon, Jabbok, and Jordan. (See 
48 


AMO 

Ammonites.) The Israelites ask¬ 
ed permission of their king to 
travel through their territory, pro¬ 
mising to injure nothing, not even 
to draw water from their wells; 
but it was refused. The Amo- 
rites collected and attempted to 
oppose their progress, but were 
defeated, and their territory taken 
and divided between the tribes of 
Reuben and Gad. Some have 
supposed that there were two dis¬ 
tinct people or tribes called Amo- 
rites; but there seems to be no 
sufficient ground for the supposi¬ 
tion. 

AMOS. (Amos i. 1.) One of 
the lesser prophets, who lived in 
the reign of Uzziah king of Judah, 
nearly eight hundred years before 
Christ. Of course he was a con¬ 
temporary of Hosea. The place 
of his birth is not known; but 
while employed as a herdsman, 
he was divinely appointed to pro¬ 
phesy against Israel. Being dri¬ 
ven from Bethel upon the false 
representation made to the king 
by the idolatrous priest Amaziah, 
(Amos vii. 10-17,) he went to Te- 
koa, an obscure town ten or fif¬ 
teen miles south of Jerusalem. 
The time and manner of his death 
are uncertain. 

Amos, prophecy of, is the 
thirtieth in the order of the books 
of the Old Testament, and is full 
of interest and instruction. It 
has been remarked as a peculiar 
feature of this prophecy, that it 
abounds with illustrations drawn 
from husbandry, and the scenes 
of rustic life; but it certainly 
contains some of the most perfect 
specimens of sublime thought and 
beautiful expression that are to 
be found in any language. We 
may refer specially to chapters v. 
vii. and ix. 



AMP 

AMPIIIPOLIS. (Acts xvii. 1.) 

A city of European Turkey, ori¬ 
ginally founded by Cimon, the 
renowned Athenian general, (b. c. 
500,) and formerly the capital of 
Eastern Macedonia. It lies on 
the river Strymon, about seventy 
miles east of Thessalonica. It is 
now an obscure place, and is call¬ 
ed by the Turks, Emboli. 

AMRAPHEL. (Gen. xiv. 1.) 
The king of Shinar, (Gen. xi. 2,) 
or Babylonia, who confederated 
with other kings, and made war on 
Sodom and the other cities of the 
plain ; plundering them, and mak¬ 
ing prisoners of their inhabitants. 
Among the captives was Lot, 
Abraham’s nephew. (See Lot.) 

ANAII. (See Mules.) 

ANAK (Num. xiii. 22) was the 
eon of Arba, who gave the name 
of Kirjath-arba, or city of Arba, 
to what is otherwise called He¬ 
bron. (Josh. xiv. 15.) Anak had 
three sons, who were giants; and 
their children, who were called 
Anakims, were also remarkable 
for their stature and fierceness. 
In the time of Moses they occu¬ 
pied the territory between Hebron 
and Jerusalem, and were divided 
into several tribes or clans. (Josh, 
xi. 21, 22.) They were, however, 
cut off by Joshua and Caleb, and 
the Israelites entered into their 
possessions. The messengers who 
were sent forward by the Israel¬ 
ites to search tho land, reported 
themselves to be as grasshoppers 
in comparison with the children 
of Anak. (See Giants.) 

ANAMMELECII. (See Ad- 

RAMMELECH.) 

ANANIAS. 1. (Acts v. 1-10.) 
One of the professed converts to 
the Christian faith under the 
preaching of the apostles. When 
the disciples had thrown their 
5 I) 


ANA 

property into a common- stock, 
Ananias sold his estate, and 
brought a part of the purchase- 
money, pretending it was the 
whole proceeds of the sale. Be¬ 
ing charged by Peter with his 
flagrant and aggravated sin, he 
fell down dead upon the spot. Ilis 
wife Sapphira, who was privy to 
tho fraud of her husband, but ig¬ 
norant of his dreadful end, being 
asked for how much their estate 
had been sold, confirmed the false¬ 
hood which Ananias had told, and 
instantly met the same dreadful 
doom. 

2. (Acts xxiL 12.) A primitive 
disciple who lived at Damascus, 
and was commissioned to visit 
Paul soon after his conversion, 
and restore him to sight. The 
apostle tells us what took place 
on that occasion, and also speaks 
of Ananias as a devout man, and 
highly esteemed in the place of 
his residence. It is thought by 
many that he was one of the se¬ 
venty disciples, and that he died 
a martyr. 

3. (Acts xxiii. 2.) A Jewish 
high-priest. When Paul was com¬ 
mencing his defence bofore the 
Jewish sanhedrim, Ananias, who 
is called the high-priest, ordered 
him to be struck upon the mouth. 
The apostle, sensible of the vio¬ 
lation of his rights, rebuked the 
high-priest for his breach of tho 
very law he was appointed to ad¬ 
minister. Upon being reminded 
of the official character of Anani¬ 
as, as “ God’s high priest,” the 
apostle replied that he was not 
aware of his holding that office. 
But how could he be ignorant of 
so notorious a fact? asks the ca¬ 
viller. Profane history furnishes 
an answer which triumphantly 
vindicates the truth. In conse 

49 



4NA 


AND 


quence ot some misunderstanding 
between the Jews and Samari¬ 
tans, Ananias had been a few 
years before deposed from office, 
and sent a prisoner to Rome. 
Jonathan succeeded him as high- 
priest, but being murdered by 
Felix, there was an interval in 
which the office was vacant. Dur¬ 
ing this interval Paul was ar¬ 
raigned. On this occasion Ana¬ 
nias assumed the office of presi¬ 
dent of the sanhedrim, (having 
been formerly high-priest,j^but 
without any authority. Hence the 
force and propriety of the apos¬ 
tle’s answer. Ananias was one 
of Paul’s accusers before Felix, 
and had formed a design to way¬ 
lay and assassinate him ; but his 
murderous purpose was defeated. 
(Acts xxv. 3.) 

ANATHEMA. (1 Cor. xvi. 22.) 
In its usual acceptation it means 
the devoting of an animal, per¬ 
son, or place to destruction. 

Anathema maranatha is a 
Syriac exclamation, signifying, 
Let him he accursed wham the 
Lord curses. These were the 
words with which the Jews began 
the sentence of utter excommuni¬ 
cation ; not only cutting off the 
subject from their communion, 
but consigning him, as far as it 
was possible, to everlasting per¬ 
dition. The use of such a dread¬ 
ful curse by the apostle, shows in 
what light he regarded the sin of 
not loving our Lord Jesus Christ. 

ANATIIOTH. (Josh. xxi. 18.) 
A city of the tribe of Benjamin, 
situated a few miles north of Je¬ 
rusalem. It was the birth-place 
sf Jeremiah, (Jer. i. 1,) and the 
subject of one of his prophecies, 
(Jer. xi. 19-23,) as well as of 
Isaiah’s. (Isa. x. 30.) It is also 
an interesting placo in connection 
50 


with the Jewish history. (2 Sam. 
xxiii. 27 ; 1 Kings ii. 20; Neh. vii. 
27.) 

ANCHOR. (Acts xxvii, 29.) 
The anchor was formerly cast 
from the stern of the ship. In 
the passage cited, reference may 
be had to an anchor with four 
flukes or arms, such as are some¬ 
times used by boats in shallow 



water; or it may mean four dis¬ 
tinct separate anchors. The above 
represents a common anchor with 
two flukes or arms. There is a 
strong shank c, at one end of 
which are two arms b h, termina¬ 
ting in flukes a a. At the other 
end of the shank is the stock 
d, supplied with a ring to which 
a cable can be attached. The 
stock is designed to give such a 
direction to the falling anchor that 
one of the flukes shall enter itself 
firmly at the bottom. For a de¬ 
scription of the anchor, and an im¬ 
pressive illustration of its real and 
figurative uses, see The Anchor. 

ANDREW, (John i. 40,) the 
son of Jonas and brother of Simon 
Peter, was a native of Bethsaida, 
in Galilee,-and originally a disci¬ 
ple of John the Baptist, whom he 
left to follow oiir Saviour. When 
he had found the Messiah, lie 
forthwith sought his brother Si¬ 
mon, and brought him to Jesus, 
and soon after they both attach¬ 
ed themselves to the little band 
of his disciples, and followed bun 







AN 13- 

till the close jf his ministry. The 
events with which Andrew was 
particularly connected are record¬ 
ed in Matt. iv. 18-20; Mark xiii. 
3; and John i. 35-40; vi. 3-13; 
xii. 22. 

ANGEL. (Gen. xxiv. 7.) This 
word, both in the Greek and He¬ 
brew languages, signifies a mes¬ 
senger. The original word is often 
applied to men. (2 Sam. ii. 5; 
Luke vii. 24, and ix. 52.) When 
the term is used, as it generally 
is, to designate spiritual beings, 
it denotes the office they sustain 
as God’s messengers, or the agents 
by whom he makes known his 
will and executes the purposes of 
his government. 

Our knowledge of the existence 
and offices of such beings is de¬ 
rived wholly from revelation, and 
that rather incidentally. We 
know, from their residence and 
employment, that they must pos¬ 
sess knowledge and purity far be¬ 
yond our present conceptions; and 
the titles applied to them denote 
the exalted place they hold among 
created intelligences. 

Of their appearance and em¬ 
ployment we may form some idea 
from the following passages, viz. 
Gen. xvi. 7-11. Compare Gen. 
xviii. 2 ; xix. 2, with Heb. xiii. 2; 
Judg. xiii. 6; Ezek. x.; Dan. iii. 
28, and vi. 22 ; Matt. iv. 11; xviii. 
10, and xxviii. 2-7; Luke i. 19; 
xvi. 22, and xxii. 43 ; Acts vi. 15 ; 
xii. 9 ; Heb. i. 14; ii. 16; 2 Thess. 

i. 7: Rev. x, 1, 2. 6. 

Of their number s< me idea may 
be inferred from 1 Kings xxii. 
19; Ps. lxviii. 17; Dan. vii. 10; 
Matt. xxvi. 53; Luke ii. 9-14; 1 
Cor. iv. 9; Heb. xii. 22. 

Of their strength, we may judge 
from Ps. ciii. 20; 2 Pet. ii. 11; 
Rev v. 2; xviii. 21; xix. 17. 


ANG 

And we learn their ineonceii.. 
able activity from Judg. xiii. 20; 
Isa. vi. 2-6; Matt. xiii. 49; xxvi. 
53; Acts xxvii. 23; Rev. viii. 13. 

These are but a few of the lead¬ 
ing passages in which some inti¬ 
mations are given of this superior 
order of spiritual beings. There 
is also an order of evil spirits, 
ministering to the will of the 
prince of darkness, and both ac¬ 
tive and powerful in their opposi¬ 
tion to the will and government 
of God. (Matt. xxv. 41.) 

The above references, if ex¬ 
amined closely, will afford very 
satisfactory knowledge respecting 
the character, employment, <fcc. 
of the heavenly messengers. 

It may not be amiss to remark, 
however— 

1. That the expression (Matt, 
xviii. 10) seems to denote the re¬ 
lation which the children of God 
sustain to him, and of course to 
his people, and the watchful care 
and protection which they enjoy. 
The samo idea is suggested in 
other passages, as Ps. xci. 11, 12; 
Luke xv. 10; Acts xii. 15. 

2. The angels in heaven have 
never sinned, and are not there¬ 
fore partakers of the benefit of 
Christ’s blood, as men are. Yet 
it is obvious, that as this wonder¬ 
ful scheme of mercy and grace 
declares and illustrates the infi¬ 
nite glory of the divine attributes 
and perfections, so their concep¬ 
tions of the divine character are 
enlarged by the contemplation of 
it, and their happiness greatly in¬ 
creased. (Eph. iii. 10; 1 Pet. i. 
12 .) 

3. They will be the future com¬ 
panions of the heirs of salvation. 
(Heb. xii. 22, 23; Rev. v. 11, 
12 .) 

4. Angels are to sustain an im 

61 





ANG 

portant office in the future and 
final administration of God’s go¬ 
vernment on earth. (Matt. xiii. 
39; xxv. 31-33; 1 Thess. iv. 16.) 

5. Angels are not proper ob¬ 
jects of adoration. (Col. ii. 18; 
Rev. xix. 10.) 

Angel op ms presence (Isa. 
Ixiii. 9) by some is supposed to 
denote the highest angel in hea¬ 
ven, as “Gabriel who stands in 
the presence of God;” but others 
believe it refers to no other than 
the incarnate Word, the bright¬ 
ness of the Father’s glory, and 
not only the messenger of his pre¬ 
sence, but “the express image of 
his person.” 

Angel op the Loud (Gen. 
xvi. 7) is one of the common titles 
of Christ in the Old Testament. 
(Ex. xxiii. 20. Compare Acts 
vii. 30-32, and 37, 38.) 

Angel of the church. (Rev. 
ii. 1.) It is said that the minis¬ 
ter of the Jewish synagogue was 
called the angel of the church, 
because he addressed God in 
their behalf, and offered suppli¬ 
cations as their representative, 
messenger, or angel. Hence, the 
persons in charge of the seven 
churches of Asia are addressed as 
the angels of those churches re¬ 
spectively. 

Angel op light. (See Devil.) 

ANGER. (Ps. vii. 11, and xc. 
11.) A strong emotion, which is 
sinful or otherwise, according to 
its object and degree. When 
ascribed to holy beings, it is used 
figuratively, to denote high dis¬ 
pleasure at sin. In this sense 
good men may be angry and sin 
not, (Neh. v. 6; 2 Pet. ii. 7, 8;) 
and even God is said to be angry 
with the wicked every day. Anger 
is reckoned among chief sins, and 
as such is severely rebuked. (Eph. 
52 


ANN 

iv. 31; Col. iii. 8, and numerous 
passages in Proverbs.) 

ANISE, (Matt, xxiii. 23,) pro¬ 
perly Dill, or a plant of the same 
family with dill. It is a small 
annual plant growing wild and 
bearing littlo aromatic seeds. It 
grew abundantly in Judea, and 



the tithe of it was scrupulously 
paid by the Pharisees. “A Jew¬ 
ish writer says that the seed, the 
leaves and the stem of dill are 
subject to tithes.” (See Mint.) 

ANNA. (Luke ii. 36.) A de¬ 
scendant of Asher, and a prophet¬ 
ess. She was very constant in 
her attendance on the services of 
the temple. At a very advanced 
age, she listened to the prophetic 
blessing which Simeon uttered 
when he hold the infant Redeem¬ 
er in his arms, and joined in it 
with great fervour. 

ANNAS. (Luke iii. 2.) At 
the commencement of John’s min¬ 
istry, Caiaphas was high-priest of 
the Jews, and they had only one 
but it was customary often to con¬ 
tinue the title to one who had 
held the office, after he ceased to 
administer its functions. This 





ANO 


ANO 


was tne case with Annas. lie is 
mentioned first because he was 
oldest in years and office. Five 
of his sons had filled the office in 
succession ; and he was father-in- 
law to the incumbent at that time. 
When our Saviour was apprehend¬ 
ed by the Jewish rnob, he was 
carried before Annas first to se¬ 
cure tho favour and sanction of 
one who had great influence, and 
by him was sent in bonds to Caia- 
phas. (John xviii. 13-24.) 

ANOINT. (Gen. xxxi. 13.) The 
earliest use of this word in the 
sacred writings, is in the passage 
cited; and it signifies in that 
connection the pouring of oil upon 
the stone which Jacob had set up 
for a pillar. (Gen. xxviii. 18.) 

The anointing of persons, places, 
and things, with oil or ointment 
of a particular composition, was 
a mode of consecration prescribed 
by divine authority, and exten¬ 
sively practised among the He¬ 
brews. (Ex. xxviii. 41.) The 
ingredients of the ointment, em¬ 
bracing the most exquisite per¬ 
fumes and balsams, are minutely 
given, (Ex. xxx. 23-33,) and tho 
common use of it was expressly 
forbidden. (Ex. xxx. 33.) 

It was customarj 7 at festivals, 
and on other great and joj 7 ful oc¬ 
casions, to anoint the head with 
fragrant oils; hence, it became a 
sign of joy or happiness. This 
fact explains 2 Sam. xiv. 2; Ps. 
xxiii. 5; xcii. 10; Eccl. ix. 8; 
Matt. vi. 17. It is supposed that 
anointing was a daily custom. 
(Ruth iii. 3.) The anointing of 
kings and rulers h particularly 
prescribed, and we have frequent 
accounts of the process. (2 Sam. 
xix. 10; 1 Kings i. 39; xix. 15, 


16 .) 

The supposed 


manner of an Dint¬ 
s’* 


i lg is represented in the annexed 
cut. It was sometimes done pri- 



The Anointing of Aaron. 


vatoly by a prophet, (1 Sam. x. 
1; xvi. 1-13; 1 Kings xix. 16; 2 
Kings ix. 1—6,) and was a symbo¬ 
lical intimation that the person so 
anointed would at some future 
day ascend the throne. After the 
monarchy was established, the 
anointing was dono by the priest, 
(1 Kings i. 39,) probably in some 
public place, (1 Kings i. 32-34,) 
and, at least on one occasion, in 
the temple surrounded by the roy¬ 
al guards. (2 Kings xi. 12, 13.) 

It was common to anoint the 
person, or some part of it, (as the 
head, feet, hair, <fcc.) for the sake 
of health or cleanliness, or as a 
token of respect, and also in con¬ 
nection with religious observ¬ 
ances. (Matt. vi. 17 ; Luke vii. 46; 
John xii. 3.) When practised to 
show respect, the most expensive 
materials were used, and the cere¬ 
mony was performed in such a 
manner as to denote the most 
humble and submissive reverence. 

53 


















ANT 

The anointing of the sick with 
oil was also common. The heal¬ 
ing properties of oil are well- 
known, and though the cures 
wrought by the disciples of our 
Lord were obviously miraculous, 
they still employed the ordinary 
means of cure. (Mark vi. 13.) 
The apostolic direction (James v. 
14) respecting the anointing of 
the sick, shows us that, together 
with prayer, the appropriate 
tnoans of healing should bo em¬ 
ployed in dependence upon or in 
the name of tho Lord. This 
anointing, it will be observed, is 
commended with a view to its 
healing elfect, for which purpose 
it was in constant use among the 
Jews. Of course to employ it for 
the professed purpose of sanctify¬ 
ing the soul, or preparing it for 
death, is sinful and highly super¬ 
stitious. It is clear that the use 
of this passage to justify such 
practices is a gross perversion of 
language. 

The bodies of the dead were 
often anointed to preserve them 
from corruption. (Mark xiv. 8; 
xvi. 1, and Luke xxiii. 56.) 

The Anointed, or Messiah, 
who is constituted our high-priest 
and intercessor, was anointed with 
the Holy Ghost, of which the 
anointing of priests under the 
Jewish dispensation is supposed 
to be typical. (Ps. xlv. 7; Isa. 
Ixi. 1; Dan. ix. 24; Luke iv. 18, 
21; Acts iv. 27, and x. 38.) The 
terms anoint, anointe d, and anoint¬ 
ing, are employed also in a varie¬ 
ty of forms to illustrate the sanc¬ 
tifying influences of divine grace 
upon the soul. (2 Cor. i. 21 ; 1 
John ii. 20-27, Rev. iii. 18.) 

ANT. (Prov. vi. 6, and xxx. 
25.) A little insect, remarkable 
for industry, economy, and archi- 
54 


ANT 

tectural skill. They are called by 
an inspired writer “exceeding 
wise,” and Cicero was so filled 
with wonder at their wisdom, th:U 
he declared they must have mind, 
reason, and memory. . 

The account of the manner in 
which they collect grain and pre¬ 
vent it from germinating is en¬ 
tirely fanciful, as is also the sup¬ 
position that they lay up grain for 
winter. That they provide them¬ 
selves food in the season of it, is 
rightly inferred from their whole 
character and habits; and the re¬ 
proach of the sluggard is, that he 
lets the summer pass and the har¬ 
vest end, while he is indulging in 
sloth and idleness. (Prov. vi. 6.) 

That the ant is “exceeding 
wise” is evident from its history 
and habits, which have been in¬ 
vestigated by modern naturalists. 
Their habitations are constructed 
with regular stories, sometimes to 
the number of thirty or forty, and 
have large chambers; numerous 
vaulted ceilings, covered with a 
single roof; long galleries and 
corridors, with pillars or columns 
of very perfect proportions. 

The materials of their building, 
such as earth, leaves, and the 
fragments of wood, are tempered 
with rain, and then dried in tho 
sun. By this process the fabric 
becomes so firm and compact, that 
a piece may be broken out without 
any injury to the surrounding 
parts; and it is so nearly imper¬ 
vious, that tho longest and most 
violent rains never penetrate more 
than a quarter of an inch. 

They are well sheltered in their 
chambers, the largest of which is 
placed nearly in the centre of the 
building. It is much higher than 
the rest, and all the galleries ter¬ 
minate in it. In this apartment 



ANT 

they spend the night and the cold 
months, during which they are 
torpid or nearly so, and require 
not the food which they are fan¬ 
cifully supposed to lay up. 

To* illustrate their industry and 
immense labour, it is said that 
their edifices are more than five 
hundred times the height of the 
builders; and that if the same 
proportion were preserved be¬ 
tween human dwellings and those 
who build them, our houses would 
be four or five times higher than 
the pyramids of Egypt, the larg¬ 
est of which is four hundred and 
eighty feet in height, and requires 
a base of seven hundred feet 
square to support it The largest 
of one species of ant does not 
stand more than a quarter of an 
inch high, while their nests or 
houses are from twelve to twenty 
feet high, and large enough to 
hold a dozen men. It is scarcely 
necessary to say that the ant to 
which this article refers, is the 
Asiatic or South American ant, 
and not that insect which we 
know by the same name. 

ANTICHRIST. (1 John ii. 18, 
22.) This word occurs onlj in 
the epistles of John; and as ho 
uses it, it denotes— 

1. A great power that was to 
arise at a period succeeding the 
apostolic days, and which would 
oppose, with great virulence and 
blasphemy, the doctrines and dis¬ 
ciples of Christ. The same power 
is supposed to be meant in 2 
Thess. ii. 3, 8, 9; Rev. xvii. and 
xviii. 

2. False teachers who are hos¬ 
tile to the church of Christ, and 
to the spirit and precepts of his 
religion. In this sense the same 
thing is probably meant, (1 Tim. 
iv. 1,) and this antiohrist was in 


ANT 

the world in the days nf the apoa- 
tles. (1 John iv. 3.) 

Who is antichrist? has been § 
question of curious and not unin¬ 
teresting speculation for ages. 
The prevailing opinion seems to 
be, that the papal power is in¬ 
tended to be represented; and 
that the history of that power 
thus far corresponds very accu¬ 
rately in its principal features 
with the sure word of prophecy. 
For the grounds of this opinion, 
reference must be had to approved 
works on the prophecies. 

ANTIOCH. 1. (Acts xi. 26.) 
A city of this name was long the 
capital of Syria. It was situated 
on the banks of the Orontes, about 
equi-distant from Constantinople 
and Alexandria, and was once a 
place of great opulence and com¬ 
mercial enterprise. Its citizens en¬ 
joyed peculiar civil privileges,and 
it ranked as the third city of the 
Roman provinces. Paul and Bar¬ 
nabas preached here; and hero, 
too, the name Christian was first 
applied to the disciples, whether 
as a term of reproach or as a 
mere distinctive title, is not cer¬ 
tain. The same word occurs, Acts 
xxvi. 28, and 1 Pet. iv. 16. Ga¬ 
lileans or Nazarenes were terms 
of reproach ; but it is supposed the 
name Christian merely denoted 
the adherents of Christ, or the sup¬ 
posed Messiah. (See Christian.) 

The calamities which have be¬ 
fallen the city of Antioch are pro¬ 
bably without a parallol, both in 
respect to number and severity. 
It has been besieged and plun 
dered at least fifteen times, and 
in one instance 117,000 persons 
were slain or taken prisoners. 
Three times has it been visited 
with famine, twice with fire, and 
once with plague; and four times 



ANT 

was overthrown by an earth¬ 
quake, by one of which 25,000 
persons are supposed to have pe¬ 
rished. These visitations of God, 
connected with the sins and ido¬ 
latries of the people, have long 
since reduced the city to desola¬ 
tion. The splendid buildings of 
ancient times have given place to 
mean hovels, and a population of 
500,000 souls is reduced to 10,000, 
and these are wretched and mise¬ 
rable in the extreme. In 1822, 
an earthquake overwhelmed even 
the ruins of the city; so that it 
may be said, with the forcp of 
literal truth, that every thing re¬ 
lating to Antioch is past. Modern 
Antioch is situated twenty miles 
east of the Mediterranean, and is 
called by the Arabs, Antakia. 
Most of the houses are built of 
mud and straw, and the placo ex¬ 
hibits every appearance of misery 
and wretchedness. 

2. Antioch (Acts xiii. 14) was 
the name of the capital of the pro¬ 
vince of Pisidia, in Asia Minor, 
near to the modern Yalobach. 
Paul and Barnabas preached there, 
and we have a fuller abstract of 
one of Paul’s sermon-s at this 
place, than of any of the apostolic 
discourses. A violent persecution 
was raised against them, and they 
were compelled to flee for their 
lives. There were at least sixteen 
cities of the name of Antioch in 
Syria and Asia Minor. 

ANTIPATRIS. (Acts xxiii. 
31.) A town between Cesarea 
and Jerusalem, ten or fifteen miles 
from Joppa. It was founded by 
Herod the Great, and is distin¬ 
guished as the place to which 
Paul was conveyed by the Roman 
guard, to escape the conspiracy 
formed against him by the Jews, 
if ho had agreed to waylay him on 
56 


APE 

the following day, and put him t« 
death. 

APE. (1 Kings x. 22.) This 
animal, which bears a rude re¬ 
semblance to the human race, both 
in figure and physical capacity, 
was among the articles of mer¬ 
chandise imported from Ophir, in 
Solomon’s ships. It is supposed, 
however, by some that the word 
translated ape, was used as a ge¬ 
neric term. 



The Ape. 


The ape was an object of wor¬ 
ship among the Egpytians, and is 
still such in many parts of India. 
We have an account of a temple 
in India, dedicated to the worship 
of the ape, supported by seven 
hundred columns, not inferior to 
those of the Roman Pantheon. 
An ape’s tooth was found by the 
Portuguese when they pillaged 
the island of Ceylon many years 
since, and so desirous were they 
to redeem it as an object of de¬ 
vout worship, that the kings of 
the country offered nearly seven¬ 
ty-five thousand dollars for it. 

In other temples of India, as 
travellers inform us, not less thar. 
10,000 apes are maintained as sa¬ 
cred animals. 




APE 

APELLES. (Rom. xvi. 10.) 
His origin and residence are un¬ 
known, but his character is given 
in three words ,—ajyjyroved in 
Christ. 

APHARSITES. (Ezra iv. 9.) 
This, with several other tribes 
named in the same connection, 
are supposed to have been colo¬ 
nies from Chaldea, Media, and 
Persia, who settled in Samaria. 

APHEK. 1. (1 Sam. iv. 1-11.) 
A city on the border of Judah 
and Benjamin, east of Jerusalem, 
where the Israelites were defeated 
by the Philistines, and the ark 
taken from them. This place is 
supposed to be the same which is 
elsowhere called Aphekah. (Josh, 
xv. 53.) 

2. A city in Issachar, situated 
in the plain of Esdraelon, not far 
from Shunem, in the vicinity of* 
which Saul and Jonathan fell in 
battle. (1 Sam. xxix. 1.) Its ex¬ 
act site is not known. 

3. A city in the tribe of Asher, 
also called Aphik, (Judg. i. 31,) 
situated in Lebanon, on the north¬ 
ern border of Canaan, where there 
is now a village called Aphka. It 
was here that Benhadad assem¬ 
bled the Syrians, (Josh. xii. 18; 
xiii. 4; xix. 30; 1 Kings xx. 26,) • 
27,000 of whom were destroyed 
by the falling of a wall. 

* APHIK AIL } See ab0V6 * 

APIIRAH. (See Ophrah.) 

APOLLONIA. (Acts xvii. 1.) 
A city of Macedonia, situated at 
the head of the Aegean Sea, on a 
promontory between Thessalonica 
and Philippi. 

APOLLOS. (Acts xviii. 24.) 
He was born at Alexandria, in 
Egypt, of Jewish parents, and is 
described as an eloquent man, 
uid mighty in the Scriptures. As 


APO 

one of John’s disciples, he had 
been instructed in the elements of 
the Christian faith, and came to 
Ephesus to speak and teach the 
things of the Lord. He was there 
more particularly and fully taught 
the doctrines of the gospel by 
Aquila and Priscilla, who had 
themselves been favoured with 
the company and instruction of 
Paul, at Corinth and on a voyage 
from that city to Ephesus. He 
afterwards went into Achaia, 
where his labours were crowned 
with abundant success. At Co¬ 
rinth, too, he was regarded as a 
powerful and successful preacher 
of the gospel. Paul had already 
been instrumental in establishing 
a church there, to the care of 
which Apollos succeeded. (1 Cor. 
iii. 6.) The members of it were 
divided into parties, some being 
particularly partial to Paul, others 
to Apollos, and others still to Ce¬ 
phas. The rebuke of the apostle 
(1 Cor. i. 12) is directed against 
these partialities, in all which the 
power and grace of God seemed 
to be overlooked or disregarded. 
It has been remarked as an ex¬ 
emplary trait of character of these 
two eminent apostles, that the 
contention of their respective 
friends and admirers had no effect 
on their love and respect for each 
other. They both refrained from 
visiting the church while it was 
distracted with such prejudices 
and partialities, though a worldly 
ambition might have selected it 
as the field and the season of self 
aggrandizement. 

APOLLYON. (See Abapdon.> 

APOSTLE. 1. (Matt. x. 2.) 
This term was given, originally, 
to the twelve chief disciples of 
our Lord. Their names were, 
Siiiox Pis ter, Axdrew. J.ame3 
57 




API* 

and John, (sons of Zebedeo;) 
Philip, Bartholomew, Thomas, 
Matthew, James, and Lebbeus, 
who is also called Judas or Jude, 
(sons of Alpheus;) Simon, the 
Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot. 
Christ’s charge to them is recorded 
in Matt. x. 5-42, and is worthy 
to bo diligently studied. The cir¬ 
cumstances of their history, as far 
as they are known, will be found 
under their respective names. 

After the ascension of the Re¬ 
deemer, we find the names of 
eleven of the apostles repeated, 
as among those who were engaged 
in prayer and supplication at Je¬ 
rusalem, for the descent of the 
Spirit; and Matthias is also 
named, he having been appointed 
in the place of Judas Iscariot. 

The office and commission of 
apostles were remarkable in the 
following particulars(1.) They 
were all required to have been eye 
and ear witnesses of what they tes¬ 
tified. (John xv. 27; Acts i. 21, 22, 
and xxii. 14, 15; 1 Cor. ix. 1, and 
xv. 8; 1 John i. 3.) (2.) The}' were 
all called or chosen by our Saviour 
himself. (Luke vi. 13; Gal. i. 1.) 
Even Matthias is notan exception 
to this remark, as the determina¬ 
tion of the lot was of God. (Acts 
i. 24-26.) (3.) They wore inspired. 
(John xvi. 13.) (4.) They had the 
power of miracles. (Mark xvi. 20 ; 
Acts ii. 43 ; Ileb. ii. 4.) 

2. The term apostle is applied 
to our Saviour, (Ileb. iii. 1,) and 
with singular propriety, as in the 
character of Messiah he is empha- 
lica ly the sent of God. 

APOTHECARY. (See Per¬ 
fume.) 

APPAREL. (See Clothes.) 

APPEAL. (Actsxxv.il.) By 
the Roman law every accused 
citizen had a right to carry his 
■ 58 


APP 

cause before the emperor at Rome, 
by appeal from the judgment of 
the magistrate. 

APPII-FORUM. (Acts xxviii. 
15.) The place where Paul met 
several of his brethren from Rome, 
when he was on his way to that 
city as a prisoner. It was about 
fifty miles from Rome. The place 
is now called Piperno, and is on 
the Naples road. The name is 
derived from the eircumstance 
that it is on the Appian way; a 
road leading from Rome to Capua, 
which was made by Appius Clau¬ 
dius; and that it contained a forum 
or market-place, to which pedlars 
and petty merchants resorted in 
great numbers. 

APPLES, APPLE TREE. (Sol. 
Song ii. 3; Joel i. 12.) It is ge¬ 
nerally agreed that these terms 
refer to the citron tree, and its 



Citron. 

fruit. The proper apple tree is 
very rare in the East, and its fruit 
is destitute both of beauty and 
fragrance, and in both these re¬ 
spects ill Accords with the allu¬ 
sions to it in the sacred writings- 




AQU 

(See Biblical Antiquities, vol. 
i. p. 33.) 

Apples of gold in pictures 
of silver (Prov. xxv. 11) is a 
figurative expression, comparing 
delicious fruit in silver baskets, 
or salvers curiously wrought like 
basket work, and perhaps repre¬ 
senting animals or landscapes, to 
seasonable advice wisely and 
courteously administered. 

Apple of the eye. (Prov. vii. 
2 ; Zech. ii. 8.) In these pas¬ 
sages reference is had to the keen 
sensibility of the ball of the eye. 
The same figure is used (Deut. 
xxxii. 10, and Ps. xvii. 8) to dc- 
uote the most complete protection 
and security. And in Lam. ii. 
18, the phra'se “ apple of thine 
eye” is figuratively used for tears. 

AQUILA. (Acts xviii. 2.) A 
Jew born at Pontus, in Asia Mi¬ 
nor. Being driven from Rome 
by a decree of the government re¬ 
quiring all Jews to leave that 
eity, he and his wife Priscilla 
came to Corinth, and were dwell¬ 
ing there at the time of Paul’s 
first visit to that city. (Acts 
xviii. 1.) They were of like oc¬ 
cupation, (tent makers,) and Paul 
was received and hospitably en¬ 
tertained at Aquila’s house ; and 
they also accompanied him from 
Corinth to Ephesus. On some 
occasion they rendered Paul very 
important service, and a very 
warm friendship existed between 
them. (Rom. xvi. 3-5. SeeApoL- 

LOS.) 

AR, (Num. xxi. 28,) or RAB- 
BAH-MOAB, the chief town of 
Moab, was situated twenty or 
twenty-five miles south of tho 
river Arnon. It is called Rabbah 
or Ureat, as the chief town of the 
Ammonites was called Rabbah- 
Ammon, and by the Greeks it 


ARA 

was called Areopolis. Its present 
name is El-Rabbi, and modern 
travellers have discovered two co¬ 
pious fountains near the ruins ot 
the ancient city. (Num. xxi. 15.' 

ARABIA. (1 Kings x. 15.) A 
word of vague and general im* 
port. For the present purpose it 
may be described as lying in West- 
em Asia, south and southwest of 
Judea. It is fifteen hundred miles 
from north to south, and twelve 
hundred from east to west, or 
about four times tho extent of the 
kingdom of France. It is bound¬ 
ed north by Syria, east by the 
river Euphrates and the Persian 
gulf, south by the Indian ocean, 
and west by the Red sea, Pales¬ 
tine, and part of Syria. It is de¬ 
scribed in three divisions, the 
name of each being indicative of 
the face of the soil, and its gene¬ 
ral character:— 

1. Arabia Deserta (or the 
desert) is a wide waste of burn¬ 
ing sand, with here' and there a 
palm tree, and a spring of brack¬ 
ish water. This was the country 
of the Ishmaelites, and is inha¬ 
bited by the modern Bedouins. 

% Arabia Petrea (or rocky) 
comprehends what was formerly 
the land of Midian. The Edom¬ 
ites and the Amalekites also dwelt 
here, and a very powerful and in¬ 
dependent tribe of Ishmaelites. 
It was a land of shepherds, and 
the scene of some of the most in¬ 
teresting events in the history of 
man. Horeb and Sinai were 
within its bounds. 

3. Arabia Felix (or happy) 
was an exceedingly fruitful land. 
Tho inhabitants, who claim their 
descent from Shem, wero unlike 
the shepherds and robbers who 
occupied the other districts. They 
had permanent abodes, supported 
59 



AKA 

themselves by agriculture and 
commerce, and once possessed a 
high degree of wealth and refine¬ 
ment. 

It is supposed that many of the 
articles mentioned in Ex. xxx. 
23, 24, particularly the balm, were 
imported from Arabia; and even 
at this day, caravans of merchants, 
the descendants of the Cushites, 
Ishmaelites and Midianites, are 
found traversing the same deserts, 
conveying the same articles and 
in the same manner, as in the 
days of Moses! 

It has been said, that if any 
people in the world afford, in their 
history, an instance of high anti¬ 
quity, and great simplicity of 
manners, the Arabs surely do. 
Coming among them, one can 
hardly help fancying himself sud¬ 
denly carried back to the ages im¬ 
mediately succeeding the flood. 
Of all nations, the Arabs have 
spread farthest over the globe, and 
in all their wanderings have pre¬ 
served their language, manners, 
and peculiar customs, more per¬ 
fectly than any other nation. 

They have various traditions 
respecting scripture personages 
and events. 

ARAD. (Judg. i. 16.) A city 
in the southern border of Judea, 
whose king opposed the passage 
of the children of Israel, and even 
took some of them prisoners, for 
which they were accursed and 
their city destroyed. 

ARAM. (See Syria.) When 
this word is coupled with some 
other, as Aram-Maachah, it means 
the “ Syrians of Maachah,” and 
«o of other similar cases. 

ARARAT. (Gen. viii. 4.) A 
district of country lying near the 
centre of the kingdom of Armenia. 
It contained several cities, which 
60 


ARA 

were the residence of the succefl 
sive kings and governors of Ar¬ 
menia, and hence the word Ararat 
is often applied to the whole king¬ 
dom. The word translated the 
land of Armenia, (2 Kings xix. 
37; Isa. xxxvii. 38,) is, in the 
original, Ararat In the north- 
east part of Armenia is a range 
of mountains, on the summit of 
which the ark rested. It is call¬ 
ed Agridah by the Turks. There 
are two peaks about seven miles 
apart, the highest of which is 15,- 
000 feet (and a late French tra¬ 
veller says 16,000 feet) above the 
level of'the sea, and is perpetual¬ 
ly covered with snow. A modern 
traveller says of it, that when 
viewed from the plain below, one 
would think that the highest 
mountains of the world had been 
piled upon each other, to form 
this one sublime immensity of 
earth, and rocks, and snow; this 
awful monument of the antedilu¬ 
vian world; this stupendous link 
in the history of man before and 
since the flood. Once the popu¬ 
lation of the whole wide world 
was embraced in one small fami¬ 
ly, and that family inhabited this 
spot. All the animal tribes were 
assembled here,—birds, beasts, 
reptiles, and insects. But one 
language was then spoken. Here, 
too, the bow of the covenant was 
set; and here was erected the first 
altar, after the dreadful catas¬ 
trophe of the destruction of the 
world. The immediate vicinitj 
of the mountain is inhabited bj> 
Koords, a savage tribe of Moham¬ 
medans. And since the last wai 
between Russia and Persia, the 
Russian boundaries have been so 
extendedasto embrace Ararat; and 
now Russia, Persia, and Turkey 
m«et at that mountain. (See Map.) 















- 




. 













Ararat 






































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































AKA 


Vest. 


ARA 



There has been much contro¬ 
versy as to the fact whether the 
ark rested on this mountain, 
chiefly in consequence of the 


phraseology of Gen. xi. 2, which 
has been supposed to denote that 
the place where the ark rested 
was east of the plain of Shinar, 
61 





















ARA 

whereas the Ararat of Armenia Is 
west of it. But this difficulty is 
altogether imaginary, for we are 
not told the direction of the route 
which Noab and his family took, 
as if it had been said, they “ jour¬ 
neyed from east to icest , and came 
to a plain/’&c. The phrase, from 
the east, signifies in the original, 
before, in respect both to time and 
place ; so that the expression 
only means that in their first ge¬ 
neral migration from Ararat, they 
came to a plain, <ftc. This view 
of the case is confirmed by Jew¬ 
ish historians, and the prophet 
Jeremiah (Jer. li. 27) speaks of 
Ararat as one of the countries of 
the north, from which an invading 
force should come upon Babylon ; 
and this correctly describes the 
situation of Ararat, in Armenia: 
it is almost due north from Baby¬ 
lon. (See Biblical Geography, 
p. 304.) 

ARAUNAH, or ORNAN, (2 
Sam. xxiv. 16,) was a Jebusite, 
who lived at Jerusalem, and own¬ 
ed a threshing-place or floor, 
whore the temple was afterwards 
built. In consequence of the sin 
of David, the king, a pestilence 
was sent through the nation, which 
was sweeping off its inhabitants 
at the rate of 70,000 in a day. An 
angel was seen hovering over the 
threshing-floor of Araunah, with 
his arm lifted up for the destruc¬ 
tion of Jerusalem. David was 
humbled, and confessed his sin, 
and God, by one of the prophets, 
directed him to go to that spot 
and build an altar there unto the 
Lord. He obeyed, and when he 
came to the spot and made known 
his business, Araunah refused to 
receive any thing for it, but offer¬ 
ed it to him, together with oxen 
for sacrifices, and the timber of 
62 


ARC 

the threshing instruments for fuel 
David refused to receive them as 
a gift, as he would not offer to tho 
Lord that which had cost him no¬ 
thing. He therefore bought the 
oxen for fifty shekels of silver, (2 
Sam. xxiv. 24,) and the whole 
place for six hundred shekels of 
gold, (1 Chron. xxi. 25,) and of¬ 
fered his sacrifices, Svhicli were 
accepted, and the plague stayed. 

ARBA. (See Hebron.) 
ARCHANGEL. (1 These, iv. 
16.) The prince or chief of an¬ 
gels. Michael is called the arch¬ 
angel, (Jude 9,) and it is gene¬ 
rally believed that a created, 
though highly exalted, being is 
denoted by the term, and not Him 
“ whose goings forth have been 
from, of old, from everlasting,” 
(Micah v. 2.) 

ARCHELAUS. (Matt. ii. 22.) 
A son of Herod the Great. On the 
decease of his father, (the same 
year that our Saviour was born,) 
Archelaus succeeded to the go¬ 
vernment of Judea, and reigned 
there when Joseph and Mary, 
with the infant Jesus, were re¬ 
turning from Egypt, whither they 
had gone to escape the fury of 
Herod. Archelaus, however, was 
much like his father in the ma¬ 
lignity of his temper, and they 
were therefore still afraid to re¬ 
turn. 

ARCHER. (Gen. xxi. 20.) 
One who is skilled in the use of 
the bow and arrows,(see cut p. 63,) 
as Ishmael and Esau were. (See 
Armour.) 

ARCHI. (Josh. xvi. 2.) A 
town on the southern border of 
Ephraim, between Bethel and 
Beth-horon the nether. It is ce¬ 
lebrated as the birth-place of 
Hushai, David’s friend. (Sea 
Hushai.) 

» 





ARC 



Roman Archer. 

ARCTURUS. (Job xxxviii. 32.) 
The name of a star, or more pro¬ 
bably a constellation, in the north¬ 
ern heavens. Some have supposed 
that Jupiter and his satellites 
were intended in the allusion of 
the poet. 

AREOPAGITE, AREOPA¬ 
GUS. (Acts xvii. 19, 34.) The 
title of the judges of the supreme 
tribunal of Athens. The name is 
derived from Areopagus, (the hill 
of Mars,) which signifies either 
the court itself, or the hill or spot 
on which it was held. It was a 
rocky elevation almost in the cen¬ 
tre of the city. The tribunal that 
assembled here had particular 
cognizance of all blasphemies 
against the heathen gods; and 
therefore Paul, who so pointedly 
condemned the idolatries of the 
city, while ho urged tho n to seek 
and serve Jehovah as the only 
living and true God, was esteem¬ 
ed “ a setter forth of strange 
gods,” and was brought before 
the Areopagus for trial, lie there 


A1U 

exhibited the sin an 1 folly of idol 
worship with such power that 
Dionysius, one of the judges, and 
Damaris, and several other per¬ 
sons, believed his testimony. 

Tho place supposed to. have 
been Mars' hill is now covered 
with the rubbish of spacious build¬ 
ings; not improbably the ruins 
of the palace of Dionysius, and 
the house of the archbishop, both 
of which were built after the esta¬ 
blishment of the Christian reli¬ 
gion in Athens. 

It is said that the sessions oi 
the Areopagus were held only in 
the night, that the minds of the 
judges might not be distracted or 
biassed by extraneous objects. 

ARETAS. (2 Cor. xi. 32.) The 
king of Syria, at the time the go¬ 
vernor of Damascus attempted to 
apprehend Paul. (Acts ix. 24, 
25.) 

ARGOB. (Deut. iii. 4.) A dis¬ 
trict of Baskan, the kingdom of 
Og, belonging to the half tribe of 
Manasseh. It lay east of Jordan, 
near the sea of Galilee, and con¬ 
tained sixty fortified cities. The 
governor of this place is supposed 
to be intended in 2 Kings xv. 25. 

ARIEL (Ezra viii. 16) was tho 
name of one of Ezra’s chief men. 
The original word means “ the 
lion of God,” and Jerusalem being 
the chief city of Judah, whose 
emblem was a lion, (Gen. xlix. 
9,) the word Ariel is applied to 
that city. (Isa. xxix. 1.) 

ARIMATHEA. (See Rama.) 

ARISTARCHUS (Acts xix. 
29) was a Macedonian, and one 
of those who accompanied Paul 
to Ephesus, and shared his la¬ 
bours there. He was nearly kill¬ 
ed in the tumult which Demetrius 
excited in that city, and it is said 
that ho was finally beheaded 
63 






ARK 

Rome. Paul alludes to him both 
as his fellow labourer and fellow 
prisoner. (Col. iv. 10; Philem. 
24.) 

ARK. (Gen. vi. 14,) The ves¬ 
sel constructed by Noah, at God’s 
command, for the preservation of 
himself and family, and a stock 
of the various animals, <fec., when 
the earth was devastated by the 
flood. 

It was four hundred and fifty 
feet long, seventy-five in breadth, 
and forty-five in height; and was 
designed, not to sail, but only to 
float, when borne up by the wa¬ 
ters. It had lower, second, and 
third stories, besides what, in 
common vessels, is called the hold. 

™ A door was placed in the side, and 
it had also a window' made of 
some translucent substance for 
the admission of light. (See 
Teacher’s Assistant, to vol. iii. 
Union Questions, pp. 40, 41.) 

The ark was constructed of go¬ 
pher wood, and covered with bi¬ 
tumen or pitch, to exclude water, 
as tar is now used for the like 
purpose. The bitumen now found 
in the East, as we are told by tra¬ 
vellers, is so like the Stockholm 
pitch, that they can be distin¬ 
guished from each other only by 
the peculiar smell and superior 
hardness of the bitumen. 

It is doubtful where the ark 
was built, and also how much 
time was employed upon it. On 
the latter point the weight of opi¬ 
nion is, that it was from one hun¬ 
dred to one hundred and twenty 
years; the former period being in¬ 
ferred from comparing Gen. v. 
32, and vii. 6; and the latter 
from comparing Gen. vi. 3, with 
1 Pet. iii. 20 

The form of the ark is supposed 
to have been an oblong square, 
64 


ARK 



Ark. 


with a flat bottom and sloping 
roof; and the particular construc¬ 
tion of it has been the subject of 
much curious, not to say useless, 
speculation. To show the vari¬ 
ance of opinions, it may be enough 
to say, that in the single point of 
the number of apartments, the 
computation has been varied from 
seventy-two to four hundred. 
Some of the results of modern in¬ 
vestigations have, however, been 
highly valuable. The caviller has 
sometimes started difficulties re¬ 
specting the capacity of the ark 
to contain what the sacred history 
informs us was put into it; and it 
has also been asked where Noah 
could have acquired skill sufficient 
to construct such a vessel for such 
a purpose. On this point, how¬ 
ever, the degree of skill is in itself 
conclusive evidence of its origin ; 
for after the most accurate com¬ 
putations by those best versed in 
ship-building, and supposing the 
dimensions given in the sacred 
history to be geometrically exact, 
it is found that the vessel, in ali 
its known parts and proportions, 
is in perfect accordance with the 
received principles of naval archi¬ 
tecture. And on the subject of 
capacity , the point has been satis¬ 
factorily established, that upon 
the smallest estimate of the cubit 
measure, the ark was fully ade¬ 
quate to the purpose for which it 
was prepared; and that beside® 
all the room occupied by the per- 




















ARK 

eons and things which the sacred 
history informs us were preserved 
in it, there was space for many 
species of animals which proba¬ 
bly existed then, and were pre¬ 
served in the ark, but which have 
now become extinct. There can 
bo no doubt, therefore, that the ark 
was proportioned with mathema¬ 
tical precision to its contents. 

Ark of the covenant. (Ex.xxv. 
10.) A small chest, constructed 
for a specific purpose, by the ex¬ 
press command of Jehovah. It 



was three feet and nine inches in 
length, and two feet three inches 
in width and height. It was made 
of shittim wood, and covered with 
plates of gold. A border or crown 
of gold encircled it near the top, 
and it was surmounted by the 
mercy-seat, which was of solid 
gold, and answered the purpose 
of a cover or lid to the ark. On 
each end of the mer;y-seat was 
placed a golden image represent¬ 
ing a cherub facing inwards, and 
bending down over the ark. Two 
rings of gold were attached to the 
bodj of the ark on each side, 
6* E 


ARK 

through which passed the staves 
or poles that were used in carry¬ 
ing it from place to place. These 
were made of the same wood 
with the ark, and were overlaid 
in the same manner. This ark 
contained, 1. A golden pot, in 
which the three quarts of manna 
were preserved. (Ex. xvi. 33.) 
2. Aaron’s rod, which miracu 
lously budded and blossomed ana 
yielded fruit all at once, (Num. 
xvii. 8;) and, 3. The tables of 
the testimony, or the tables of 
the ten commandments, written 
with the finger of God, and con¬ 
stituting the testimony or evidence 
of the covenant between God and 
the people. (Deut. xxxi. 26.) 
Hence it is sometimes called the 
ark of the testimony, and some¬ 
times the ark of the covenant. (Ex. 
xxxiv. 29, and xl. 20; Ileb. ix. 3, 
4.) The apparent contradiction 
between Heb. ix. 3, 4, and 1 Kings 
viii. 9, maybe reconciled either by 
supposing (what is not improba¬ 
ble) that the contents of the ark 
were different at the different peri¬ 
ods referred to, or that the phrase, 
“wherein” in Hebrews, refers not 
to the ark, but to the remote an¬ 
tecedent, viz. “ the tabernacle 
which is called the holiest of all.” 

On the mercy-seat which sur¬ 
mounted the ark rested the awful 
and mysterious symbol of the di¬ 
vine presence. (Lev. xvi. 2; 
Num. vii. 89.) For a very full and 
interesting description of the ark 
of the covenant, and its contents, 
Ac., and also of the cherubim and 
Shechinah, or the manifestation 
of God’s presence, see Biblical 
Antiquities, vol. ii. ch. ii. 50-53. 

After the children of Israel had 
passed the Jordan, whose waters 
divided at the approach of the 
ark, (Josh. iii. 14-17 ) the taber- 
65 


























ARK 

nacie was set up at Gilgal, and 
this sacred vessel remained in it 
for a season. It was then remov¬ 
ed to Shiloh, where it was sta¬ 
tionary between three and four 
hundred years, (Jer. vii. 12-15;) 
and being then taken out and 
borne before the army, it fell into 
the hands of the Philistines, at 
the defeat of the Israelites near 
Aphek. (1 Sam. iv.) The Phil¬ 
istines took it to Ashdod, and 
placed it by the side of their idol 
god Dagon. (1 Sam. v.) But 
being taught in a very surprising 
manner that their profane use of 
the ark was highly displeasing to 
God, they returned it by God’s 
direction, and with signal tokens 
of divine oversight, to the people 
of Israel, by whom it was lodged 
at Kirjath-jearim. (1 Sam. vi. 
and vii.) When David had fixed 
his residence at Jerusalem, the 
ark was removed thither with sa¬ 
cred ceremonies, and kept until 
the temple was prepared to receive 
it. (1 Kings viii. 1-11; 1 Chron. 
xv. 25-28;) on which occasion it 
is supposed the one hundred and 
thirty-second psalm was written. 

The second temple did not con¬ 
tain the ark: whether it was seiz- 
' ed among the spoils when the city 
was sacked, or whether it was 
secreted and afterwards destroyed, 
does not appear. The Jews think- 
it will be restored when their 
Messiah appears; but the pro¬ 
phet, (Jer. iii. 16,) if they would 
believe his testimony, would end 
this and many similar delusions. 

Wherever the Jews dwelt or 
wandered, they always worship¬ 
ped towards the place where the 
ark of the covenant rested. (Dan. 
vi. 10.) 

ARKITE. (Gen. x. 17A The 
Arkites were a branch of the fa- 
66 


ARM 

mily of Canaan which settled in 
Phenicia and Syria. The ruins 
of the city which they are sup¬ 
posed to have inhabited are now 
to be seen at Arka, twenty-five 
miles north of Tripoli, and direct¬ 
ly opposite the northern extremi¬ 
ty of Lebanon. 

ARM. (1 Sam. ii. 31.) Me¬ 
taphorically used for strength, 
power, or protection, (Ex. vi. 6; 
Isa. Iii. 10;) in which last passage 
allusion is made to the custom of 
making the arm bare by throwing 
it out of the loose garment or fold, 
when engaged in close combat, so 
that its strength and action might 
be free and unembarrassed. 

ARMAGEDDON. (Rev. xvi. 
16.) The mountain of Megeddon, 
or Megiddo, a c\ty at the foot of 
mount Carmel, and noted for 
scenes of carnage. (2 Kings xxiii. 
29, 30; Judg. v. 19.) 

ARMENIA. (2 Kings xix. 37.) 
An inland country at the eastern 
extremity of Asia Minor, four 
hundred and thirty miles from 
east to west, and about three hun¬ 
dred from north to south. It has 
the Mediterranean on the south¬ 
west, the Black Sea on the north¬ 
west, and the Caspian Sea on the 
east, and its western boundary is 
about six hundred miles east of 
Constantinople. The Euphrates, 
the Tigris, and other rivers rise 
within the boundaries of Arme¬ 
nia. (See Map, p. 67.) It is di¬ 
vided into fifteen provinces, of 
which the central one is called 
Ararat. In this province was the 
mountain on which the ark rested, 
and here was the usual residence 
of the imperial court; hence this 
province is intended by the term 
Armenia in thp Scriptures, and 
not the whole kingdom. Two 
of our American missionaries 




ARM 


West. 


ARM 



East. 


(Messrs. Smith and Dwight) some 
years since, explored this inte¬ 
resting country, and their ob¬ 
servations are published in two | 


volumes, entitled Researches in 
Armenia. 

ARMIES, or HOSTS. (1 Sam. 
xvii. 10.) The armies of the Is- 
67 


























ARM 


ARM 

,*aclites embraced the whole male 
adult population of the country, 
(Num. i. 2, 3 ; xxvi. 2,) and when 
occasion required, the entire body 
was readily mustered. (Judg. xx. 
1-11; 1 Sam. xi. 7, 8.) This ac¬ 
counts for the prodigious numbers 
which were often assembled. (2 
Chron. xiii. 3; xiv. 9. See art. 
War.) The soldiers received no 
wages, and each man armed and 
supported himself. Hence their 
campaigns were short, and gene¬ 
rally terminated by a single bat¬ 
tle. Horses were not used, it is 
supposed, until Solomon’s time. 
The manner of declaring war, and 
the character and occupation of 
exempts, are minutely stated. 
(Deut. xx. 1-14; xxiv. 5.) And 
for a very interesting sketch of 
the whole military system of the 
Jews, see Biblical Antiquities, 
vol. i. chap. viii. $ 6. 

ARMORY. (Sol. Song iv. 4.) 
The place in which armour was 
deposited in times of peace. (Jer. 
1. 25.) 

ARMOUR. (1 Sam. xvii. 54.) 
Weapons or instruments of de¬ 
fence. These were in general the 
shield, or buckler, the target, the 
coat of mail, the greaves, and the 
helmet. 

1. The shield or buckler , (1 
Kings x. 17; Ezek. xxvi. 8,) was 
probably one of the earliest pieces 
of armour, for allusion is often 
made to it by the earliest writers. 
(Gen. xv. 1; Ps.*‘V. 12; xvdii. 2; 
xlvii. 9.) It was of various sizes, 
and usually made of light wood, 
and covered with several folds or 
thicknesses of stout hide, which 
were preserved and polished by 
frequent applications of oil, (Isa. 
xxi. 5,) and often painted with 
circles of various colours or figures. 
(Nah. ii. 3.) Sometimes osiers, or 
68 



The Shield. The Spear. The Battle-axe 
The Bow and Arrows. 


reeds woven like basket-work, 
were used to stretch the hide upon, 
and sometimes the shield was 
made either entirely of brass or 
gold, or covered with thick plates 
of those metals. (1 Kings xiv. 
26, 27.) It was of various forms 
but generally circular or oblong. 

The shield was held by the left 
arm. The hand passed through 
under two straps or thongs placed 
thus, X, and grasped with the fin¬ 
gers, another small strap near the 
edge of the shield, so that it was 
held with great firmness. (See cut 
on p. 71.) A single handle of wood 
or leather in the centre, was used 
in later times. The outer surface 
was made more or less rounding 
from the centro to the edge, and 
being polished smooth, made the 
arrows or darts glance off or re¬ 
bound with increased force; and 
the edges were armed with plates 
of iron, not only to strengthen 
them, but to preserve the perish¬ 
able part from the dampness while 
lying upon the gri und. In times 







ARM 

of engagement, the shields were 
either held above the head, or 
they were placed together edge to 
edge, and thus formed a continu¬ 
ous barrier. 

2. The target (1 Sam. xvii. 6) 
was a larger sort of shield, the re¬ 
lative weight of which may be in¬ 
ferred from 1 Kings x. 16, 17. It 
is usually mentioned by the sacred 
writers in connection with heavy 
arms, while the shield is spoken 
of with the sword, dart, and other 
light arms. It probably resem¬ 
bled the great shield of the Ro¬ 
mans, which in some cases was 
four feet high, and two and a half 
feet broad, and so curved as to fit 
the body of the soldier. 



3. The coat of mail, 1 Sam. 
xvii. 5,) or habergeon, (Neh iv. 
16 ; Job xli. 26,) or breast-plate, 
(Rev. ix. 9,) covered the body 
upon and below the breast and 
back. It consisted of two parts, 
and was fastened together at the 
sides. We are told that Goliath’s 
coat of mail weighed five thou¬ 
sand shekels of brass, or nearly 


ARM 

one hun ired and sixty pounds. 
It was probably formed of layers 
of brass, one upon the other, like 
the scales of a fish. Sometimes 
the coat of mail was made of 
wicker-work, covered with a brass 
plato. As it was the principal 
and most complete part of the ar 
mour, it is a most appropriate em¬ 
blem of defence and safety. (Isa. 
lix. 17 ,* Eph. vi. 14.) 

4. Greaves, or boots, (1 Sam 
xvii. 6,) were for the protection 
of the legs. They are mentioned 
only as a part of the armour of 
Goliath, and were not probably in 
common use among the Hebrews, 
though they were almost universal 
among the Greeks and Romans. 



Helmets and Swords. 


I Helmet. (Ezek. xxvii. 10.) 
This was a cap, the diverse shape 
of which is seen in the annexed 
figure. It was made of thick tough 
hide, and sometimes of plated 
brass, (1 Sam. xvii. 38,) and usu¬ 
ally crowned with a crest or plume 
as an ornament. 

Armour-bearer. (Judg. ix 
69 
















ARM 


ARM 

54.) An officer 
selected by kings 
and generals frorr 
the oravest ot 
their favourites, 
whose service it 
was, not only to 
bear theirarmour, 
but to stand by 
them in danger 
and carry their 
orders, somewhat 
after the manner 
of adjutants in 
modern service. 

(1 Sam. xvi. 21, 
and xxxi. 4.) 

Arms were wea¬ 
pons or instru¬ 
ments of offence. 

They were the 
sword, the spear, 
or javelin, dart, 
or lance, the bow 
and arrow, the 
sling, the quiver, and the battle- 
axe. 

1. The sword. (Gen. xxvii. 40.) 
This was a short two-edged in¬ 
strument, resembling what wo 
call a dagger. It was carried in 
a sheath or scabbard, (Jer. xlvii. 
6 ; Ezek. xxi. 9, 30,) and suspend¬ 
ed to the girdle or belt. (Judg. 
iii. 16 ; 2 Sam. xx. 8.) 

2. The spear, (Josh. viii. 18,) 
or javelin, (Num; xxv. 7, 8,) or 
dart, (2 Sam. xviii. 14,) or lance, 
(Jer. 1. 42,) were different chiefly 
in length and size. The manner 
of using it is seen in the subjoined 
cut. The spear was a long wc xlen 
etaff, with a stout metal point at one 
end. The Greek spears were some¬ 
times twenty-five feet long, and 
the Arabs now use them fifteen feet 
long. They were required to be 
long enough to reach beyond the 
front rank, when used by those 

70 


X 

who were in the second rank. Th< 
lance was shaped and used lik< 
the spear, though probably a light¬ 
er weapon. The javelin was a 
short spear cast, as is supposed, 
with the hand. (1 Sam. xviii. 11.) 
The dart was still smaller than the 
javelin, and used in like manner. 

3. The arrow (1 Sam. xx. 36) 
was a slender missile, shot from 
a bow, as in modern days. (Gen, 
xxi. 16.) (See Archer.) It was 
used .in bunting, (Gen. xxvii. 3,) 
as well as in combat. (Gen.xlviii. 
22.) Those who used them were 
called archers. Arrows were ori¬ 
ginally made of reeds, and after¬ 
wards of any light wood. The 
bows were made of flexible wood 
or steel, (Ps. xviii. 34,) and the 
bowstring of leather, horse-haix 
or the tendons of animals A de¬ 
ceitful bew (Ps. lxxviii. 57) is 
either one which springe back 











ARM 



and wounds the archer himself, or 
one which, from weakness or other 
defects, fails to pro¬ 
ject the arrow. The 
point of the arrow 
was barbed like a 
fish-hook. (Psalm 
xxxviii. 2.) Job 
refers to the use of 
poisoned arrows, 

(Job vi. 4,) and fire 
was often convey¬ 
ed by the use of ju¬ 
niper wood, which 
kindled upon the 
combustible bag¬ 
gage or armament 
of the enemy. (Ps. 
xci. 5 ; cxx. 4.) It 
is said that the 
coals of the juniper 
wood are very hot, 
and it is known 
that the Phenici- 
ans and fin later 


ARM 

times) the Spaniards have used 
arrows for the like purpose. Ar¬ 
rows were used in divination. 
(Ezek. xi. 21.) 

Arrows were kept in a case or 
box called a quiver, which was 
slung over the shoulder in such a 
position, that the soldier could 
draw out the arrows when want¬ 
ed. The position of the quiver 
and bow is seen in a preceding 
cut. The drawing of the bow was 
a test of strength, and is still so 
among the Arabians. Hence the 
allusion in Ps. xviii. 34. 

4. The sliny (1 Sam. xvii. 40) 
was an early weapon of war, by 
which stones were thrown with 
great force and surprising accu¬ 
racy of aim. (Judg. xx. 15, 16.) 
This skill was shown in a remark¬ 
able degree by the Benjamites, 
who could employ either hand in 
its use with equal adroitness. The 
slingers ranked next to the arch¬ 
ers in efficiency. 



f 1 

































ARM 

5. The battle-axe (Jer. li. 20) 
was obviously a powerful weapon 
of war, but of its ancient form 
and manner of use we have now 
no knowledge. 

The term armour, and the va¬ 
rious offensive and defensive arti¬ 
cles comprised in it, are frequent¬ 
ly used figuratively in the Bible; 
and with remarkable force and 
eloquence in Eph. vi. 11-18, 
where the graces of the Christian 
character are represented as the 
armour of God, in which he clothes 
the believer, and by which ho is 
enabled to fight the good fight of 
faith with a steady and victorious 
arm. 

ARMY. (See War.) 

ARNON. (Deut. ii. 24.) The 
principal river east of Jordan, and 
originally the boundary between 
the Moabites and the Ammonites ; 
then between the Moabites and 
Amorites; and finally, between 
the Moabites and the tribe of Reu¬ 
ben. It is now called the Modjeb 
or Mujeb, and is about fifty miles 
long, emptying into the Dead sea. 
The current in winter is full and 
rapid, but in summer the channel 
is nearly dry. 

AROER. 1. (Deut. iii. 12, and 
iv. 48.) A city on the north bank 
of the river Arnon. It is now 
called Araayr. The term “ the 
city in the midst of the river,” 
(Josh. xiii. 9,) originate/ in the 
circumstance that the cuy stood 
partly on the bank and partly on 
an island formed by the river. 

2. Aroer before Rabbah (Josh, 
xiii. 25) is supposed to have been 
situated on the Jabbok, or river 
of Gad. 

ARPAD, ARPHAD. (Isa. x. 
9.) A city of Syria, always men¬ 
tioned m connection with Hamath, 
and probablv in the vicinity of 
72 


ASA 

Damascus, but its exact site i* 
now unknown. (Jer. xlix. 23 
Ezek. xxvii. 8. See Arvad.) 

ARTAXERXES. (Ezra iv. 7, 
and vii. 7; Neh. ii. 1.) A king 
of Persia, who reigned forty-seven 
years, and died four hundred and 
twenty-five years before Christ. 
In the seventh year of his reign 
he permitted Ezra to return into 
Judea, with such of his country¬ 
men as chose to follow him; and 
fourteen years afterwards he al¬ 
lowed Nehemiah to return and 
build up Jerusalem. (See Elisa- 
ma, pp. 187, 188.) 

ARTILLERY. (1 Sam. xx. 
40.) Any missive weapons, as ar¬ 
rows, lances, <&c. 

ARTS. (Acts xix. 19.) Pre 
tended skill in the practice of 
magic, astrology, &c. 

ARUMAH, or RUMAH. (Judg. 
ix. 41; 2 Kings xxiii. 36.) A vil¬ 
lage near Shechem, where Abime- 
lech lived. 

ARVAD. (Ezek. xxvii. 8-11.) 
Called also Arpad and Arphad, 
and by the Turks, Ro-ad. A 
small village on an island of the 
same name near the eastern shore 
of the Mediterranean, and twenty 
or thirty miles north of Tripoli. 
Modern travellers describe Arvad 
as a deserted ruin, though the site 
makes a fino appearance at a dis- 
tan co* 

ARVADITES. (Gen. x. 18.) 
The people of Arvad were called 
Arvadites, and in the time of 
Ezekiel were generally known as 
mariners and soldiers in the Sy¬ 
rian service. (Ezek. xxvii. 8-11.) 

ASA (1 Kings xv. 8j was son 
and successor of Abijam on the 
throne of Judah. He began his 
reign B. c. 955, and reigned for¬ 
ty-one years. Though educated 
in the principles of a false reli- 



t 


AbA 

gion, he showed, from the first, 
his decided opposition to idolatry, 
and even deposed his mother 
Maachnh because she had made 
un idol in a grove. The first part 
of his reign was peaceful, and he 
improved the opportunity to pu¬ 
rify his kingdom from idolatry, 
and to build and fortify several 
cities; and when Zerah, an Ethio¬ 
pian king, invaded his territories, 
with an army of a million of men 
and three hundred chariots, Asa 
met him with six hundred thou¬ 
sand, and defeated him. This 
memorable battle was fought at 
Mareshah. (2 Chron. xiv.) 

At the suggestion of Azariah, a 
prophet whom God specially de¬ 
puted for that purpose, Asa set 
about the reformation of every 
abuse in his kingdom, and ap¬ 
pointed a solemn festival of 
thanksgiving to God, at which 
all the people were assembled, and 
entered into a formal covenant 
with God. Baasha, king of Isra¬ 
el, finding his subjects too much 
disposed to go into Judah and 
dwell there, commenced fortifying 
Hamah, a place near the frontiers 
of both kingdoms, with.aview to 
cut off the passage of emigrants 
to Jerusalem, and other parts of 
Judah. Asa, though he had so 
long enjoyed the favour and pro¬ 
tection of God, was now tempted 
to forsake him. Instead of trust¬ 
ing in his almighty arm for deli- 
zeranee, as he had done in years 
past, he sent to Benhadad the 
king of Syria, and prevailed on 
him, even in violation of a treaty 
which existed between Benhadad 
and Baasha, to come to the help 
of Judah, against Israel. The 
Syrian king, won by the presents 
which Asa had sent him, imme¬ 
diately attacked and destroyed 
7 


ASH 

j several important cities of Israel 
Baasha, finding his kingdom thua 
invaded, abandoned the fortifica¬ 
tion of Hamah, that he might 
protect the provinces of the inte¬ 
rior from desolation. Asa seized 
the opportunity to demolish Ra- 
mah, and take away the stone and 
timber which were collected there, 
and use them in the building of 
his own cities. 

In the mean time, a prophet 
was sent to remind him of his sin 
and folly in forsaking the Lord 
his God and trusting to an arm of 
flesh, and to warn him of the pun¬ 
ishment which would come upon 
him for all these things. But the 
heart of Asa was already so alien¬ 
ated from God, that he was en¬ 
raged by the faithful message, 
and caused the bearer of it to be 
thrown into prison. 

lie was afterwards visited with 
a most distressing disease of the 
feet, but even this did not lead 
him to renew his trust in God. 
He died a. m. 3090, in the forty- 
first year of his reign ; and his bu¬ 
rial was attended with great pomp. 

ASAHEL. (2 Sam. ii. 18, 19.) 
A brother of Joab. (See Abner.) 

ASAPH (1 Chror xxv. 1, 2) 
was a celebrated musician, and 
one of the chief leaders of the tem¬ 
ple choir. Several of the psalms 
of David are entitled, a psalm of 
or for Asaph. (Ps. lxxiii. to 
Ixxxiii.) That these were not 
written by Asaph is evident from 
the fact that allusion is made in 
some of them to events which took 
place after his death. 

ASCENSION. (See Christ.; 

ASH. (Isa. xliv. 14.) A well 
known forest tree, of rapid growth, 
the wood of which was wrought 
into the images of idolatry. 
ASHAN. " (Jo«h. xv. 42 ) A 
73 



ASH 

fiiiy of Judah, situated about 
twenty miles southwest of Jerusa¬ 
lem, and probably the Chorashan 
mentioned 1 Sam. xxx. 30. 

ASHDOD. (Josh. xv. 47.) One 
of the five capital cities of the 
Philistines, called by the Greeks, 
and known in the New Testa¬ 
ment, as Azotus. ''Actsviii- 40.) 
It was situated on the Mediterra¬ 
nean, between Askelon and Ek- 
ron, fifteen or twenty miles north 
of Gaza. Here was the temple 
of Dagon, in which the Philis¬ 
tines placed the ark. The city 
was more than once captured. (2 
Chron. xxvi. 6; Isa. xx. 1.) A 
late traveller states that Ashdod 
is to be seen from an elevated 
spot near Joppa; and that it 
abounds with fine old olive trees, 
and with fruits and vegetables of 
every kind. 

ASIIDOTH-PISGAH. (Deut. 

iii. 17.) A city of the tribe of 
Reuben, which is elsewhere call¬ 
ed the springs of Pisgah. (Deut. 

iv. 49.) 

ASHER. (Gen. xxx. 13.) The 
son of Jacob, by Zilpah. He was 
one of the twelve patriarchs. The 
portion of the holy land assigned 
to his tribe was bounded by Phe- 
nicia on the west; mount Leba¬ 
non on the north ; mount Carmel 
and the tribe of Issaehar on the 
south, and the tribes of Zebulon 
and Naphtali on the east. His 
descendants are called Asherites. 
(Judg. i. 32.) 

ASHES. (Gen. xviii. 27.) To 
rover the head with aehes, or to 
sit in ashes, betokens self-abhor¬ 
rence, humiliation, extreme grief, 
or penitence. (2 San. xiii. 19; 
Esth. iv. 3 ; Job ii. 8 ; Jer. vi. 26 ; 
Lam. iii. 16; Jonah iii. 6; Matt, 
xi. 21.) There was a sort of lye 
made of the ashes of the heifer, 


* ASH 

sacrificed on the great day of ex 
piation, which was used for cere¬ 
monial purification. (Num. xix. 
17, 18. See Heifer.; 

ASHKENAZ. (Gen. x. 3.) A 
grandson of Japhet, and the pro¬ 
bable ancestor of those who inha¬ 
bited a country of the same name, 
(Jer. li. 27,) lying along the east¬ 
ern and southeastern shore of the 
Black sea. The precise district 
is unknown. (See Minni.) 

ASIITAROTH. 1. A place 
(Josh. ix. 10) called Astaroth, 
(Deut. i. 4,) and Ashterofh Kar- 
nairn, (Gen. xiv. 5,) the word kar- 
naim meaning two-horned ,, and 
having reference to a heathen 
goddess, who was represented with 
a crescent, or two-horned moon. 
It was one of the chief cities of 
Bashan, and is supposed to be the 
same with the modern Mezaraib, 
on the route of the pilgrims from 
Damascus to Mecca. 

2. An idol; represented in the 
subjoined cut, (Judg. ii. 13,) called 



Astarte in a car, as represented at Sid<m, 

also Ashtoreth, the goddess of the 
Sidonians. It was much wor¬ 
shipped in Syria and Phenicia. 
Solomon introduced the worship 
of it. (1 Kings xi. 33.) The Phe- 
nicians called it Astarte. The 







Aim 

four hunched priests of Jezebel, 
mentioned 1 Kings xviii. 19, are 
supposed to have been employed 
in the service of this idol; and we 
are told that under this name 
three hundred priests were con¬ 
stant^ employed in its service at 
Hierapolis, in Syria, many ages 
after Jezebel’s time. This idol 
was also called the “ queen of 
heaven,” and the w irship was said 
to be paid to the “ h >st of heaven.” 
It is usually mentioned in connec¬ 
tion with Baal. 

ASHTORETH. (See preced¬ 
ing article.) 

ASIA. (Acts ii. 9.) Asia was 
not known to the ancients as one 
of the four grand divisions of the 
earth. Tho name was originally 
applied to a small district of Ly¬ 
dia, including perhaps Ionia and 
iEolis. The term was gradually 
enlarged in its application, until 
it embraced the whole of Asia Mi¬ 
nor, and finally denoted a large 
portion of the eastern division of 
the earth. 

The Asia of the Bible is a pe¬ 
ninsula, on the western or south¬ 
western side of the continent of 
Asia, which stretches into the Me¬ 
diterranean or Great sea, extend¬ 
ing east as far as the Euphrates, 
west to the islands of the sea,” (see 
Islands,) north to what is now 
called tho Black sea, and south to 
the Mediterranean or Great sea. 
It includes the provinces of Bi- 
tbpnia, Pontus, Galatia, Cappa¬ 
docia, Cilicia,, Pamphylia, Pisidia, 
Lycaonia, Phrygia, Mysia, Troas, 
Lydia, Lysia, and Caria. 

In the sense in which it is used, 
in Acts ii. 9; vi. 9; xix. lu, 22, 
26, 27 ,* 2 Tim. i. 15; 1 Pet. i. 1, it 
was the Roman proconsular Asia, 
anu comprehends but a portion of 
Asia Minor, viz. Phrygia, Mysia, 


ASP 

Caria, and Lydia. Within this 
territoiy the seven churches of 
Asia were situated. (Rev. i. 4, 
11.) In Acts xxvii. 2, the term 
Asia may represent Asia Minor, 
but even then it may refer only 
to the western coasts. In every 
other case it is so distinguished 
from other portions of Asia Mi¬ 
nor, or so immediately connected 
with Ephesus, as to lead to the 
belief that the Asia of which Ephe¬ 
sus was the capital (or proconsu¬ 
lar Asia) is intended. 

ASKELON. '(2 Sam. i. 20.) 
One of the “ fenced cities” of the 
Philistines. It was situated on 
the eastern shore of the Mediter¬ 
ranean, twelve miles south of 
Gaza. After the death of Joshua, 
it fell into the hands of the tribe 
of Judah. (Judg. i. 18.) At a 
short distance to the north is a 
small village called Scalona, evi¬ 
dently a corruption of the ancient 
name. 

ASP. (Deut. xxxii. 33.) A 
small but very poisonous serpent. 
(Rom. iii. 13.) Its venom is cruel, 
because it is so subtle and dead¬ 
ly, and requires an immediate 
excision of .the wounded part. 
For an infant child to play upon 
the hole of such a venomous rep¬ 
tile would seem to be most pre¬ 
sumptuous ; and hence the fore* 
and beauty of the figure used by 
the prophet, (Isa. xi. 8,) to repre¬ 
sent the security and peace of the 
Messiah’s reign. In Ps. lv?ii 4, 
5, and Eccl. x. 11, and Jer. v:ii. 
17, al'usion is made to that sin¬ 
gular phenomenon, the charming 
of serpents by musical sounds ; 
and the wicked are compared to 
the deaf adder, (or asp, l thatstop- 
peth her ear, and will not bo 
charmed. Whether the reptile is 
really deaf, or whether it obstructs 
75 



ASP 



Asp. 


its hearing, as it may easily do by 
laying one ear upon the ground 
and covering the other with dust 
or with its tail, is not important. 
It is enough that for some cause 
the effort to attract and turn it, is 
vain. All these phrases import 
that musical sounds may beguilo 
and disarm some serpents, 
but not others; or that the 
arts of the charmer may be 
effectual sometimes, but not 
always. The Arabians tell 
us that there are three classes 
of serpents, and in the first 
class they place those whose 
poison is so fatal as to cause 
death in three hours, and 
who are not subject to the 
power of the charmer; such, 
they say, are the basilisk 
and all kinds of asps. It is 
sufficient for the full force of 
the scriptural allusions, that 
there are serpents on whom 
the power of the charmer 
is often exerted in vain j 
serpents whoso stroke can¬ 
not be parried, and whose poison 
is death. 

ASS. (Gen. xxii. 3.) This ani¬ 
mal is among the most common 
mentioned in Scripture, and con¬ 
stituted a considerable part of the 
wealth of ancient times. (Gen. 
xii. 16, and xxx. 43; Job i. 3; 
xlii. 12.) Asses were sometimes 
so numerous as to require a spe¬ 
cial keeper. (Gen. xxxvi. 24 ; 1 
Chron. xxvii. 30.) Tho ass and 

re 


ASS 

the ox were the principal animals 
of burden and draft. (Ex. xxiii. 
12.) The domestic ass is indeed 
a most serviceable animal, and in 
some respects preferable to the 
horse. He subsists on very coarse 
food, and submits to the meanest 
drudgery. His skin is remark¬ 
ably thick, and is used at this day 
for parchment, drum-heads, me¬ 
morandum books, <fcc. Their usual 
colour is red or dark brown, but 
sometimes they are of a silver 
white, and these last were usually 
appropriated to persons of dignity. 
(Judg. v. 10.) So in Gen. xlix. 
11, the allusion to tho ass and 


Ass. 

the vine imports dignity and 
fruitfulness, and the continuance 
and increase of both in the tribe 
of Judah. There was a breed 
of asses far superior to those 
that were used in labour, and 
which are supposed to be referred 
to in most of the passages above 
cited. 

The female, or she-ass, was par¬ 
ticularly valuable for tho saddle, 
and for her milk, which was ex 














ASS 

.ensively used for food and for 
medicinal purposes. 

The ass was used in agricultu¬ 
ral labour, especially in earing 
■'ploughing) the ground, and 
treading it to prepare it for the 
seed. (Isa. xxx. 24, and xxxii. 
20.) The prohibition (Deut. xxii. 
10) might have been founded in 
part on the inequality of strength 
between the ox and the ass, and 
the cruelty of putting upon them 
the same burden ; but was intend¬ 
ed chiefly to mark the separation 
of the Jews from surrounding na¬ 
tions, among whom such an union 
of different beasts was not un¬ 
common. So serviceable and, in¬ 
deed, essential to man was this 
animal in ancient times, that to 
drive away the ass of the father¬ 
less is reckoned among the most 
atrocious acts of oppression and 
cruelty, (Job xxiv. 3,) as depriv¬ 
ing an orphan family of their only 
cow would be regarded at the 
present day. The attachment of 
this animal to its owner is among 
its remarkable characteristics. In 
this respect it closely resembles 
the dog. Hence the severity of 
die prophet’s rebuke. (Isa. i. 3.) 

The fact stated in 2 Kings vi. 
25, is designed to show that such 
was the extremity of the famine, 
that the people were not only will¬ 
ing to give an exorbitant price 
for a small and most undesirable 
portion of meat which they were 
not accustomed to eat, but, break¬ 
ing through all the restraints of 
religion and superstition, the fa¬ 
mished citizens seized with avi¬ 
dity this unsavoury and forbidden 
food. 

The ass, when dead, was tl rown 
into the open field, and that part 
ef his flesh which was not con- 
~umod by beasts and birds, was 

7* 


ASS . 

suffered to putrefy and decay. 
Nothing could be more disgrace¬ 
ful than to expose a human body 
in the like manner. (Jer. xxii. 
19, and xxxvi. 30.) 

Much vain discussion has arisen 
respecting the passage, Num. xxii. 
28. It would be as easy for the 
•Creator of both man and beast to 
take the power of speech from the 
former and give it to the latter, as it 
was at first to give it to the formei 
and withhold it from the latter 
The apostle (2 Pet. ii. 16) seerm 
to have received the history lik 
a little child, in the plain and ob¬ 
vious meaning of the language. 
(See Balaam.) 

A variety of opinions have been 
entertained respecting our Sa¬ 
viour’s entrance into Jerusalem. 
(Matt. xxi. 1-11,) whether it was 
under circumstances of great 
meanness and poverty, or with 
honour and royal parade. The 
prophecy in Zech. ix. 9, was ful¬ 
filled, and this is all that it con¬ 
cerns us to know. 

The Arabian ass has a light, 
quick step. In Persia, Syria, and 
Egypt, ladies are accustomed to 
ride on asses, and they are par¬ 
ticularly valuable in mountainous 
countries, being more sure-footed 
than horses. Their ordinary gait 
is four miles an hour. 

The ass in his wild or natural 
state is an elegant animal. It is 
often alluded to in the sacred 
writings. (Job xi. 12 ; xxiv. 5, 
and xxxix. 5-8.) They usually 
roamed in herds through barren 
and desolate districts. (Isa. xxxii. 
14; Hos. viii. 9.) One was re¬ 
cently taken in a pitfall in Astra- 
chan, and added to the Surrey 
Zoological collection in England. 
It is described as having a deer¬ 
like appearance, standing high on 



ASS 

the legs, very active, >f a silvery 
colour, with a dark b.-own streak 
along the back. 

ASSEMBLIES, masters of. 
(Eccl. xii. 11.) This phrase by 
itself is perfectly intelligible, and 
is supposed to refer to the leading 
men or master-spirits of the as¬ 
semblies of the wise and curious, 
w r hich wore often held in eastern 
countries, and where sages and 
philosophers uttered their weigh¬ 
ty- sayings. The application of it 
in the passage cited may be brief¬ 
ly set forth as follows. 

The preacher endeavoured to 
clothe the infinitely wise and per¬ 
fect doctrines which he taught in 
proper language. They were the 
words of truth, and were designed 
to prove quickening to the slug¬ 
gish soul as goads are to the dull 
ox. (Acts ii. 37.) They were re¬ 
ceived from theonegreatShepherd 
or Teacher, and came with great 
power as the sayings of the most 
wise and eloquent of their learned 
assemblies; and they would take 
hold of the hearts and consciences 
of men, holding them to the obe¬ 
dience of the truth, as nails dri¬ 
ven through a sound board firm¬ 
ly bind and fasten it where we 
will. 

ASSHUR. (Gen. x. 22.) The 
second son of Shem. He proba¬ 
bly gave name to the country cf 
Assyria. (Hos. xiv. 3 ; Mic. v. 6.) 
There is some doubt whether the 
reading of Gen. x. 11, should not 
be thus: “ Out of that land he 
'that is Nimrod, spoken of in ver. 
9) went forth into Asshur, or As¬ 
syria, and builded Nineveh.” At 
any rate, the weight of authority 
favours the position, that Nine¬ 
veh was founded by Nimrod. 

ASSOS. (Acts xx. lo.) A ma¬ 
ritime town of Troas, in the north 
78 


ASS 

of Mysia, and opposite the island 
of Lesbos, now called Beiram. 

ASSYRIA. (2 Kings xv. 19.) 
A most powerful empire of Asia 
the history of which, both in it* 
glory and in its overthrow, is most 
significantly told by the prophet. 
(Ezek. xxxi.) It was founded pro¬ 
bably by Nimrod, one hundred 
and twenty years after the deluge. 
(See Asshur.) In the most com¬ 
prehensive use of the term, it in¬ 
cluded all the countries and na¬ 
tions from the Mediterranean sea 
on the west, to the river Indus on 
the east. It is important to ob¬ 
serve that by the term Assyrians, 
in the sacred writings, is meant 
the people of Assyria proper, or 
the empire of which Nineveh was 
the chief city; by the Babyloni¬ 
ans, or Chaldeans, is meant the 
people of the country of which 
Babylon was the capital; and by 
the Syrians, the people of the 
country of which Zobah first, and 
afterwards Damascus, was the ca¬ 
pital, and whose south and south¬ 
eastern boundary was the land of 
Canaan. 

The early history of Assyria is 
involved in obscurity. We know 
from the sacred records that it 
was a powerful nation. (Num. 
xxiv. 22.) And its capital was 
one of the most renowned of the 
eastern world. (See Nineveh.) 
It fell into the hands of the Medes; 
the monarchy was divided be¬ 
tween them and the Babylonians, 
and the very name of Assyria was 
thonceforth virtually forgotten. 

ASSURANCE. 1. Of the un¬ 
derstanding, (Col. ii. 2,) is a full 
knowledge of divine things found¬ 
ed on the declaration of the 
Scriptures. 

2. An assurance of faith 
(Heb. x. 22) is a fi*m belief in 



AST 

Christ, as God has revealed him 
to us in the Scriptures, and an 
exclusive dependence on him for 
salvation. 

3. Assurance of hope (Hob. 
vi. 11) is a firm expectation that 
God will grant us the complete 
enjoyment of what he has pro¬ 
mised. 

ASTAROTH. (See Ashta- 

ROTH.) 

ASTROLOGERS. (Dan.ii.27.) 
A class of men who pretended to 
foretell future events by observing 
the motions of the heavenly bo¬ 
dies. 

A S U P P I M, house of. (1 
Chron. xxvi. 15.) Some one of 
the apartments of the temple 
where the stores were kept. 

ATAD. (See Abel-mizraim.) 

ATHALIAH. (2 Kings xj. 1.) 
The mother of Ahaziah. Ahab 
king of Israel, was her father. Om- 
ri king of Samaria, was her grand¬ 
father, and she married Joram or 
Jehoram king of Judah. The sa¬ 
cred biographer gives her a most 
odious and revolting character. 
She advised her own son in his 
wickedness, and after Jehu had 
slain him, (see Ahaziah,) she re¬ 
solved to destroy the children of 
her husband by his former wives, 
and then take the throne of Ju¬ 
dah. But Johosheba, a half sis¬ 
ter of Ahaziah, secured Joash, one 
of the children and heirs, and se¬ 
creted him and his nurse for six 
years. In the seventh year, every 
thing being prepared for the pur¬ 
pose, Joash, the young prince, 
was brought out and placed on 
the throne. Attracted by the 
crowd of people who had assem¬ 
bled to witness the ceremony, and 
unsuspicious of the cause, Atha- 
liah hastened to the temple. When 
the poouiace had assembled, and 


ATO 

when she saw the young king on 
the throne, and heard the shouts 
of the people, and found that all 
her ambitious designs were likely 
to be defeated, she rent her clothes 
and cried out, “ Treason ! Trea¬ 
son !” hoping probably to rally a 
party in favour of her interests. 
But she was too late. The priest 
commanded her to be removed 
from the temple, and she was 
taken without the walls of the 
city, and put to death. (See No¬ 
table Women of Scripture, art. 
Athaliah.) 

ATHENS. (Acts xvii. 15.) The 
capital of Attica in Greece, situ¬ 
ated on the Saronic Gulf, forty-six 
miles east of Corinth, three hun¬ 
dred southwest of Constantinople, 
and five miles from the coast. It 
was distinguished not only for 
political importance and military 
power, but for the eloquence, lite¬ 
rature and refinement of its inha¬ 
bitants. Paul visited it about 
a. d. 52, and found the people 
sunk in idolatry and idleness. He 
preached there, and took occasion 
to reprove their superstitions, for 
which he was summoned before 
the Areopagus. (See Areopagus. 
See Life of Paul, chap. viii. ix. 
and x.) 

ATONEMENT. (Lev. iv. 20; 
Rom. v. 11.) This word, in its 
popular sense, has a variety of 
significations, such as reconcilia¬ 
tion, satisfaction or reparation, 
and expiation. The word occurs 
often in the Old Testament, but 
only once in the New ; though the 
subject itself is presented, and il¬ 
lustrated, and magnified in every 
variety of form, and by sll the 
force of expression, botL in the 
gospels and in the epistles. (Rom. 
iii.-viii. and Heb. vii.-x. inclu¬ 
sive.) The word ransom ,'Jol? 

79 



ATO 

jtxxih. 24) might be rendered 
atonement, and is so rendered in 
the margin. (See also Num. xvi. 
46, and 2 Sam. xxi. 3.) 

The great atonement made for 
sin by the sacrifice of our Lord 
and Saviour Jesus Christ, consti¬ 
tutes the grand substantial prin¬ 
ciple of the Christian faith. The 
efficacy of it is such, that the sin¬ 
ner, though under the wrath of 
God and the condemnation of his 
just law, by faith in the atoning 
blood of Christ is brought into 
favour with God, is delivered from 
condemnation, and made an heir 
of eternal life and glory. 

The Hebrew word rendered 
atonement signifies covering, (Ps. 
xxxii. 1,) and the Greek version 
of this Hebrew word is translated 
propitiation in our Bible; and 
may denote either that our of¬ 
fences are covered, or that we are 
shielded and protected from the 
curse, Christ being made a curse 
for us. Generally, wherever the 
term occurs, a state of controver¬ 
sy, irreconciliation, or estrange¬ 
ment is implied ; and in relation 
to the party offended, it imports 
something done to propitiate. 
(Gen. xxxii. 20; Ezek. xvi. 63.) 
The idea of making an atonement 
is expressed by a word which sig¬ 
nifies to make propitiation ; and 
the apostles, in referring to the 
death of Christ, use those very 
terms which, in the Septuagint 
version of the Old Testament, are 
applied to legal sacrifices and their 
effect: thus representing the death 
of Christ, not only as a real and 
proper sacrifice, but as the truth 
and substance of all the Levitical 
types and shadows—the true, effi¬ 
cacious, and only atonement for 
sin, (1 John ii. 2, and iv. 10;) 
shewing that Christ is not only 
80 


AVE 

the being or agent by whom tlm 
propitiation is made, but was him¬ 
self the propitiatory sacrifice. 

After all the vain nhilosophy 
and ingenious speculations of men 
to destroy or modify this doctrine, 
which on the one hand reduces 
sinful man to the most humbling 
extremity, and on the other pro¬ 
poses to him a perfect and glori¬ 
ous salvation; the atonement 
made for him, by the self-sacrifice 
of Christ, remains, and will for¬ 
ever remain, the essential princi¬ 
ple of the gospel. It will forever 
illustrate the dreadful sinfulnesi 
of sin, the infinite purity, justice, 
and mercy of God, and the love 
of Christ which passeth know¬ 
ledge. No teacher of divine truth 
to sinful men can build a consist¬ 
ent or safe system of instruction 
on any other foundation than this. 
(Matt. i. 21, and xxvi. 28; Mark 
x. 45; John i. 29, and x. 10-18.) 
He who rejects the atonement, and 
tramples under foot the blood of 
the Son of God, can point out no 
way in which a sinner can escape 
the damnation of hell. 

A T T A L I A, (Acts xiv. 25, 
known now as Satalia or Setalie, 
a city of Pamphylia on the Medi¬ 
terranean, which was visited by 
Paul and Barnabas, on their tour 
through Asia Minor. 

AUGUSTUS. (Lukeii. 1.) The 
nephew and successor of Julius 
Cesar, and emperor of Rome, at 
the time of our Saviour’s birth. 
He reigned forty-one years, and 
was succeeded by Tiberius Cesar. 
(Luke iii. 1.) (See Cesar.) 

AVEN. 1. (Amos i. 5.) A 
plain in Syria, called also the Val- 
’.ey of Lebanon, because lying be¬ 
tween the two ranges of the moun¬ 
tains of Lebanon. (Josh. xi. 17.) 
The site of it is supposed to hav* 




AVE 

been where Baal-beck now is, 
thirty miles north of Damascus. 

2. (Hos. x. 8.) Bethel, which 
is sometimes called Bothaven, or 
house of iniquity, is here called 
Aven, or iniquity itself, to denote 
‘the extreme depravity which pre¬ 
vailed there. • 

3. (Ezek. xxx. 17. See On.) 

AVENGE, AVENGER. (Luke 

xviii. 8; 1 Thess. iv. 6.) Ven¬ 
geance is an act of justice ; re¬ 
venge is an act of passion. Hence 
injuries are revenged : crimes are 
avenged. The act of avenging, 
though attended with the inflic¬ 
tion of pain, is oftentimes an act 
of humanity, and always supposed 
to be an act of justice. God is 
avenged of his enemies, when he 
vindicates his own law, and go¬ 
vernment, and character, and pun¬ 
ishes their transgressions. An 
avenger is the agent or instru¬ 
ment by whom the avengement 
is visited on the offending party. 

Avenger of blood was a title 
given to one who pursued a mur¬ 
derer or manslayer, by virtue of 
the ancient Jewish law, to a venge 
the blood of one who had been 
murdered or slain. (See Cities 
of Refuge.) 

AVIM. (Josh, xviii. 23.) Sup¬ 
posed by some to be the same with 
the Hivites or Avites, who dwelt 
near Gaza, and who were sup¬ 
planted by the Philistines. 


BAA 

AVOUCH. (Deut. xxvi. 17, 
18.) To avouch, in this connec¬ 
tion. imports a solemn and dolib 
erate choice of God as a leader 
and portion, and an avowed de¬ 
termination to obey him; and on 
the part of God a solemn covenant 
to succour and exalt the Israelites 
as his people. 

AZARIAII. (2 Kings xiv. 21.) 
There are at least sixteen persons 
of this name mentioned in the 
Old Testament. The most dis¬ 
tinguished of them was Azariah, 
(called also Uzziah,) the son and 
successor of Amaziah, on the 
throne of Judah. He was in man} 
respects an excellent king ; but 
being elated by his prosperity, he 
aspired to execute the office of a 
priest, and to offer incense in the 
temple. In this he was resisted 
by the priests, and while enraged 
by their interference, the leprosy 
broke out upon his forehead, and 
remained upon him till the day 
of his death; so that he was 
obliged to spend the latter part 
of his life in solitude. (2 Chron. 
xxvi. 21.) 

AZEKAII. (Josh. xv. 35.) A 
place in the tribe of Judah, about 
twelve miles west of Bethlehem, 
and twenty southwards of Jeru¬ 
salem. The army of the Philis¬ 
tines encamped near this place at 
the time Goliath fell before David. 

AZOTUS. (See Ashdod.) 


BAA 


BAA 


B AAL, or BEL. (I Kings xviii. 

21 ; Isa. xlvi. 1.) The name 
by which several nations of the 
East worshipped the sun ; and 
which was also applied to other 
objects of idolatrous worship. An¬ 
cient writers tell us that the Phe- 


nicians supposed the sun to be th 
only lord of heaven, styling him 
Beel-Samen, which means lord of 
heaven. As he was worshipped 
under different forms in different 
places, ho was designated by add¬ 
ing the place—as Baal-Berith, 
81 










BAA 

Baal-Gad, Baal-Peor, meaning 
Baal of Berith or the Shechemites 
—Baal of Gad—and Baal of Peor 
or the Moabites; and these differ¬ 
ent names were all included under 
the general name Baalim. (1 
Kings xviii. 18.) 

Baai, Bel, or Belus was wor¬ 
shipped by the Carthaginians, 
Babylonians, Assyrians, and 
others; and some have supposed 
he was the same with Moloch, to 
whom the Ammonites made their 
cruel and bloody sacrifices. Hu¬ 
man victims were offered to Baal, 
as we learn from Jer. xix. 5. Ele¬ 
vated places were selected for his 
worship, and his priests and pro¬ 
phets wore very numerous. Some¬ 
times the tops of the houses were 
devoted to this purpose. (2 Kings 
xxiii. 12; Jer. xxxii. 29.) Baa¬ 
lim and Ashtaroth were the gene¬ 
ral names of all the gods and 
goddesses of Syria, Palestine, and 
the neighbouring countries. The 
worship of Baal is supposed to 
have been general throughout the 
British islands, and to this day 
there are various superstitious ob¬ 
servances in Ireland, Scotland 
and Wales, which very closely 
resemble the ancient worship of 
Baal. A town in Perthshire, on 
the borders of the Scotch high¬ 
lands, is called Tilliebeltane , that 
Is, the eminence or rising ground 
of the fire of Baal. An enclosure 
of eight upright staves is made 
where it is supposed the fire was 
kindled, and a well in the vicini¬ 
ty is held in great veneration: 
after drinking from it, the people 
pass around the temple nine times, 
in a procession. In Ireland, Bel- 
tein is one of the festival days, 
and the fires are made early on 
the tops of the hills, and all the 
cattle are made to pass through 
82 


BAA 

them. This, it is supposed, se¬ 
cures them from contagion and 
disease for that year. 

House of Baal (1 Kings xvl 
32) is the same with the temple 
(or place ot worship) oi Baal. 

We have a most interesting ac¬ 
count of the manner in which tho 
worshippers of Baal were con 
founded and punished by Elijah 
at mount Carmel, in 1 Kings xviii. 
(See also Life of Elijah, chap, 
vii.) 

Baalah. (See Ivirjath.) 

Baal-gad, Baal-hermon. 
(Josh. xi. 17 ; xii. 7, and Judg. iii. 
3.) A city in the valley of Le¬ 
banon, supposed to have been un¬ 
der mount Ilermou, and most 
probably the same as Baal-her- 
mou. (I Chron. v. 23.) A com¬ 
parison of the passages in which 
this place is named, would incline 
us to the opinion that it was situ¬ 
ated somewhere in the northern 
limit of Joshua’s conquest; all 
the country from it to Hamath, 
including Anti-Lebanon, remain¬ 
ing unconquered. 

If this opinion is correct, the 
modern Baalbec cannot be the 
ruins of Baal-gad, as it has been 
called, for that is in Coele-Syria, 
north of Bamascus, and much 
farther north than the Israelites 
under Joshua pushed their victo¬ 
ries. 

Baal-meon. (Num. xxxii. 38 ; 
Ezek. xxv. 9.) A city of the 
tribe of Reuben, called also Beth- 
ineon, (Jer. xlviii. 23,) and Beth- 
baal-meon. (Josh. xiii. 17.) 

Baal-peor. (Ps. cvi. 28.) It 
is said under the article Baal that 
Baal-peor was the name of the 
image of Baal, which was wor¬ 
shipped at Peor; but there is some 
reason to suppose that it was also 
the name of some other idol god; 



BAA 

and from the connection the 
passago in Psalms just cited, it 
has been conjectured that it might 
have been the same with the hea¬ 
then god Pluto, to whom sacrifices 
were offered to appease the manes 
of the dead. 

Baal-perazim. (2 Sam. v. 20.) 
A place in the valley of Rephaim, 
a few miles southwest of Jerusa¬ 
lem, where David conquered the 
Philistines. The name in the ori¬ 
ginal is significant of this victory, 
and hence the allusion ^n Isa. 
xxviii. 21. 

Baal-zebub. (See Beelze¬ 
bub.) 

Baal-zephon. (Ex. xiv. 2, 9 ; 
Num. xxxiii. 7.) A station of the 
Israelites at the northern extre¬ 
mity of the Red sea, correspond¬ 
ing to Suez, where there was pro¬ 
bably a temple for the worship of 
Baal. Bruce supposes it to be the 
name of a light-house or signal- 
station, at the north entrance of 
the bay, as the Hebrew word ze- 
phon means north. 

BAANAH. (2 Sam. iv. 2.) One 
of the sons of Rimmon, and an 
officer in the army of Ishbosheth, 
Saul’s son. In company with his 
brother Rechab, he entered the 
house of Ishbosheth at noonday, 
and stabbed him as he was lying 
upon the bed. Taking the head 
of their victim with them, they 
fled to David, at Hebron, suppos- 
ng that ho would reward them 
liberally for the head of such an 
enemy; but so far from it, he was 
indignant at their cruel and cow¬ 
ardly conduct, and forthwith 
caused them to be slain, their 
hands and feet to be cut off, and 
their bodies to be publicly sus¬ 
pended over the pool at Hebron. 

BAASHA (1 Kings xv. 16) was 
the son of Ahijah, and command- 


BAB 

er-m-xdiie/Af a portion of the army 
of Israel. W hen Nadab king of 
Israel, w T as besieging Gibbethon, 
a city of the Philistines, Baasha 
formed a conspiracy against him 
and murdered him, and iaimodi 
ately usurped the throne, which 
he held for twenty-four years. 
To secure himself against any dis¬ 
turbance from the family of Jero¬ 
boam, (the rightful heirs of the 
throne,) he caused them all to be 
put to death. By this cruel act 
he undesignedly fulfilled the pro¬ 
phecy respecting Jeroboam’s pos¬ 
terity. (1 Kings xiv. 10.) 

Baasha followed in the wicked 
ways of Jeroboam,and was visited 
with the most fearful judgments 
of God. The warning he received 
of the consequences of his con¬ 
duct (1 Kings xvi. 1-5) did not 
induce him to forsake his evil 
courses. His reign was filled with 
war and treachery, and his family 
and relatives were cut off, accord¬ 
ing to the prediction. (1 Kings 
xvi. 9, 11. See Asa.) 

BABEL, the tower of, (Gen. 
xi. 4-9,) was built in the plain of 
Shinar, by the descendants of 
Noah, probably from three hun¬ 
dred to five hundred years after 
the flood, to serve as a national 
rallying point, and thus to secure 
their union and concentrate their 
feelings and interests, and to pre¬ 
vent their dispersion. Their de¬ 
sign was, that the whole woGd 
should be one vast kingdom, and 
that Babel should be its capital 
or chief city. 

The height and extent of the 
edifice, according to the origina* 
design, must have been prodigi¬ 
ous. Chronologists suppose they 
were employed three years in col¬ 
lecting the materials, and twenty- 
two j jars upon the building; and 
83 




BAB 

a.n incient @radition tells us that 
the bricks (or blocks, as they may 
better be called) of which it was 
constructed, were twenty feet 
long, fifteen br>ad, and seven 
thick. 

Their vain and presumptuous 
design was frustrated by the mi¬ 
raculous interposition of God, who 
confounded their language, so that 
it was impossible for them to un¬ 
derstand each* other’s speech. 
This event obliged them to sepa¬ 
rate into distinct companies or 
tribes, and to settle in different 
districts of the earth. 

The sacred history informs us 
that in the construction of the 
tower they used slime for mortar. 
The word slime is supposed to de¬ 
note a kind of bituminous mortar, 
(in distinction from clay mortar,) 
which was capable of resisting the 
effect of moisture. This material 
still abounds on the river Eu¬ 
phrates, as we are informed by 
modern travellers. 

In the supposed ruins of Baby¬ 
lon are found bitumen, mortar, 
and clay. The sun-dried brick 
were larger than the kiln-burnt, 
and resembled a thick, clumsy 
clod of earth, with chopped straw 
scattered through to bind it. 

Much doubt prevails as to the 
orecise location of this tower. 
Capt. Mignan visited a mound on 
the eastern bank of the river Eu¬ 
phrates, about four miles and a 
half from modern Hilleh, in the 
province of Bagdad, 32° 25' N. 
lat. 45° E. Ion. from Greenwich. 
It is called by the natives El Mu- 

A 'ellibnh , “ the overturned.” lie 
escribes tno ruin as of a vast ob¬ 
long shape, composed of hard ce¬ 
ment, and of kiln-burnt and sun- 
dried brick or tile, which mea¬ 
sured thirteen inches squaro by 
84 


BAB 

three inches thick. Bitumen, vi¬ 
trified and petrified brick, shells, 
and glass, were strewed around. 
Capt. M. thinks that this must be 
the ruin of the ancient tower, and 
Major Rennol, the distinguished 
geographer, is of the same opi¬ 
nion. 

Another traveller who visited 
the ruins in 1779 says—“It ap¬ 
pears almost like a mass of earth, 
being erected of bricks dried by 
the sun, amazingly thick, and be¬ 
twixt every three or four feet 
there is a layer of reeds. Its 
height is at least one hundred and 
sixty feet; but we found no re¬ 
mains either of a door or stairs.” 

It has been thought by very 
learned men that the tower in the 
temple of Belus, in Babylon, is 
the same with the tower of Babel. 
If this opinion is correct, we have 
the testimony of Herodotus as to 
its dimensions. He tells us that 
it was a square tower, built in 
the form of a pyramid, each side 
of which measured at its base a 
furlong, making the whole struc¬ 
ture half a mile in circumfer¬ 
ence ; and its height, according to 
another historian, was six hun¬ 
dred and sixty feet; exceeding by 
sixty feet the highest of the 
Egyptian pyramids. Around the 
outside of the building there was 
a winding passage from the bot¬ 
tom to the top, and so broad as to 
permit carriages to pass each 
other. It contained many spa¬ 
cious apartments, which became 
part of the temple of Belus, after 
it was converted to purposes of 
idolatry. The temple of Belus 
was greatly enlarged by Nebu¬ 
chadnezzar, and its ruins are now 
called Birs Nimrood. 

This is the most stupendous 
and surprising mass of all the re* 




















































I 




















/ 















c 


% 





Ruins of Babylon. 




























































































































































































































































































































































































































LAB 

a- ans of Babylon. It is found in 
a Jesert about six miles southwest 
o~ Hillch, and is called by the 
J*»ws, Nebuchadnezzar’s prison. 
The evidence that there once ex¬ 
isted on this spot a magnificent 
pile of buildings, of the richest, 
most expensive and durable ma¬ 
terials; and that it was destroyed 
long since by violence, is perfect¬ 
ly conclusive. (See Babylon. 
See alsdfevENiNG Recreations, 
vol. ii. pp. 50-62.) 

Babel is one of the cities men¬ 
tioned in Gen. x. 10, as the be¬ 
ginning of the kingdom of Nim¬ 
rod ; probably meaning one of the 
cities founded by him, or one of 
the chief cities of his kingdom. 

BABYLON. (Ps. cxxxvii. 1.) 
The chief city or mother of Chal¬ 
dea. (Jer. 1. 12.) It is also call¬ 
ed Sheshach. (Jer. li. 41.) It 
was one of the earliest and most 
celebrated cities of antiquity, and 
in the reign of Nebuchadnezzar 
acquired such strength and glory 
as to become the seat of universal 
empire and the wonder of the 
world. (See ChaLDEA.) 

The city stood on the river Eu¬ 
phrates, by which it was divided 
into two parts, eastern and west¬ 
ern ; and these were connected by 
a bridge of wonderful construc¬ 
tion. The wall was at least forty- 
five miles in circumference; and 
would, of course, include eight ci¬ 
ties as large as London and its 
appendages. It was laid out in 
gix hundred and twenty-five 
squares, formed by the intersec¬ 
tion of twenty-five streets at right 
angles. The walls, which were 
of brick, were at least seventy- 
five feet high and thirty-two 
broad. A trench surrounded the 
jity, the sides of which were lined 
srith brick and water-proof ce- 
8 


BAB 

ment. The towers, palaces, antf 
hanging gardens with which it 
was adorned and magnified, and 
the pride and luxury of its inha¬ 
bitants, are described in the Life 
of Daniel, chap. vii. and ix. 

As the river was liable every 
year to c verflow its banks, canals 
were made to carry ( ff the water ; 
and along the sides of the main 
channel immense banks were con¬ 
structed as a still further protec¬ 
tion. To facilitate the construc¬ 
tion of these works, the waters 
of the Euphrates were turned tem¬ 
porarily into a basin about forty 
miles square and thirty-five feet 
deep, which was dug for the pur¬ 
pose. 

This magnificent city was the 
subject of some of the most re¬ 
markable prophecies. Among 
them are Isa. xiii. 1-22; xiv. 22- 
24; xxi. 9; xlvii. 1-7; Jer. xxv. 
11, 12; 1. 24, 46; li. 11, 36, $9, 57. 
The fulfilment of these prophe¬ 
cies has been in many points lite¬ 
ral. The city was invested by the 
victorious armies of Cyrus, b. c. 
540, and after a siege of two 
years was at last carried by stra¬ 
tagem. On the night of a great 
festival, the waters of the river 
were turned off, and the channel 
through the city became a high¬ 
way for the enemy. By this 
channel the army of Cyrus passed 
in, under the walls, at midnight; 
and their approach was not sus¬ 
pected until the different detach¬ 
ments met at the palace gate; and 
all who were not slain submitted 
to the conqucrcr. (See Belshaz¬ 
zar.) 

This was the end of the glory 
of Babylon. l'Tum that time its 
grandeur decayed. About twenty 
years after the victory of Cyrus, 
the city attempted to throw off 
85 



BAB 

the yoke, but it was again entire- ( 
ly subdued. Forty years after¬ 
wards Xerxes plundered the city 
of much of its remaining wealth, 
and laid the temple ot Belus in 
ruins. Then it suffered a steady 
decline until about the end-of the 
fourth century. We are credibly 
informed that its walls were used 
by the Persian princes as an en¬ 
closure for wild beasts, preserved 
for tho chase. And now, so utter¬ 
ly is the city destroyed, that the 
precise spot on which it stood is 
a matter of conjecture. (See Eli- 
sama, chap. ii. v. vi. Life of 
Daniel, chap. xiii. xiv. Even¬ 
ing Recreations, vol. ii. pp. 63- 
74. 

Babylon the great. (Rev. 
xvii. 5.) As Babylon of old was 
the chief of all idolatrous cities, 
she is taken as a fit emblem of 
the enormous guilt and extensive 
influence of idolatrous and papal 
Rome, each in its turn being the 
mother of harlots and of the abo¬ 
minations of the earth ; the for¬ 
mer corrupting the heathen world 
with her fornications, and the 
latter the Christiaif. 

It should be observed that the 
terra Babylon is used to denote, 
(1.) Only the city. (Isa. xiii. 19 ; 
xxi. 9; xlviii. 20.) (2.) The in¬ 

habitants of the city in distinction 
from the Chaldeans or inhabitants 
of tho province. (Ezek. xxiii. 15, 
17.) (3.) The province of Baby- 

ion and tho Babylonian empire. 
(2 Kings xxiv. 1; xxv. 27; Ps. 
exxxvii. 1.) (4.) After tho empire 
came under the dominion of Per¬ 
sia., the Persian kings arc called 
kings of Babylon . (Ezra v. 13; 
Noh. xiii. 6.) 

BABYLONIANS. (See Assy¬ 
ria.) 

BACA. (Ps. lxxxiv. 6A This 
86 


BAK 

s ^OkTaVv the general name of 
any dreary or desolate way; and 
of course the allusion in the cited 
passage is to the joy of the wor¬ 
shippers on th>ir Avay up to Jeru¬ 
salem, which shall make tho wil¬ 
derness appear to rejoice and 
blossom, and fill a thirsty land 
with springs of water. 

BADGERS’ SKINS. (Ex. xxv. 
5.) The animal which we know 
as the badger was unk^wn iD 
Arabia, nor would its skin be. 
suitable for the purposes mention¬ 
ed in the sacred writings. The 
prevailing opinion is, that skins 
of a deep blue colour are meant, 
without designating the animal 
from which they were taken. 

' BAHURIM. (2 Sam. iii. 16; 
xvi. 5; xvii. 18.) A place in the 
tribe of Benjamin, east of Jerusa¬ 
lem, which has many interesting 
connections with the life of Da vid, 
to which the passages cited refer. 
(See Ahimaaz.) 

BAGS. (2 Kings xii. 10 ; Luke 

xii. 33.) These were made of va- 
r jus sizes, each to contain a pre¬ 
cise amount of money. We read 
that the workmen on the temple 
were paid in bags, which were 
probably delivered to them sealed. 
At this day in eastern nations 
inonoy passes in bags from hand 
to hand under the seal of a bank¬ 
er or other public officer, arid 
without jounting, as it is paid by 
one to another. If the seal is 
genuine and unbroken, the exact 
value of each bag is known at 
sight. 

BAKE. (Gen. xi. 3.) The bu¬ 
siness of baking in early times 
was principally, if not exclusive¬ 
ly, the work of women. (Lev. 
xxvi. 26 ; 1 Sam. viii. 13 ; 2 Sam. 

xiii. 8; Jer. vii. 18.) In Romo, 
as Pliny tells us, there was na 



BAL 

mch thing as a publii baker for 
five hundred and eighty years. It 
soeins probable from Jer. xxxvii. 
21. and Hosea vii. 4-7, that pub¬ 
lic bakers were known in those 
days, and inhabited a particular 
section of the city of Jerusalem. 

Cakes were thin bread, not un¬ 
like modern sea-biscuit, baked 
upon the hearth, anu sometimes 
covered with hot embers or ashes. 
Other methods were employed. 
^Lev. ii. 4, 5, 7.) Parched corn 
is familiar to most children in 
America, and this simplest way 
of preparing grain for food is 
common in the rudest state of so¬ 
ciety. Perhaps, however, the 
parching was only preparatory to 
bruising or grinding. Ancient 
historians say that the people of 
former days, being without mills, 
parched their grain. This is the 
parched corn mentioned as part 
of the present to David, (2 Sam. 
xvii. 28,) and was also tho food 
which Boaz gave to Ruth. (Ruth 
ii. 14.) (See Bread, Oven.) 

BALAAM (Num. xxii. 5) was 
the son of Beor or Bosor, and a 
native of Pethor, a village of Me¬ 
sopotamia. Whether he was a 
prophet divinely inspired, or only 
a pretender, does not appear ; that 
he was an unrighteous man is not 
conclusive evidence that he was 
not a prophet of God employed 
for a particular purpose. (1 Sam. 
x. 10 ; 1 Kings xiii. 18-20; Matt, 
vii. 22 ; John xi. 51.) 

The history of Baalam is given 
ns in Num. xxii. xxiii. xxiv. and 
xxxi. He lived when the chil¬ 
dren of Israel wore jourr jying 
from Egypt to the promised land. 
Their numbers were very large, 
and the kings of the country 
tlm ugh which they passed, and 
whc did not know of their mira- 


BAL 

culous supply of food, were feai 
ful that a famine would be occa- 
sioned by their depredations, o» 
that they would attempt to con 
quer all before them. Among 
these was Balak king of Moab. 

He knew that he could not con 
tend with such a formidable host 
and supposing that the God of 
the Israelites was like the gods 
of the heathen, ready to bless and 
to curse according to tho caprice 
or interest of their votaries, he 
sent for Balaam, who had the re¬ 
putation of a famous divinor or 
idol priest, to come and curse the 
armies of Israel. 

God signified to Balaam that 
the Israelites were blessed, and 
should not be cursed. This was 
done in such a way as to deter 
Balaam from going. Balak sent 
again and offered a large reward, 
and because Balaam was not 
again positively forbidden by God 
to go, he accepted the tempting 
offer, and returned with the mes¬ 
sengers to Moab. (2 Pet. ii. 15.) 

On his way, however, he was 
informed, by a most extraordina¬ 
ry .and significant miracle, that 
his course was wicked and per¬ 
verse, and he was effectually re¬ 
strained from doing what Balak 
had sent for him to do. So far 
from it, he was led to pronounce 
a prophetic blessing on the Isra¬ 
elites, in language which for elo¬ 
quence and force is not surpassed 
in the whole scope of Hebrew 
poetry. 

Balaam, finding himself thus 
restrained from cursing Israel, 
suggested to Balak a much more 
certain method of destroying them. 
This was by tempting them to min¬ 
gle in the sinful pursuits and in¬ 
dulgences of tho Moabites. (Rev. 
ii. 14.) This stratagem was sue 
87 



BAL 

cessful. The Israelites wore 30 
far ensnared as to cause the de¬ 
struction of twenty-four thousand 
of their men. (Num. xxv. 1-5.) 

Balaam himself fell shortly after 
in an engagement which took 
place between the Israelites and 
tho Midianites. 

The miracle by which the dumb 
ass was enabled to speak with a 
man’s voice has been the frequent 
subject of cavil and ridicule with 
unthinking men; but when we con¬ 
sider that the power of God alone 
gave to any of his creatures the fa¬ 
culty of speech, and that he might 
as easily have given it to the 
brute as to the human race, we 
need not wonder that he should, 
in a single case, and for a specific 
purpose, confer that power on a 
dumb animal. Certainly we must 


BAL 

admit that the miracle was most 
significant and appropriate to the 
occasion; for, as God was about to 
restrain the tongue of Balaam, 
and make b\m say what it was 
not in his heart to say of Israel, 
it was well to show him how en¬ 
tirely the power of thought and 
speech was within divine control. 
And, indeed, as Bishop Newton 
has well observed, the ass being 
mere.y passive, the restraint of 
Balaam’s tongue was a greater 
miracle than the freedom of the 
tongue of the ass. (See Ass.) 

BALADAN. (See Hezekiah.) 

BALAK (Num. xxii. 2) was a 
king of the Moabites. The chief 
incidents of his history, so far as 
we have them, are found under 
the article Balaam. 

BALANCES. (Lev. xix. 36.) 



In the early periods of the world, 
gold and silver were paid by 
weight; so that persons employed 
in traffic of any kind, carried with 
them a pair of scales or balances, 
and different weights, (generally 
stones of different sizes,) in apouch 
or bag. Fraudulent men would 
carry two sorts of weights, the 
lighter to sell with and the other 
.o buy with. This explains the 
illusion, Mic. vi. 11. 

In one of the annexed cuts is 
'•epresented a balance in which 
88 


the scales are simply a pair of 
weights. There are two bags of 
money which are to be equalized, 
one of which is a standard. The 
scribe stands by to register tho re¬ 
sult. Both cuts serve to show the 
rudeness of ancient art even in 
?o common a matter as the ad¬ 
justment of weights. 

BALDNESS, (Isa. iii. 24,) 
when voluntary, was a token of 
mourning and great distress. 
(Ezok. vii. 18.) A chief reason 
why involuntary baldness wag iv- 













BAL 



III teU Try 

|| 

L 


Balances. 

garded as disgraceful, was, that 
it gave occasion to the suspicion 
of leprosy, a disease which usu¬ 
ally destroyed the hair. Hence 
baldness is declared by the law 
not to be conclusive evidence of 
uncleanness. (Lev. xiii. 40.) And 
hence, too, the expression used 
towards Elisha by some children 
in Bethel, “ Go up, thou bald- 
head,” indicated great contempt 
for him as a prophet of the Lord, 
and was therefore signally pun¬ 
ished. (2 Kings ii. 23.) 

BALM. (Gen. xxxvii. 25.) One 
of the articles of merchandise 
which the Ishmaelites (to whom 
Joseph was sold) were carrying 
from Gilead to Egypt. It is wor¬ 
thy of remark that the particulars 
of this trading company or cara¬ 
van, their character, < ourse of 
travel and freight, though rel'er- 
8 * 


BAN 

ring to a period seventeen hun. 
dred years before the Christian 
era, correspond with wonderful 
accuracy to those of similar com¬ 
mercial expeditions across the de 
sert, at the present day. 

The balm is supposed to bo tht 
production of the Balm-of-Gilead 
tree, which grows about twelve or 
fourteen feet high with diverging 
branches. (See Cut on page 90.) 
The resin which it produces is ex¬ 
ceedingly odoriferous, and greatly 
esteemed in the East for its heal¬ 
ing properties. 

It was once an important arti¬ 
cle of merchandise among the 
Eastern nations. (Ezek. xxvii. 
17.) Nothing can exceed the, elo¬ 
quence and tenderness of the lan¬ 
guage employed by the prophet 
Jeremiah to express his grief and 
disappointment that the chosen 
people of God (the daughter of 
Zion) should remain spiritually 
wounded and diseased, when there 
was.a healing balm of unfailing 
virtue, and a physician of divine 
skill to administer it; and both 
within their reach. (Jer. viii. 
22 ; xlvi. 11, and li. 8.) 

BAMAH. (Ezek. xx. 29.) The 
general name of any high place. 

BAND. (Acts xxi. 31.) A 
band of Roman soldiers consisted 
of the tenth part of a legion; of 
course it varied according to the 
size of the legion, from four hun¬ 
dred to seven hundred soldiers. 
The word is often used figurative¬ 
ly by the sacred writers; as in 
Hos. xi. 4, tvhere it denotes per¬ 
suasive arguments or influences; 
and in Ps. lxxiii. 4, where it sig¬ 
nifies apprehonsion and terror at 
the prospect of death. 

BANNERS, (Isa. xiii. 2,) or 
STANDARD, (Isa. xlix. 22,) or 
ENSI IN, (Isa. v. 26,} are p"oba- 
89 



























Balm of Gilead Tree . 


blj 4sed indiscriminately by tho 
enCi-ed writers. A standard per¬ 
tained to each of the four grand 
divisions of the army of Israel, 
(Num. i. 52,) distinguished from 
each other by colours, and per¬ 
haps by some embroidered figure. 
Another standard for subdivisions 
was probably nothing more than 
a common spear richly burnished 
or ornamented. The Egyptian 
princes used a standard like this, 
surmounted with a ball of gold. 
There was another standard in 
use among the Jews, which is 
Railed a beacon. (Isa. xxx. 17.) 
It was stationary: erected on 
90 


lofty mountains, and used as a 
rallying token. (Comp. Isa. xviii. 
3; lxii. 10-12; Jer. iv. 5, 6, 21, 
vi. 1, 17; li. 12, 27.) 

It was customary to give a de¬ 
feated party a banner, as a token 
of protection; and it was regarded 
as the surest pledge of fidelity. 
(Ps. xx. 5; lx. 4; Sol. Song ii. 4.) 
Some writers have supposed that 
the ancient Jewish ensign was a 
long pole, on the top of which was 
a grate not unlike a chaffing dish, 
made of iron bars and supplied 
with fire; the size, height, and 
shape of which denoted the party 
or company to whom it belonged. 




BAN 

This seems rather to descri ,e the 
night-torches of Eastern encamp¬ 
ments. The shape, Ac. of the 
Roman standards are seen under 
the article Abominable. 

God’s lifting or setting up a 
banner is a most expressive figure, 
and imports his peculiar presence, 
protection, and aid in leading and 
directing his people in the execu¬ 
tion of his righteous will, and giv¬ 
ing them comfort and peace in his 
service. (Sol. Song ii. 4.) 

BANQUET. (See Feast.) 

BAPTISM. (Matt. iii. 7.) An 
ordinance or religious rite, which 
was in use before our Saviour’s 
ministry commenced, (see John’s 
Baptism ;) but which he recog¬ 
nised and made obligatory upon 
his disciples as a Christian ordi¬ 
nance. In the due administration 
of this rite, the washing of water 
becomes the sign or emblem of in¬ 
ward purification from sin and 
uncleanness, while the subject of 
the rite is introduced into a pecu¬ 
liar relation to Christ and his 
church. 

Baptized for the dead. (1 
Cor. xv. 29.) Various interpre¬ 
tations have been put upon this 
phrase. The most simple and na¬ 
tural explanation is perhaps the 
most likely to be correct. We 
may be aided to interpret this by 
other passages of similar import. 
Paul, who wrote this epistle, 
speaks, in his letter to the Ro¬ 
mans, of some who are buried with 
Christ in baptism unto death; 
wherein also they are risen with 
him unto newness of life. (Rom. 
vi. 4.) And again in h.s letter to 
he Colossians he speaks of those 
who were buried with Christ in 
baptism, and were risen with him 
through the faith of the operation 
cf God, who had raised him from 


BAR 

the dead. (Col. ii. 12.) From 
these expressions we may infer 
that the apostle regarded baptism 
as the symbol of a present resur 
rection from the death of tres¬ 
passes and sins, to a life of holi¬ 
ness ; and also as a symbol of a 
participation in the future and 
final resurrection. But, if the^e 
is no such thing as a resurrection 
from the dead, then the ordinance, 
in this view, is vain and useless. 
The substance of the argument is, 
that if the dead rise not, the ordi¬ 
nance of baptism could have no 
authority, because Christ, in whose 
name it was administered, could 
not have risen, and it could be of 
no use, because upon the supposi¬ 
tion that the dead rise not, those 
to whom it was administered would 
never live beyond the present life. 
This interpretation is confirmed 
by an examination of verses 30 
and 32 of the context. 

Baptize with fire. (Matt. iii. 
11.) This expression has been 
thought to denote the miraculous 
effusion of the Holy Spirit, of 
which we have an account in Acts 
ii. 3, 4. On that occasion the de¬ 
scent of the Holy Ghost was not 
only attended with miraculous 
gifts, but with the visible emblem 
of fire; thus literally fulfilling the 
prophecy of John above cited. 
Others think that an allusion was 
intended, on the one hand, to the 
various divine internal operations 
and influences which should at¬ 
tend the dispensation of the gos¬ 
pel by Jesus Christ; and on the 
ether, to the fiery visitations which 
should come upon those who re¬ 
jected it;—upon the former for 
their purification, and upon the 
latter for their destruction. 

BARABBAS. (Matt, xxvii. 16.) 
A noted criminal at Jerusalem, 
91 



BAB 

who was in confinement for sedi¬ 
tion and murder when Christ was 
condemned. It was the custom 
of the Romans to release some 
one prisoner at the time of the 
Jewish passover. The Jews were 
permitted to name any one whose 
release they might particularly 
desire. The policy of this provi¬ 
sion was obviously to conciliate 
the favour of the Jews towards 
the Roman government. 

Pilate seems to have been anx¬ 
ious to avail himself of the Roman 
custom for the deliverance of 
Christ, but the Jews chose rather 
to show favour to a robber and a 
murderer, and to put their long-, 
promised Messiah to a violent and 
ignominious death! 

The custom is said to have pre¬ 
vailed among the Venetians as 
lately as the closo of the eigh¬ 
teenth century, to release a pri¬ 
soner at the annual commemora¬ 
tion of our Saviour’s resurrection. 

BARACHIAS. (Matt, xxiii. 
35.) There is some uncertainty 
as to the individual to whom re¬ 
ference is made in this verse. It 
might have been the Zecharias 
of whose death we have an ac¬ 
count in 2 Chron. xxiv. 20, 21 ; 
for though he is there called the 
son of Jehoiada, it was common 
among the Jews for the same in¬ 
dividual to have two names. It 
is probable, however, that the pro¬ 
phet Zechariah, who is expressly 
called the son of Barachiah, (Zech. 
i. 1,) was assassinated, and that 
the fact was known by tradition. 
The Jews evidently understood 
the allusion, or they would have 
denied the charge. 

BARAK (Judg. iv. 6) was the 
son of Abinoam, and was distin¬ 
guished for his share in the con- 
inest of Sisera and the deliver- 
92 


BAB 

ance of Israel from long and sovow 
oppression. A history of the 
transaction, and a copy of their 
sublime triumphal song, are given 
in Judg. iv. and v. (See Debo¬ 
rah.) 

BARBARIAN. (1 Cor. xiv.ll.) 
This term is used to denote a 
stranger or foreigner, who does 
not speak the language of the 
country in which he sojourns; of 
course, in its scriptural use, it does 
not import any rudeness, or sa¬ 
vageness of nature or manners. 
(Acts xxviii. 2, 4, and Rom. i. 
14.) 

BARJESUS (Acts xiii. 6) was 
a sorcerer who resided with Ser¬ 
gius Paulus, at Paphos, on the 
isle of Cyprus, when Paul and 
Barnabas were there. Sergius 
Paulus was an officer of high rank 
under the Roman government, 
and was anxious to receive reli¬ 
gious instruction from the two 
missionaries. But Barjesus, see¬ 
ing that his occupation and influ¬ 
ence would cease wherever the 
light of the gospel should come, 
opposed himself to Paul and Bar¬ 
nabas, and tried to dissuade Pau¬ 
lus from giving heed to their 
preaching. Paul gave him a most 
severe reproof, immediately after 
which the wicked man was struck 
with blindness, as a rebuke from 
God. (See Sergius Paulus.) 

BAR-JONA. (See Peter.) 

BARLEY. (Ex. ix. 31.) A 
woll-known species of grain used 
for bread, (Judg. vii. 13 ; John vi. 
9, 13,) and also as food for horses 
and dromedaries. (1 Kings iv. 
28.) 

BARNABAS. (Act^iv. 36.) A 
Levite of the island of Cyprus, 
and an early convert to the Chris¬ 
tian faith. His original name was 
Joses, but as he had remarkable 



BAR 

power? of speaking or exhorting 
the people, and ot administering 
consolation to the afflicted, he 
was surnamed Barnabas, a Syriac 
term, signifjnng the son of conso¬ 
lation and exhortation. 

Barnabas was one of those who 
gave up all his worldly substance, 
and all his strength and influence 
to the support and spread of the 
gospel. lie was a faithful and 
devoted missionary, a distinguish¬ 
ed preacher, the frequent compa¬ 
nion of Paul, (Acts ix. xiii. xiv. 
xv.,) and a large sharer in the 
apostolic gifts and graces, as w r ell 
as in the labours and sufferings 
which attended the early propa¬ 
gation of Christianity. 

BARSA BAS. (Acts i. 23, and 
xv. 22.) He was one of the can¬ 
didates for the vacancy in the 
apostleship, occasioned by the 
apostasy of Judas; and was also 
appointed to accompany Paul and 
Barnabas from Jerusalem to An¬ 
tioch, on an important embassy. 
He is ;alled ono of “ the chief 
among the brethren.” 

BARTHOLOMEW (Matt, x.3) 
is supposed to be the same porson 
who is elsewhere called Natha¬ 
nael. This opinion is formed in 
part upon the fact that Bartholo¬ 
mew is not mentioned in John’s 
list of the names of the disciples ; 
nor is Nathanael mentioned by 
the other evangelists. Besides 
this, Philip and Nathanael are 
associated together by John, and 
in the parallel passages of the 
other evangelists Philip and Bar¬ 
tholomew are associated. These 
circumstances, though not conclu¬ 
sive evidence, make it probable 
that they were ono and the same 
person. 

BARTIMEUS. (Mark x. 46.) 
A son of Tirneus, who was instant- 


BAR 

ly sured of blindness by our Sa¬ 
viour in the vicinity of Jericho. 

BARUCH, (Jer. xxxvi. 4,) the 
secretary of the prophet Jeremiah, 
was of a distinguished Jewish 
family. (Comp. Neh. xi. 5, and Jer. 
xxxvi. 4.) His personal friend¬ 
ship for Jeremiah was strong and 
constant. When God commanded 
the prophet to commit to writing 
the prophecies that he had utter¬ 
ed, he employed Baruch in this 
service, who wrote tho words as 
Jeremiah dictated them. Baruch 
was afterwards required to read 
these prophecies to the Jewish 
princes or chiefs, who were assem¬ 
bled in the temple. 

The princes were surprised and 
offended, and forthwith commu¬ 
nicated to the king the substance 
of what Baruch had read, having 
before taken the writing from Ba¬ 
ruch and deposited it in one of 
tho offices of the temple. 

Jehoakim, the king, ordered the 
offensive writing to be read in his 
presence, and he became so much 
exasperated, that before the read¬ 
ing of it was half finished, he 
seized the paper and cut it in 
pieces and threw it into the fire; 
at the same time orders were given 
to arrest both the prophet and his 
secretary, but they had concealed 
themselves. 

The prophecies were again dic¬ 
tated by Jeremiah and written 
out by Baruch, and afterwards 
Baruch was employed to carry to 
Babylon a long letter from Jere¬ 
miah, predicting the judgments 
which should come upon that 
mighty city. 

After he returned from that mis- 
si >n Jerusalem was besieged, and 
Jeremiah and Baruch both thrown 
into prison. When the city sur¬ 
rendered they were released, and 
93 



BAS 

permitted to accompany each 
other wherever they chose to go. 
There is some reason to believe 
that Baruch survived the prophet 
a few years, but when and where 
he died is unknown. (See Jere¬ 
miah. Also Life of Jeremiah, 
ehap. vii.) 

BARZILLAI (2 Sam. xix. 31) 
was a Gileadite, and a fast friend 
of David when he was in exile on 
account of Absalom’s revolt. 

The rebellion had been sup¬ 
pressed, and David was on his way 
back to Jerusalem. Barzillai ac¬ 
companied the king across the 
Jordan, and was about to return 
to his own land, but David, in 
gratitude for the old man’s kind¬ 
ness, invited him to go up to Je¬ 
rusalem, and spend the residue 
of his day's at the court. This 
Barzillai declined on account of 
his great age and infirmities, but 
his son went up with the king in 
his stead. The dialogue on this 
occasion is one of the most touch¬ 
ing passages to be found on the 
page of history. (See Home of 
the Gileadite.) 

David, in his final charge to 
Solomon, enjoined it upon him to 
show kindness to Barzillai’s fami¬ 
ly, and even to make them mem¬ 
bers of the royal household. (1 
Kings ii. 7.) 

BASIIAN. (Num. xxi. 33.) A 
hflly district lying east of the 
Jordan, and between the moun¬ 
tains of Ilermon on the north, and 
those of Gilead on the south. The 
more modern name is Batanea. 
The ancient name of the whole 
province was probably derived 
from the hill of Bashan, a high 
mountain which was situated near 
its course. (Ps. lxviii. 15.) This 
district was formerly remarkable 
for its stately oaks, (Isa. ii. 13,) 
94 


BAT 

rich pastarage, (Mic. vii. 14,) and 
fine cattle. (Ps. xxii. 12.) 

In the time of Moses it was go¬ 
verned by a monarch named Og, 
who allied himself to Sihon, the 
king of the Amorites, to make 
war on Israel, and was defeated 
and overthrown at Edrei. (Nutn, 
xxi. 33-35.) 

Modern travellers describe th« 
country as abounding with mag¬ 
nificent scenery, resembling that 
of many parts of Europe. Its 
hills are still clothed with forests; 
its deep valleys are traversed by 
refreshing streams; its meadows 
are verdant and fertile, and its 
pastures offer an abundance to 
the flocks that wander through 
them, and give life and animation 
to the scene. 

BASON. (See Laver.) 

BAT. (Lev. xi. 19.) An un¬ 
clean beast, whose resting-places 
are caves, old ruins, and filthy 
and desolate places. Hence the 



Bat. 


allusion, Isa. ii. 20. It has no 
resemblance to a bird, except that 
it can fly, and the organs it uses 
for this purpose are altogether 
different from those of a bird. (For 
a minute description and cut, see 
Natural History of the Bi¬ 
ble.) 

BATH. (See Measures.! 

BATH-SHEBA (2 Sam. xi. 3) 
was the wife of Ui ah, an officer 
in David’s army, lier beauty 






BAT 

proved a snare to David, for he 
not only committed adultery with 
her,, but he treacherously procured 
the death of her injured husband. 

BATTERING-RAM. (Ezek. 
iv. 2, and xxi. 22.) This was a 
long beam of strong wood, usually 
oak, sometimes connected with a 
carriage or frame work of heavy 
timber. Ouo end was shaped like 
a ram’s head, and when driven re- 



Battering-ram . 

peatedly and with great force 
against the wall of a city or forti¬ 
fication, either pierced it or bat¬ 
tered it down. (See War. See 
also note at the close of De¬ 
struction op Jerusalem.) 

BATTLE-AXE. (See Ar¬ 
mour.) 

BATTLEMENT. (Deut. xxii. 
3.) A wall, parapet, or other 
structure around tho flat roofs of 
eastern houses, designed as a par¬ 
tition from an adjoining building, 
or to prevent persons from falling 
off. It is sometimes used in a 
-more extensive sense to denote 
the fortifications of a city. (Jer. 


BEA 

v. 10.) A traveller says that ai 
Aleppo, where the bouses join 
each other, the battlement * are sc 
low that ho could walk over the 
tops of a dozen houses without in¬ 
terruption. 

BAY-TREE. (Ps. xxxvii. 35.) 
Perhaps the cedar; perhaps any 
native tree that is suffered to grow 
wild, or without transplanting; 
but more probably the laurel, from 
which triumphal crowns were 
made for tho victors and heroes 
of ancient days. It was of the 
family of evergreens, and was well 
used as an emblem of the unde¬ 
caying strength and unchanging 
prosperity which seems sometimes 
to be tho portion of the wicked in 
this transient world. The laurel 
of our Southern States would well 
illustrate the idea of the psalmist 

BDELLIUM. (Gen. ii. 12.) 
^Supposed by the Jews to be the 
pearl or some other precious stone. 
There is a gum produced in the 
East Indies which has the same 
name, and is thought by many to 
be the article referred to in the 
cited passage. It resembles myrrh 
in colour, and is of a bitter taste. 
(Num. xi. 7.) 

BEACON. (Isa. xxx. 17.) A 
mark or signal, erected in some 
conspicuous place for direction, or 
for security against danger. Thus 
the Jews, when reduced in num¬ 
ber and distressed in circum¬ 
stances by reason of God’s severe 
judgments upon them, were a 
beacon to all other peoplo and na¬ 
tions to av>id the like sin. (See 
Banners.) 

BEANS. (Ezek. iv. 9.) A well- 
known gaiden vegetable, which 
was anciently often mixed with 
other vegetable substances in 
making bread. 

BEAR. (Prov. xvii. 12.) The 
95 






























BEA 


BEA 



Grown bear, now confine! to the 
milder climates of Europe, is pro¬ 
bably the species of this animal 
which is mentioned in the Bible. 
The white bear of our northern re¬ 
gions is of like form, size and ha¬ 
bits. The attachment of the female 


to her young is proverbial, for no¬ 
thing enrages her so much as to 
see her whelps hurt or taken from 
her. Hence the allusion, 2 Sam. 
xvii. 8; IIos. xiii. 8, and also the 
passage first above cited. 

BEARD. (Lev. xiii. 29.) 
Among the Jews much attention 
was paid to the beard. To show 
any contempt towards it by pluck¬ 
ing it or touching it, except from 
respect or courtesy, was esteemed 
a gross insult, while to kiss it, re¬ 
spectfully and affectionately, was 
regarded as a signal mark of 
friendship. Tearing out the beard, 
cutting it entirely off, or neglect¬ 
ing to trim and dress it, were all 
expressions of deep mourning. 
•'Ezra ix. 3; Isa. xv. 2; Jer. xli. 
5 , and xlviii. 37.' 

96 


The Arabians at this day cho- 
rish great respect for the beard. 
They solemnly swear by it; and 
their most significant and compre¬ 
hensive phrase to express their 
good wishes for a friend Is, “May 
God preserve your blessed beard ! 

A Turk was 
asked why he 
did not cut off 
his beard a.* 
Europeans do. 
“ Cut off my 
beard!” he re¬ 
plied with deep 
emotion, “ God 
forbid!” And 
we are told of 
an Arab who 
was wounded 
in the jaw, and 
chose to hazard 
his life rather 
than to havo 
his beard cut 
off, that the 
surgeon might 
examine the 
wound. Hence the keenness of 
the insult offered to David’s am¬ 
bassadors. (2 Sam. x. 4, 5.) And 
hence, too, the force of that pas¬ 
sage where the prophet is made to 
stand in the place of Jerusalem, 
and to represent, in his own per¬ 
son, the severe judgments that 
were to be inflicted on her. (Ezek. 
v. 1-5.) 

The Egyptians were accustom¬ 
ed to leave a small tuft of beard 
on the extremity of the chin. The 
Jewish law (Lev. xix. 27) forbad 
an imitation of this heathen fa¬ 
shion. 

BEAST. (Gen. ii. 19.) This 
word is generally used to distin¬ 
guish all animals from man, as in 
Ps. xxxvi. 6. Sometimes quad¬ 
rupeds only are denoted by it, a* 










BEA 

Lev xi. 2; and in Gen. i. 24, 25, 
it is supposed to refer to creatures 
that roam at large. Beasts were 
created on the sixth day, and were 
named by Adam. The Bible 
teaches us that every species of 
animal existing upon the earth 
was created on that day. The 
apostle describes some of his op- 
posers as wild beasts, so furious 
and brutal was their treatment of 
him. (1 Cor. xv. 32.) A similar 
use is made of the word in Ps. 
xxii. 12, 16; Eccl. iii. 18; Isa. xi. 
6-8 ; and in 2 Pet. ii. 12; and Jude 
10 , to denote a class of wicked 
men. 

Under the ancient dispensation 
the beasts were sometimes made 
to participate externally in the 
observance of religious ceremo¬ 
nies, (Jonah iii. 7, 8,) and suffer¬ 
ed, with men, the judgment of 
God. (Ex. ix. 6, and xiii. 15; Ps. 
cxxxv. 8; Jer. vii. 20, and xxi. 
6 ; Ezek. xxxii. 13; xxxviii. 20; 
Hos. iv. 3.) (See Clean and Un¬ 
clean.) 

BEATEN WORK. (Ex. xxv. 
18.) Not cast, but wrought. 

BEATEN OIL. (See Olive.) 

BED. (Gen. xlvii. 31.) The 
floors of the better sort of Eastern 
houses were of tile or plaster, and 
were covered with mats or car¬ 
pets; and as 
shoes were 
not worn on 
them, and the 
feet were 
washed, and 
no filthy hab¬ 
its of modern 
times prevail¬ 
ed, their floors 
seldom re¬ 
quired sweep¬ 
ing or scrub¬ 
bing. (Matt. 


BED 

xii. 44; Luke xv. 8.) Thick, coarse 
mattresses were thrown down at 
night to sleep upon. Tne poorer 
people used skins for the same 
purpose. Such beds were easily 
moved, (Matt. ix. 6;) and on two 
or three sides of the room was a 
bench, generally a foot high and 
three feet broad, covered with a 
stuffed cushion. This bench, or 
couch, was used both for lying 
and sitting upon ; but at one end 
of the room it was more elevated, 
and this was the usual place of 
sleeping. (2 Kings i. 4; xx. 2; Ps. 
cxxxii. 3; Amos iii. 12.) It was 
sometimes unattached to the build¬ 
ing and movable, like a settee or 
sofa, and was made of wood, ivo¬ 
ry, (Amos vi. 4,) or other materi¬ 
als. (Deut. iii. 11.) This know- 
ledgeof the construction of Eastern 
beds relieves of difficulty such 
passages as Ex. viii. 3; 2 Sam. iv. 
5-7; Ps. vi. 6; Mark iv. 21. 

Probably some part of the day¬ 
clothing served for bed-clothes. 
(Ex. xxii. 26, 27; Deut. xxiv. 12, 
13.) 

That bedsteads were known to 
the Jews is not improbable, inas¬ 
much as they were in use in 
Egypt, as we learn from figures 
on their monuments, of which the 
following is a cut. 













BEE 

BEE (Dcut. i. 44.; The ho- 
z.ey-bee is probably th? only spe¬ 
cies alluded to in the Bible. They 
must have been very numerous in 
Canaan, as honey was a common 
article of food (1 Kings xiv. 3; 
Ps. Ixxxi. 16; Sol. Song v. 1; Isa. 
vii. 1^) and commerce. (Ezek. 
xxvii. 17.) 

The disposition of bees to take 
vengeance on any one who dis¬ 
turbs their hive is alluded to in 
Ps. cxviii. 12. 

The figurative expressions in 
Isa. vii. 18, compared with Zech. 
x. 8, may allude either to a prac¬ 
tice of calling bees from their 
hives by a hissing sound, or to 
the known habit, in one species 
of the insect, of going forth to 
labour at the short buzzing sound 
which a queen-bee makes with 
her wings, while she is perched 
on the top of her cell. 

Wild bees often laid up their 
honey in hollow trees or the clefts 
of rocks. (Ps. Ixxxi. 16.) There 
was a kind of wild honey deposit¬ 
ed by other insects on the leaves 
of trees so abundantly as often to 
fall in drops upon the ground. 
This is the substance mentioned 
in 1 Sam. xiv. 25-27, and perhaps 
the same is intended in Matt, 
in. 4, 

BEELZEBUB, or BAALZE- 
BUB, (Matt. x. 25,) was an idol 
god of the Ekronites, and was 
probably worshipped as the patron 
leity of medicine. (2 Kings i. 3.) 
The word signifies “ the god of 
flies.” There is reason to believe 
that whatever his peculiar attri¬ 
butes w r ere, he was one of the 
chief gods of the heathens, and 
hence the prince or chief of devils 
is called Beelzebib, (Matt. xii. 
21; Luke xi. 15,; a term which 
would be easily understood by the 


BEE 

Jews, who were taught to regard 
all idols as devils. (Deut. xxxii. 
17 ; 2 Chron. xi. 15; Ps. cvi. 37 ; 
1 Cor. x. 20.) 

BF.ER. (Judg. ix. 21.) A place 
between Jerusalem and Shechem 
to which Jotham fled from Abi 
melech, his brother. 

Beer-elisi, or Beer. (Nura 
xxi. 16; Isa. xv. 8.) A station of 
the Israelites in Moab, where God 
caused water to spring up out of 
the sand for their refreshment. 

BEER-LAIIAI-ROI. (Gen. 
xvi. 14.) A place in the southern 
border of Canaan, near the desert 
of Shur, which received its name 
in consequence of the appearance 
of an angel to Hagar, when she 
was in exile. The name of the 
place signifies “ the well of him 
that liveth and seeth me.” 

BEEROTH. (Josh. ix. 17; 2 
Sam. iv. 2, 3.) A city of Benja¬ 
min, situated at the foot of the 
hill on which Gibeon was built, a 
few miles northeast of Jerusalem. 

A place of the same name was 
also a station of the Israelites, 
(Deut. x. 6,) and is called Bene- 
jaakan. (Num. xxxiii. 31.) 

BEER-SHEBA. (Gen. xxi. 31.) 
This was at first the name of a 
well near which Abraham long 
resided, (Gen. xxi. 33,) and Isaac 
after him. (Gen. xxvi. 32, 33.) It 
afterwards became a town of con¬ 
siderable note. It was situated 
about twenty mile? south of He¬ 
bron, at the southern extremity 
of the land of Canaan, as Dan was 
at the northern extremity. Hence 
the expression (Judg. xx. 1) from 
Dan to Beer-sheba, denoted the 
whole length of the land, as also 
did the expression from Beer-she- 
ba to mount Ephraim (2 Chron. 
xix. 4) represent the whole length 
of the kingdom of Judah. The 



BEE 

town was within tne territory of 
Judah, and fell finally into Sime¬ 
on’s hands. (Josh. xv. 28, and 
xix. 2.) At Beer-sheba resided 
the sons of Samuel, (1 Sam. viii. 
2 ;) and in later times the place 
was given to idolatry. (Amos v. 
5; viii. 14.) 

BEETLE. (Lev. xi. 22.) An 
animal entirely different from the 
insect known to us by that name. 
From the connection it is sup¬ 
posed to have been of the locust 
family. 

BEEVES, (Lev. xxii. 19,) as 
used in the Bible, is synonymous 
with the term cattle, in its modern 
use. As they divide the hoof 
and also cheiv the cud, they were 
reckoned among clean animals. 

BEGGAR,BEGGING. (ISam. 
ii. 8; Mark x. 46.) The poor 
among the Hebrews were much 
favoured. They were allowed to 
glean in the fields, and to gather 
whatever the land produced in 
the year in which it was not tilled. 
(Lev. xix. 10; xxv. 5, 6; Deut. 
xxiv. 19.) They were also in¬ 
vited to feasts. (Deut. xii. 12 ; 
xiv. 29, and xxvi. 12.) The Is¬ 
raelite could not be an absolute 
pauper. His land was inalien¬ 
able, except for a certain term, 
when it reverted to him or his 
posterity. And if this resource 
was insufficient, he could pledge 
the services of himself and family 
for a valuable sum. Those who 
were indigent through bodily in¬ 
firmities, were usually taken care 
of by their kindred. A beggar 
was sometimes seen, however, and 
was regarded and abhorred as a 
vagabond. (Ps. cix. 10.) In la¬ 
ter times they were accustomed 
to have a fixed place at the cor¬ 
ners of the streets, (Mark x. 46,) 
or at the gates of the temple 


BEL 

(Acts iii. 2) or of privato houses, 
(Luke xvi. 20.) 

BEHEMOTH. (Job xi. 15., 
The same word which is here 
translated behemoth, is elsewhere 
translated beast, (Job xxxv. 11; 
Ps. lxxiii. 22,) or cattle. (Ps. 1. 
10.) The animal described as 
the behemoth in the passage first 



Hippopotamus. 


above cited, was of prodigious 
size and strength, and corresponds 
better with the hippopotamus, or 
river-horse of Egypt, than with 
any other animal now known. A 
French naturalist says of the 
hippopotamus : “ It is found in 
the rivers of Africa, and most 
probably frequented the rivers of 
Idumma, when the country con¬ 
tained few inhabitants. It is 
known that this colossal creature 
lives upon herbs and roots, and 
that it conceals itself in marshy 
places. Its teeth are large and 
strong; their hardness and white¬ 
ness render them peculiarly valu¬ 
able. Its size is rather less than 
that of the elephant, and its taii 
is hardly a foot in length. These 
creaturet congregate in herds, 
and roam about in the nights for 
pasture.” For a particular de¬ 
scription, see Natural History 
of the Bible, p. 39. 

BEKAIL (See Measures.) 

BEL. (See Baal.) 


99 
















BEL 

BELIAL. (Deut. xiii. 13.) This 
wird, in the original, signifies 
t worthlessness, and is applied by 
the sacred writers to such lewd, 
profligate, and vile persons as 
seem to regard neither God nor 
man. (Judg. xix. 22, and 1 Sam. 
ii. 12.) Hence the question of 
the apostle (2 Cor. vi. 15) to the 
citizens of Corinth, which was re¬ 
markable for its lewdness and pro¬ 
fligacy, has great force : “ What 
concord hath Christ with Belial,” 
the prince of licentiousness and 
corruption ? 

Milton represents Belial as one 
of the fallen spirits : 

Belial came last, than whom a spirit more 
lewd 

Fell not from heaven, or more gross to love 
Vioe for itself. 

BELIEVE. (See Faith.) 

BELL. (Zech. xiv. 20.) Bells 
were attached to the bottom of 
the high-priest’s robe, that he 
might be heard when he went 
into or came out of the holy place. 
(Ex. xxviii. 33, 35.) Many of the 
Eastern kings and nobles wear 
bells in the same manner at this 
day, not only for ornament, but 
to give notice of their approach. 
Bells were hung upon the bridles 
or around the necks of war- 
horses : hence a horse not trained 
to war was called, by the Greeks, 
a horse who had never heard the 
sound of bells. We are told that 
bells were used on the horses at 
the funeral of Alexander the 
Gieat. The Arabian ladies in 
the royal presence have little gold 
bells fastened tc their legs, necks, 
nnd elbows, which, when they 
dance, make an agreeable sound. 
A custom of this kind probably 
prevailed in the time of Isaiah, to 
which he alludes. (Isa. iii. 18.) 

BELSHAZZAR (Dan. v. 1) 
100 


BEN 

was the son or grandson of Nebus 
chadnezzar, (Dan. v. 18,) and the 
last king of Babjdon. During the 
siege of the city of Babylon he 
gave a sumptuous ent jrtainment 
to his courtiers, and impiously 
made use of the temple furniture 
(of which Nebuchadnezzar had 
plundered the temple at Jerusa¬ 
lem) as drinking vessels. In the 
midst of the festivities, however, 
a miraculous appearance was seen 
upon the wall of the banqueting- 
room, which filled the king and 
his guests with amazement and 
horror; and when explained by 
Daniel, it was found to be a warn¬ 
ing to the king of his own death, 
and of the overthrow and destruc¬ 
tion of his kingdom, which took 
place in the course of the succeed¬ 
ing night. (See the particulars 
of this event, and a cut represent¬ 
ing the impious feast, in the Life 
of Daniel, chap, xiv.) 

BELTESHAZZAR. (Dan. i. 
7.) The name given to the pro¬ 
phet Daniel at the court of Ne¬ 
buchadnezzar. 

BENAIAH (2 Sam. xxiii. 20) 
was the son of Jehoiada, and 
distinguished for his enterprise 
and bravery on several occasions. 
(2 Sam. xxiii. 20-23.) He was 
an adherent of Solomon against 
the pretensions of Adonijah, (1 
Kings i. 36,) and after putting 
Joab to death succeeded to the 
command of the army. (1 Kings 
ii. 29-35.) 

BENIIADAD. 1. (1 Kings xv. 
18.) # King of Syria, in the time 
of Asa king of Judah, with whom 
he formed an alliance against 
Baasha king of Israel. (See Asa, 
Baasha.) Perhaps he was the 
same with Hadad the Edomite, 
who rebelled agains - ' Solomon, fl 
Kings xi. 25.) 



BEN 

2 . (1 Kings xx. 1 .) King of 
Syria, and a son of the preceding. 
Ho was a proud, boasting, and li¬ 
centious man, and seemed to be 
hardened against all rebukes. (1 
Kings xx. 10-12, 16.) (See 
Ahab.) He declared war against 
Jehoram king of Israel, but the 
prophet Elisha disclosed Benba- 
dad’a plans so accurately, that Je- 
horam was able to defeat them. (2 
Kings vi. 8-33.) (See Elisha.) 

In the siege of Samaria, which 
took place some years afterwards, 
that city was reduced to the great¬ 
est extremity. The Syrian army, 
under Benhadad, was lying around 
the walls, when, in the course of 
the night they were led to conceive 
that they heard the noise of an 
immense army in motion. Sup¬ 
posing that the city had been suc¬ 
coured by supplies of men and 
provisions from abroad, and terri¬ 
fied with the fancied tumult of 
their approach, the Syrians just 
at daybreak fled for their lives, 
leaving their camp, with all their 
horses, asses, provisions, utensils, 
Ac. just as they were, and their 
garments and vessels scattered all 
along the road by which they had 
lied. The citizens of Samaria 
were thus unexpectedly relieved, 
and supplied with an abundance 
of food. 

The next year, Benhadad, being 
sick, sent Hazael to inquire of the 
prophet Elisha whether he would 
recover: and he received for an¬ 
swer, that the king might certain¬ 
ly recover, and yet would surely 
die. Hazael also was informed by 
the prophet, that he would be 
elevated to the throne of Syria, 
and would be guilty of enormous 
wickedness. The very next day 
Hazael, with his own hand, mur¬ 
dered Benhadad, and became king 
9 * 


BER 

of Syria. (2 Kings viii. 15.) ,(Se* 
Hazael.) 

3. (2 Kings xiii. 8.) Another 
person of the same name, and so» 
of Hazael. He suffered several de¬ 
feats from the hand of Jehoash 
king of Israel, and wa3 compelled 
to relinquish all the land of Israel 
which his father Hazael had ob¬ 
tained in conquest. (2 Kings xiii. 
25.) 

BENJAMIN (Gen. xxxv. 18? 
was the youngest son of Jacob 
and Rachel. His mother died im¬ 
mediately after his birth, which 
took place near Bethlehem, when 
the family were on their journey 
from Padan-aram to Canaan. With 
her dying breath^she called him 
Benuni, [the son of my sorrow,) but 
his father gave him the name of 
Benjamin, (the son of my right 
hand.) 

The tribe of Benjamin had their 
portion of the promised land ad¬ 
joining Judah, and when ten of 
the tribes revolted, Benjamin con¬ 
tinued steadfast in its attachment 
to Judah, and formed a part of that 
kingdom. (1 Kings xii. 17, 23.) 
The prophetic history of the tribe 
is told in Gen. xlix. 27, and Deut. 
xxxiii. 12. 

Paul was a descendant of this 
tribe. (Phil. iii. 5.) (See Jacob 
and his Sons, pp. 87-98.) 

BEREA, (Acts xvii. 10,) now 
Veria. A city of Macedonia, 
about twenty miles west of Thes- 
salonica, near mount Pindus. The 
Bereans were honourably distin¬ 
guished for their diligence in 
searching the Scriptures, unde* 
the preaching of Paul. For thia 
and other causes it was a place of 
much interest in the days ot the 
apostles. (Acts xvii'. 10,15, and 
xx. 4.) It now contains about 
20,000 inhabitants, ^chiefly Turk* 




BER 

»nd Greeks,) and produces rice, 
fruit, and marble, and has manu¬ 
factures of cotton. 

BERITH. (Comp. Judg. viii. 
S3, and ix. 46.^ (See Baal.) 

BERNICE. (Acts xxv. 13, 23,) 
or BERENICE, as the name is 
sometimes spelled, was the daugh¬ 
ter of Agrippa, surnamed the 
Great, and sister to the younger 
Agrippa, king of the Jews. She 
was a woman of licentious cha¬ 
racter, and was present, in great 
pomp, at the hearing of Paul be¬ 
fore Festus at Cesarea. 

BERODACII-BALADAN, call¬ 
ed also Merodach-Baladan. (Isa. 
xxxix. 1 . (See Hezekiah.) 

BERYL. (Ex. xxviii. 20.) A 
precious stone,nowfoundchieflyin 
Brazil and Ceylon, the prevailing 
colour of which is green. (Sol. 
Song v. 14; Ezek. i. 16, and x. 
9; Rev. xxi. 20.) 

BESOM. (Isa. xiv. 23.) An 
instrument used for sweeping. 

BESOR, or BEZOR, (1 Sam. 
xxx. 9, 10, 21,) signifying cold, 
was the name of a brook over 
which David passed in pursuit of 
the Amalekites who had pillaged 
and burned Ziklag. It falls into 
the Mediterranean below Gaza. 
The supposed channel of it was 
crossed in 1823 by Messrs. Fiske 
and King, American missionaries, 
about five miles below Gaza. 

BETIIABARA. (John i. 28.) 
The name of a town on the east 
bank of Jordan, where there was 
a ford across the river; whence 
the name, (house of passage.) At 
this place John baptized; and 
here, too, it is supposed the Israel¬ 
ites crossed the Jordan, under the 
conduct of Joshua. It lay about 
thirty miles northeast of Jerusa¬ 
lem, and is probably the same 
with Beth-barah. (Judg. vii. 24.) 


BET 

BETHANY. (Mark xi. 1 ) A 
village on the southeast side of the 
mount of Olives, about two milei 
from Jerusalem. It was the resi¬ 
dence of Lazarus and his sisters 
(John xi. 1.) Christ often re¬ 
sorted thither, especially during 
the last few days of his ministry, 
and it was the scene of some of 
the most interesting events of his 
life. (Matt. xxi. 17; xxvi. 6; 
Mark xi. 11, 12; xiv. 3; John xi. 
1-46, and xii. 1-3.) Travellers are 
shown the pretended place of La¬ 
zarus’s grave, and the ruins of the 
house where he» and his sisters 
lived. (See Omar, p. 143, and Se- 
lumiel, pp. 160, 168.) 

The expression (Luke xxiv. 50) 
“he led them out as far as to Be¬ 
thany,” has been interpreted by 
some to mean “as far as the way 
leading to Bethany,” (see Luke 
ii. 15, and Acts vii. 15, for paral¬ 
lel expressions;) that is, where it 
parted from other pathways on the 
top of the mountain. The account 
of the entrance to Jeruselem, it is 
said, confirms this view. The ass 
was found at a place where two 
roads met, after our Lord had set 
out from Bethany, and very soon 
afterwards he came to the descent 
of the mount. Thus, it is alleged, 
every condition is satisfied, if we 
suppose the Ascension to have 
been from near the summit, below 
its crest, on the eastern side. 

BETIIARBEL. (Hos. x. 14.) 
This is supposed to denote no" 
particular place, but, according to 
the original signification of tho 
word, to import such fruitful coun¬ 
tries as had been conquered and 
spoiled by some well-known chief¬ 
tain. 

BETII-AVEN. (Josh. vii. 2.) 
A place belonging to the tribe of 
Benjamin, and lying east of Be- 





BET 

thel. (1 Sam. xiii. 5.) (See Be¬ 
thel.) 

The wilderness ofBethayen 
(Josh, xviii. 12) formed part of 
the northern boundary of the tribe 
of Benjamin. 

BETII-BAAL-MEON. (See 
Baal meon.) 

BET1IBARAH. (See Betha- 

BARA.) 

BETHEL. (Gen. xxviii. 19.) 
When Jacob was journeying to¬ 
wards Mesopotamia to avoid the 
fury of his brother Esau, ho lodg¬ 
ed at a place near the city of 
Luz, and was favoured with a re¬ 
markable vision of the Almighty. 
For this cause he named the place 
and the adjoining city, Bethel,. 
(house of God.) It was situated 
east of a line running from She- 
chem to Jerusalem, and at about 
an equal distance from each. 

Bethel was the residence of one 
of the Canaanite kings, and the 
Ephraimites, to whom it was as¬ 
signed in the division of the land, 
were unable to gain possession of 
it until they were aided by the 
treachery of one of the inhabit¬ 
ants. (Judg. i. 22-26.) 

The tabernacle was stationed a 
long time in this place, and Jero¬ 
boam placed one of his golden 
calves here, (1 Kings xii. 28, 33,) 
from which circumstance, proba¬ 
bly, Amos was induced to call it 
Bethavon, (the house of idolatry.) 
And hence, also, the phrase “com¬ 
ing to Bethel” was proverbially 
expressive of idolatrous worship 
in general. (Amos iv. 4, and v. 
5 ; Hos. x. 5, 8.) Part of the pro¬ 
phecy of Amos was directed spe¬ 
cially against this city, (iii. 14,) 
and it was fulfilled in the time of 
Tosiah, (2 Kings xxiii. 13;) and 
the prophet himself was directed 
to flee from the place. At that 


BET 

time Bethel was probably the re¬ 
sidence of the king of Israel. 
(Amos vii. 10-13.) 

BETIIER, (Sol. Song ii. 17,) 
or mountains of perfume, as it is 
found in an ancient translation. 
It is not certain that this name is 
applied to any particular placo. 
It may, perhaps, denote those 
tracts of uneven country which 
were the favourite resort of the 
hart and roe. (Sol. Song iv. 6, 
8 , and viii. 14.) 

BETHESDA, (John v. 9,) 
(house of mercy.) The Hebrew 
name of a pool or reservoir of wa¬ 
ter in the city of Jerusalem. 
There were two pools of this kind, 
one of which was called the Up¬ 
per Pool, and the other the Pool 
of.Siloam. (Comp. 2 Kings xviii. 
17 ; Neh. iii. 15 ; John ix. 7.) The 
pool of Bethesda had remarkable 
medicinal properties, which made 
it a common resort for invalids, 
for whose accommodation porches 
or small apartments were provid¬ 
ed. The opinion has been ex¬ 
pressed that these properties were 
natural, or that they were com¬ 
municated by something thrown 
into the water. It is to be ob¬ 
served, however, (1.) That their 
healing virtue extended to what¬ 
ever diseases the sufferers might 
have, however various and even 
opposite their character. (2.) 
Only the one who first stepped in 
was cured. (3.) If the agency by 
which the healing influence was 
imparted was natural, and within 
the power of man, there seems to 
be no good reason why it should 
not have been constantly employ¬ 
ed. It is submitted, as a safer and 
more consistent opinion, that the 
healing virtue was miraculous; 
that the angel was a messenger 
from God ; and that the troubling 
103 



BET 

jf the waters was an unusual mo¬ 
tion to give notice to the invalids 
of the arrival of the favoured mo¬ 
ment. (See Selumiel, pp. 104, 
111 .) 

Travellers tell us of a place now 
seen in Jerusalem, which is sup¬ 
posed to have been oncfr the pool 
of Bethesda. It is one hundred 
*.nd twenty feet long, forty broad, 
and eight deep; and at one end 
there are evidently the remains 
of three or more arches which may 
be the ruins of the porches. (For 
a sketch of Bethesda, as given by 
Rosenmiiller, and a description 
of its appearance, see Views of 
Palestine, p. 5.) 

BETH-HORON. (Josh. x. 10.) 
Two villages lying on the border 
of Ephraim and Benjamin, about 
twelve miles northwest of Jerusa¬ 
lem, were called Upper and Ne¬ 
ther Beth-horon. It is plain that 
one of them was on an eminence, 
and the other in a valley. (Comp. 
Josh. x. 10 and 11.) 

Beth-horon was fortified by So¬ 
lomon. (1 Kings ix. 17.) Modern 
travellers have found an Arab 
village twelve miles from Jerusa¬ 
lem, on the way from Jaffa, (Jop¬ 
pa,) which it is supposed might 
have been the site of Upper Beth- 
horon. 

BETH-JESIIIMOTII. (Josh, 
xiii. 20.) A city of the tribe of 
Reuben on the eastern shore of 
the Dead sea. It was formerly 
in possession of tho Moabites, and 
after remaining in the tribe of 
Reuben until the Assyran capti¬ 
vity, it fell back into the hands 
of the Moabites. (Ezek. xxv. 9.) 

BETHLEHEM, (Gen. xxxv. 
19,) called also Bethlehem Ephra- 
tah, (Mic. v. 2,) was so inconsi¬ 
derable a place as no* to be in¬ 
cluded in the general lists of the 
104 


BET 

cities of Judah. (Josh. xv. Neb 
xi.) It was the birth-place of 
David, (Luke ii. 4, 11,) and was 
still more sacred and celebrated 
as the birth-place of the Redeem 
er. (Matt ii. 1; Luke ii. 4-5.^ 

It is situated about six mile* 
southwardly from Jerusalem. It 
is built on a hill covered with 
olives and grape-vines. One of 
our American missionaries who 
was there in 1823, describes it a& 
a pile of rocks, with here and 
there a patch of verdure. It con¬ 
tains about fifteen hundred inha¬ 
bitants, many of whom employ 
themselves in making wooden ro¬ 
saries and crucifixes, ornamented 
with mother-of-pearl, for pilgrims 
who visit the village. The great¬ 
est ornament of the place is the 
church, or convent, erected by 
the empress Helena over the place 
where our Saviour is said to have 
been born. “It is,” says one, “a 
remarkable building. Without, a 
perfect fortress, with heavy but¬ 
tresses and small grated windows. 
On entering, we immediately come 
to a magnificent church, wtth a 
double row of ten Corinthian 
pillars of marble on each side, 
forty pillars in all.” There are 
two churches, one above and one 
under ground. The last is ele¬ 
gantly fitted up. A chapel is con¬ 
nected with it, the whole being 
lighted by thirty-two lamps sent 
by different princes. The place 
has been often described by mo. 
dern travellers. 

Four or five miles from Jerusa¬ 
lem is the (so called) tomb of Ra¬ 
chel, and about two miles beyond 
that, is Bethlehem. (Gen. xlviii. 
7.) At this tomb our traveller 
turned off, taking the road to He¬ 
bron, that he might visit the pools 
of Solomon, which lie in a narrow 



BET 

sloping valley, three miles south- 
wost of Bethlehem. 

The village of Bethlehem in 
1784 was supposed to contain six 
hundred men capable of bearing 
arms; but the ravages of war and 
oppression have reduced it to a 
very miserable state. When our 
traveller was there, it had just 
Buffered severely from some tyran¬ 
nical measures of the government; 
tnd he passed over the ruins of 
houses and fields that had just 
then been demolished, and parks 
of olive and fig-trees which had 
been cut down by order of the pa¬ 
sha, to punish their proprietors 
for an alleged rebellion and flight. 
(See Life of David, chap, i., 
Omar, p. 16, and Selumiel, p. 
160.) 

BETII-MAACHAH. (2 Sam. 
xx. 14,15.) Same with Abel-beth- 
maachah. 

BETH-MEON. (See Baal- 
Meon.) 

BETH-NIMRAH. (See Nim- 

RIM.) 

BETH-PEOR. (Deut. iv. 46.) 
A city of Moab, famous for the 
worship of Baal. (See Baal.) 

The valley over against” Beth- 
peor, in the land of Moab, is dis¬ 
tinguished as the place where 
Moses repeated the law to the 
people of Israel. It was also his 
burial-place, and was not far from 
mount Nebo. 

BET1IPHAGE. (Matt. xxi. 1.) 
\ small village on the southeast 
of mount Olivet, adjoining Beth¬ 
any on the w T est. (Comp. Luke 
six. 28-40, with Matt. xxi. 1-11. 
See Selumiel, p. 160.) 

BETH-REIIOB. (See Rehob.) 

BETHSAIDA. (Matt. xi. 21.) 
There were at least two towns of 
this name in Judea. One was 
situated on the east bank of the 


BET 

river Jordan, near the place where 
it falls into the sea of Tiberias. 
Near this village was the desert 
or wilderness of Bethsaida. (Matt, 
xiv. 15-21; Luke ix. 10.) The 
other town was called Bethsaida 
of Galilee, and was situated on 
the west of Jordan, near the sea 
of Tiberias. This was the birth¬ 
place of Andrew, Peter, and Phi¬ 
lip. (Mark xiv. 70; John i. 44.) 

BET1I-SHAN. (1 Sam. xxxi. 

10. ) Same with Beth-shean. 

BETH-SHEAN. (Josh. xvii. 

11. ) A town on the -west of Jor¬ 
dan, twenty-five miles south of 
the sea of Tiberias, and for a long 
time known by the name of Scy- 
thopolis. It was situated on the 
borders of Galilee and Samaria, 
upon the edge of the great plain 
of Jordan. It is now a ruin call¬ 
ed Bysan, containing seventy or 
eighty houses, the inhabitants of 
which are, to the last degree, poor 
and miserable, owing to the de¬ 
predations they constantly suffer 
from the Bedouins. In the time 
of Saul it was probably a posses¬ 
sion of the Philistines, as they 
exposed his body on its walls after 
his defeat in the battle of Gilboa. 
(1 Sam. xxxi. 10.) It was after¬ 
wards attached to Judah. (1 
Kings iv. 12.) 

BETH-SHEMESH. (Josh. xv. 
10.) At least three different places 
are mentioned in the Bible under 
this name. 

1. One of them belonging to the 
tribe of Naphtali. (Josh. xix. 38; 
Judg. i. 33.) 

2. Another was in Egypt, (Jer. 
xliii. 13,) supposed to be the He¬ 
liopolis of the Greeks, and is call¬ 
ed On. (Gen. xli. 45, 50.) It is 
about five miles from the modern 
Cairo. 

3. And the third was a city of 

105 




BET 

Jadah, (2 Kings xiv. 11,) situated 
on the borders of Dan, thirty 
miles southwest of Jerusalem, and 
sometimes called Irshemesh. This 
last place was distinguished by 
the circumstance that the ark was 
sent thither by the Philistines, 
and a vast number of men, who 
looked into it from vain curiosity, 
were swept off by a pestilence. (1 
Sam. vi. 12-20.) It was also re¬ 
markable for the battle that was 
fought there between Israel and 
Judah, in which the latter were 
defeated, and the king taken pri¬ 
soner. (2 Kings xiv. 11-13.) 

BETROTH. (Deut. xxviii. 30.) 
A man and woman were betroth¬ 
ed or espoused, each to the other, 
when they were engaged to be \ 
married. It is giving one’s troth 
(i. e. faith or promise) to marry 
at a future time. 

Among the Jews this relation 
was usually determined by the pa¬ 
rents or brothers, without consult¬ 
ing the parties until they came to 
be betrothed. The engagement 
took place very early; though it 
was not consummated, by actual 
marriage, until the spouse was at 
least twelve years of age. 

The betrothing was performed 
h twelvemonth or more before the 
marriage; either in writing or by 
a piece of silver given to the es¬ 
poused before witnesses. During 
this interval, however, from the 
time of espousals to the marriage, 
the woman was considered as tit. i 
lawful wife of the man to whom 
she was betrothed; nor could the 
engagement be endod by the man 
without a bill of divorce; nor 
could she be unfaithful without 
being considered an adulteress. 
{For a full account of the whole 
cer 3mony of marriage, and of the 
ipiritual relaticn which the term 
106 


biit 

denotes, see Biblical Antiqui¬ 
ties, vol. i. chap. vi. $ 1, and 
Omar, p. 146. See also article 
Marriage.) 

BEULAH. (Isa. lxii. 4.) A 
word signifying married, which 
the prophet applies to the Jewish 
church, to import the intimacy of 
its relation to God. 

BEZALEEL. (Ex. xxxi. 2.) A 
famous artificer, who received 
wisdom and instruction directly 
from God, to qualify him for the 
work of building the tabernacle 
and preparing its various furni¬ 
ture. 

BEZEK. (Judg. 1. 4.) A city 
in the tribe of Judah, where the 
Canaanites suffered a severe 
\ slaughter, and their king was 
taken prisoner. (See Adoni-be- 
zek.) It was at Bezek that Saul 
mustered his army before the at¬ 
tack on Jabesh-gilead. 

Ancient geographers speak of 
two towns by the name of Bezek, 
situated near each other, about 
seventeen miles from Sichern, on 
the way to Beth-shan. 

BIER. (Luke vii. 14.) The bed 
or frame on which the dead body 
is conveyed to the grave. Proba¬ 
bly they were made (as coffins 
are in modern times) more or less 
expensive in shape and ornament, 
according to the circumstances 
and rank of the deceased. (2 
Chron. xvi. 14. See Burial.) 

BILDAD. (Job ii. 11.) One 
of Job’s three friends who visited 
him in his affliction, and whose 
arguments, in justification of 
God’s dealings, occupy chap. viii. 
xviii. and xxv. of the book of Job 
(See Job.) The name Shuhite ii 
probably derived from Shuah, son 
of Abraham and Keturah, whose 
descendant ho is supposed to have 
been. 




BIL 

BILHAB. (Gen. xxix. 29.) 
Hie handmaid of Rachel, and the 
mother of Dan and Naphtali. 
(Gen. xxxv. 25.) 

BILL. (Luke xvi. 6, 7.) Any 
written paper containing a state¬ 
ment of particulars claimed or 
promised: as a bill of services, 
bill of expenses, bill of fare, <fcc. 
fill (or writing) of divorcement, 
(Deut. xxiv. 1-4; Matt. v. 31,) 
was a writing given by the hus- 
Dand to the wife, in virtue of 
which, by the Jewish law, the 
marriage relation was dissolved. 

BIND. (Matt. xvi. 19.) Bind 
and loose, as used in this and pa¬ 
rallel passages, are synonymous 
with command and forbid. The 
expression, to bind the law upon 
one’s hand, <fcc. is figurative, and 
Implies an intimate acquaintance 
with it, and a constant regard to 
its precepts. The Jews construed 
it literally, and hence the custom 
of wearing phylacteries. (See 
Phylacteries.) Rolls or vo¬ 
lumes of writing were tied up. 
Hence the expression, Isa. viii. 16. 

BIRDS. (Lev. xiv. 4.) Birds, 
as well as beasts, were divided 
into clean and unclean, but not 
by external marks, as in the case 
of quadrupeds. Those which were 
forbidden are named, and were 
probably well known by those 
names to the Jews, though not 
now known to us by those names. 
In general, the ravenous kinds 
feeding on flesh were forbidden. 

There was a humane law in the 
fewish code which forbade the 
taking a mother-bird, though her 
young migjit bo taken. The com¬ 
mon mode of taking birds was 
with a snare. (Ps. cxxiv. 7 ; Prov. 
vii. 23 ; Amos. iii. 5 ) A speckled 
bird (Jer. xii. 9) probably means 
*ny strange bird, which, as is well 


BIS 

known, other birds are accusum- 
cd to attack and pursue. 

BIRTHRIGHT. (Gen. xxv. 
31.) The first-born son among 
the Jews enjoyed special privi¬ 
leges above his brethren, and 
these privileges were hence called 
his birthright, or his right by 
birth. Among these privileges 
were, consecration to the Lord; 
(Ex. xxii. 29;) great dignity; 
(Gen. xlix. 3;) a double portion 
of his father’s estate, (Deut. xxi. 
17;) and (in the royal families) 
succession to the kingdom. (2 
Chron. xxi. 3.) The eldest son 
seems to have been regarded, in 
the father’s absence, as in some 
respects his representative. 

The paternal blessing was also 
in a peculiar sense the right of 
the first-born, though the right 
itself and all the blessings of it 
might be forfeited or transferred, 
as in the case of Jacob and Esau, 
(Gen. xxv. 33.) Reuben and Jo¬ 
seph. (1 Chron. v. 1.) But who¬ 
ever enjoyed it was regarded as 
invested with great dignity and 
superiority. Hence the phrase is 
used figuratively to denote the 
chief or highest, or lowest, (Job 
xviii. 13; Isa. xiv. 30,) and to 
confer such a rank on one is to 
constitute him the first-born. (Ps. 
lxxxix. 27; Col. i. 15.) 

Hence the peculiar force and 
appropriateness of the titles given 
to the Divine Redeemer. (Rom. 
viii. 29; Col. i. 18; Hob. i. 2,4, 
6 ; xii. 23.) (See Biblical An¬ 
tiquities, vol. i. chap. vi. 3 ii.) 

BISHOP. (1 Tim, iii. 2.) The 
word, in its original, means over¬ 
seer, as Joseph was in Potiphar’s 
house, (Gen. xxxix. 4,) or as the 
three thousand six hundred men 
were in Solomon’s temple, (2 Chron. 
ii. 18,) or as Uzri was of the Le 
107 



BIS 

▼ites. (Neh. xi. 22.) In the New 
Testament, however, the term i3 
used to denote an officer or officers 
of the church, but their precise 
rank or jurisdiction is a matter of 
controversy. Paul describes the 
qualifications for the office parti¬ 
cularly in his letter to Timothy. 
(1 Tim. iii. 2-7.) Christ is figu¬ 
ratively called the shepherd and 
bishop of souls. (1 Pet. iL 25.) 

BISHOPRIC. (Acts i. 20.) 
The jurisdiction, charge, or office 
of a bishop. 

BITS. (See Harness.) 

BITTER, (Jer. ii. 19,) and BIT¬ 
TERNESS, (Prov. xiv. 10,) are 
words used figuratively to denote 
the severity of sorrow or suffering. 

BITTER HERBS. (Ex. xii. 
8 .) The Jews were commanded 
to eat the passover with a salad 
of bitter herbs; and their modern 
historians suppose that hoar- 
hound, wild lettuce, tansy, &c. 
were used, as they still are by the 
Jews in some countries. The use 
of them on that occasion was in¬ 
tended to call to their remem¬ 
brance the severe and cruel bond¬ 
age from which God delivered 
them when they were brought out 
of Egypt. 

BITIIRON. (2 Sam. ii. 29.) 
This is not probably the name of 
any particular place, but a gene¬ 
ral term denoting a range of bills 

unci vnlos? 

BITHYNIA. (Acts xvi. 7.) A 
province of Asia Mino*\ It is 
bounded on the east by Paphla- 
gonia, north by the Black sea, and 
south by Phrygia and Galatia. 
It is directly opposite to Constan¬ 
tinople. The gospel was intro¬ 
duced into this province at an 
early period. (Comp. Acts ii. 9, 
and 1 Pet. i. 1.) Thero is a re¬ 
markable testimony in ecclesias- | 
108 


BLA 

tical history, to the purity and 
firmness of the Christians of Bithy- 
nia, at the close of the first and 
the beginning of the second cen¬ 
tury. 

BITTERN. (Isa. xxxiv. 11.) 
Some bird of solitary habits, that 
frequents ruins and other desolate 
places. The bird, known in mo¬ 
dern days by this name, inhabits 
fens and marshes, and has a deep 
hoarse cry, which is often heard, 
in the twilight, from its lonely 
haunts. The language of prophe¬ 
cy (Isa. xiv. 23, and xxxiv. 11; 
Zeph. ii. 14) imports the utmost 
solitude and desolation. 

BLACK, BLACKNESS, (Job 
xxx. 30; Joel ii. 6,) are words 
used figuratively,to denote shame, 
terror, perplexity, despair, mourn ¬ 
ing, <fcc. We often find them em¬ 
ployed at this day, in Eastern 
writings, to express shame and 
confusion. 

BLAINS. (Ex. ix. 9.) Burn¬ 
ing pustules or ulcers, which broke 
out upon the Egyptians and all 
their beasts, and constituted the 
sixth plague. The ashes from the 
furnaces (brick-kilns, perhaps) 
were taken by Moses, a handful 
at a time, and scattered to tlio 
winds; and wherever it fell, on 
man or beast, it caused this dread¬ 
ful disease to appear. Perhaps 
reference is made to this plague 
in Deut. xxviii. 27. 

BLASPHEMY. (Col. iii. 8.) 
The word, in its original use, de¬ 
notes all manner of detraction or 
calumny, such as is expressed by 
the terms rail, revile, speak eviL, 
&o .; but in the restricted sense 
of the Scriptures, and’of common 
use, it denotes reproachful, irre¬ 
verent, or insulting language con¬ 
cerning God or any of his name* 
or attributes. (Lev. xxiv. 10-16.) 



BLA 

N hoever thinks of the character 
of God as infinitely holy, just, and 
good, will not be surprised that 
this offence is regarded as very 
heinous, and is so fearfully pun¬ 
ished. There is no reason to sup¬ 
pose that the sin of profane swear¬ 
ing, so common at this day, is less 
odious and offensive to God than 
it was in the time of Moses. 

Blasphemy against the Holy 
Ghost, (Matt. xii. 32,) such as 
the Pharisees were guilty of when 
they ascribed the miracle of cur¬ 
ing the blind and dumb man (who 
was also possessed with a devil) to 
the agency of Beelzebub or Satan, 
is declared to be unpardonable. 

Many persons are apprehensive 
that they have fallen into this 
sin, and hence give themselves up 
to despair; but it is probable, that, 
however dangerous and fatal may 
be our offences against the Holy 
Spirit in rejecting his gracious in¬ 
fluences and refusing to yield to 
his persuasions, (Heb. vi. 4-8, and 
x. 26-31,) the fear is sometimes 
groundless. How near the ridi¬ 
cule and contempt of religion and 
its ordinances, the sporting with 
the work of the Holy Spirit on 
men’s hearts, and the unbelief in 
and opposition to the Scripture, 
which is all given by this divine 
Agent, may approach to the fear¬ 
ful extremity of guilt which the 
unpardonable sin must involve, 
the judgment of the great day will 

BLEMISH. (F.x. xii. 5.) 
Whatever renders a .person or 
thing imperfect. The priests un¬ 
der tho Jewish law were required 
to be free from personal blemishos, 
and the defects which were ac¬ 
counted blemishes are particular¬ 
ly described. (Lev. xxi. 18-20, 
and xxii. 20-24.) So also of ani- 
10 


BLE 

mals. (Deut. xv. 21.) The word 
is figuratively used, (2 Pet. ii. 13, 
and [spots] Jude 12.) 

BLESS, BLESSED, BLESS¬ 
ING. (Gen. xii. 2 ; xxii. 17,18.) 
These words are of frequent occur¬ 
rence in the sacred writings, and 
their particular force may gene 
rally be determined by the con¬ 
nection. 

Men are said to bless God when 
they ascribe to him the praise and 
glory which are due to him. (Ps. 
cxiv.) God blesses men in be¬ 
stowing upon them continually 
mercies, spiritual and temporal. 
(Job xlii. 12 ; Ps. xlv. 2.) And 
men are said to bless their fellow 
creatures when, as in ancient 
times, in the spirit of prophecy 
they predicted blessings to come 
upon them. This was the kind 
of blessing which the patriarchs 
pronounced. (Gen. xlix.) So Mo¬ 
ses blessed Israel. (Deut. xxxiii.) 

The form of blessing prescribed 
by the Jewish ritual (Num. vi. 
23-27) is admirably simple and 
sublime. It was pronounced 
standing, with a loud voice, and 
with the hands raised towards 
heaven. (Luke xxiv. 50.) Na¬ 
tional blessings and cursings were 
sometimes pronounced. (Deut. 
xxvii. and xxviii.; Isa. xix. 25.) 

The cup op blessing, (1 Cor. 
x. 16,) and cup of salvation, 
(Ps. cxvi. 13,) are expressions de¬ 
rived, as we suppose, from a cus¬ 
tom prevalent among the Jews at 
their feasts. 

The master of the feast took a 
cup of wine in his hand, and so¬ 
lemnly blessed God for it, and for 
all the mercies which were then 
acknowledged. It was then pass¬ 
ed to all the guests, each of whom 
drank of it in his turn. The apt¬ 
ness and force of the figures ein* 
109 




BLO 

ployed in the above passages are 
thus made obvious. 

Blessing valley of. (See 
Valley.) 

BLOOD (Ex. xxix. 12) is the 
fluid of life in the animal body. 
Its use was expressly prohibited 
to Noah when every thing else 
was freely given him. (Gen. ix. 
4.) By the Jewish law also, it 
was expressly and solemnly for¬ 
bidden. (Lev. xvii. 10, Ac.) 

The reason of this interdiction 
is, probably, because blood was 
sacredly appropriated. (Lev. xvii. 
11.) The Jewish ritual abounds 
with the use of blood, (Heb. ix. 
22,) and the manner of employing 
it is stated with minuteness in 
Heb. ix. and x., where also its use 
and effects are shown in striking 
contrast with the blood shed upon 
the cross. (See also Acts xx. 28; 
Rom. v. 9 ; Eph. i. 7 ; Col. i. 14; 
Heb. vii. 27; 1 John i. 7.) 

The prohibition of eating blood 
or animals that are strangled, has 
been always rigidly observed by 
the Jews. In the Christian church, 
the custom of refraining from 
things strangled, and from blood, 
continued for a long time. In the 
council of the apostles held at Je¬ 
rusalem, (Acts xv.,) it was declar¬ 
ed that converts from paganism 
should not be subject to the legal 
ceremonies, but that they should 
refrain from idolatry, from forni¬ 
cation, from eating blood, and 
from such animals as were stran¬ 
gled, and their blood thereby re¬ 
tained in their bodies; which pre¬ 
cept was observed f;>r many ages 
by the church. 

It is observed that the notion, 
that the blood of the victims was 
peculiarly sacred to the gods, is 
impressed on all ancient pagan 
mythology. (See Christ.) 

no 


BOL 

Avenger of blood. (See 

Avenge.) 

BLUE. (See Colours.) 
BOANERGES. (Mark iii. 17.) 
The name given by Christ to 
James and John. Some have sup¬ 
posed that this name indicated the 
power which those apostles should 
exert in the introduction of the 
gospel dispensation. It seems tri¬ 
fling to suppose that it refers to 
the mode or tone of their preach¬ 
ing. 

BOAR. (Ps. Ixxx. 13.) This 
is the original stock of the com¬ 
mon hog; and, in a wild state, is 
a very furious and formidable ani¬ 
mal. Modern travellers tell us 
that they are found in great num¬ 
bers on the banks of the Jordan, 
and among the reeds of the sea 
of Tiberias. The allusion of the 
psalmist, in the above passage, 
may be to the coming forth of the 
animal from the shady marsh or 
woods; or it may be to his well- 
known habit of turning up the 
earth in search of roots for food, 
and in this way destroying culti¬ 
vated ground. (For a particular 
description and cut, see Nat ural 
History of the Bible, article 
Boar.) 

BOAZ, or BOOZ, (Ruth ii. 1,) 
was a descendant of Judah; and 
through him is traced the regular 
succession of Jewish kings. (Matt, 
i. 5.) Boaz was a man of wealth 
and of great respectability; and, 
from his conduct towards his poor 
kinswonoi, Ruth, we suppose him 
to have been a man of strict inte¬ 
grity, and of an estimable charac¬ 
ter. (See Affectionate Daugh¬ 
ter-in-law, or Life of Ruth, 
chap. iii. iv. and v.) 

BOLLED. (Ex. ix. 31.) The 
expression, flax was boiled , means 
that it was podded, or nearly io 



BON 

* state to be gathered, and, of 
course, the loss of it was much 
more severe than it would have 
been at an earlier stage of its 
growth. 

BOND, BONDAGE, BOND- 
MAN, BONDWOMAN, BOND¬ 
MAID. (See Servant.) 

BONNETS. (See Clothes, 
Mitre.) 

BOOK. (Ex. xvii. 14.) What 
we call books were unknown to 
the ancient Jews, at least in their 
present convenient form. Letters 
were engraved on stone, brick, 
metal, (as lead and copper,) or 
wood, and also on cloth and skins, 
and at a later period, on parch¬ 
ment. (2 Tim. iv. 13.) Tablets 
of lead and brass, or copper, of 
great antiquity, have been disco¬ 
vered in modern times. 

The earliest mode of preserv¬ 
ing inscriptions was by engraving 
on a rock. Such inscriptions often 
occur to the Eastern traveller. 


BOO 

The writing-table mentioned 
Luke i. 63, was probably a tablet 
covered with wax, or otherwise 
prepared to be written upon. 
(Deut. xxvii. 2, 3.) Such tablets 
were used in England as lately as 
the year 1300. 

Leaves and the bark of trees 
were also used, and were often 
prepared with much skill. The 
people of Ceylon write with a 
bodkin on broad and thick leaves, 
cut into narrow slips ; and thes6 
leaves, being fastened together, 
make books, which they call Ol- 
las. The missionaries often pre¬ 
pared tracts in this form, before 
paper and printing were intro¬ 
duced upon the island. In Su¬ 
matra, and among the Indians of 
North America, bark is still used 
for making letters and pictures. 

Leather, and linen or cotton 
cloth, were also used. These 
were prepared in the form of long 
rolls, twelve or fourteen inches 



111 











































































BOO 

wide, and fastened at each end 
to sticks, ("like the rollers to which 



BOO 

maps are attached,) and which 
were rolled together till they met 
midway. Sometimes these leaves 
were connected in the form of mo¬ 
dern books, and opened in tho 
same way. In this case the sheets 
were fastened to rods, and these 
rods passed through rings, and 
thus formed the back of the book. 

The writing was generally in 
capital letters, and without j unc- 
tuation or division of words; and 
when used, the reader unrolled 
the MS. as far as the place which 
he wished to find, and kept before 
him just so much as he would 
read. (See Cut on page 111.) 

The pages resembled the fol¬ 
lowing in their general appear¬ 
ance, though they were of course 
wider and longer than these, and 
were read from right to left: 


INTHEBEGI 

NNINGWAST 

HEWOKDAN 

DTHEWORD 

WASWITHd 

ODANDTHK 


WORDWASG 

ODTHESAME 

WASINTHEB 

EGINNINGW 

ITHGODALL 

THINGSWER 


EMADEBYHI 

MANDWITHO 

UTHIMWASN 

OTANYTHIN 

GMADETHA 

TWASMADE 


INHIMWASLI 

FKANDTHELI 

FEWASTHEEI 

GHTOFMENA 

KDTHELIGHT 

SHINETHIND 

John i. 1-4 



112 




















































































BOO 

These columns could be divided 
from one another, and used sepa¬ 
rately, as we may cut the columns 
of a newspaper which is printed 
on one side only, and arrange the 
extracts as we like. Sometimes 
the reading was what is called 
furrcw-wise. The first line was 
from right to left, and the second 
from left to right, and so on, alter¬ 
nately, like ploughing a field. The 
roll or book of curses, which Eze¬ 
kiel saw, was thirty feet long and 
twenty wide. Tho writing was 
usually on one side, but not al¬ 
ways. (Ezek. ii. 10.) 

When the roll was done with, 
it was carefully deposited in a 
case. The foregoing cut shows at 
one view various forms of books 
and rolls, and the implements of 
writing. 

Another form of the scroll, and 
-■Iso a collection of sheets in the 
«diape of a modern book, secured, 



10* H 


BOO 

as above described, with ringt 
and rods, are nere represented. 



Book of the Law closed. 

A very good idea may be form¬ 
ed of an ancient roll, by suppos¬ 
ing a common newspaper to have 
rods or rollers at the right and 
left sides. The reader takes hold 
of the rods, and unrolls the sheet 
113 









































































































































BOO 

until he comes to the desired co¬ 
lumn. Thus in Luke iv. 17, the 
phrase “ opened the book,” would 
properly read “unrolled the 
scroll,” and in ver. 20, for “ clos¬ 
ed the book,” read “rolled up the 
volume,” or “scroll.” This shows 
the force of the figure, (Isa. xxxiv. 
4,) where the heavens are repre¬ 
sented as rolled together, as sud¬ 
denly as the opposite ends of an 
unrolled scroll fly to meet each 
other, when the hand of the reader 
is withdrawn from it. 

A kind of paper was made from 
the stalk of an Egyptian vegetable 
called papyrus, or paper reed, 



Papyrus Plant . 

which is still found in various 
parts of India.- (See Bulrush.) 
The stalk was slit, with a needle, 
into plates or layers as br jad and 
thin as possible. Some of them 
wtre ten or fifteen inches broad. 
These strips were laid, side by 
side, upon a flat horizontal sur¬ 
face, and then immersed in the 
water of the Nile ; which not only 
served as a kind of sizing, but 
114 


,4 boo 

also caused the edges of the strip* 
to adhere together as if glued. 
The sheets, thus formed, were 
dried in the sun, and then covered 
with a fine wash, which made 
them smooth and flexible. They 
were finally beaten with hammers, 
and polished. Twenty or more 
of these sheets were sometimes 
connected in one roll. 

The pen or style* was made of 
some hard substance, perhaps not 
unlike the instruments used by 
glaziers to cut glass. (Jer. xvii. 
1.) Upon tablets of wax an in¬ 
strument was used, one end of 
which was poirP-^d, to mark the 
letters, and thj other broad and 
flat, to make erasures. Pens or 
styles of copper are now used by 
the Ceylonese. On a soft sub¬ 
stance, like linen or papyrus, the 
marks were painted with a fine 
hair pencil, as is practised among 
the Chinese to this day. 

Most of the Eastern nations now 
use the reed-pen , which ; .s split 



with an instrument used as we 
use the penknife. (Jer. xxxvi. 
23.) The pith is removed, and 
the bark or rind, being iplit like 
a quill, retains and properly sheds 
the ink. It is not hard or stiff 
enough to be used long without 
mending. We have half a dozen 
of them from India now on qur 
table. (See Pen.) 

* Hence the word style , signifying one'* 
manner of writing -easy style , elegant style- 
Ac. 

























BOO 

Ink was prepared from a va¬ 
riety of substances. (See Ink.) 
And those who were skilful in 
writing wore an inkkorn fastened 
to the girdle, (Ezek. ix. 2,) which 
is the present mode among the 
Persians and the Moors of Barba¬ 
ry. (See Inkhorn.) 

As tables were unknown, the 
paper, or other substance written 
upon, was laid upon the knees, or 
held firmly with the left hand. 

A sealed book was a roll fasten¬ 
ed together by a band or string, 
and a seal affixed to the knot, (Isa. 
xxix. 11,) as seen in our principal 
cut. 

Book op the generation 
(Gen. v. 1; Matt. i. 1) signifies 
the genealogical history or records 
of a family or nation. 

Book op the living, (Ps. lxix. 
28,) and the kindred phrase, book 
of life, (Rev. xxi. 27,) are sup¬ 
posed to allude to the genealogi¬ 
cal lists or registers kept by the 
Jews, from which, the names of 
the’ dead were erased. (Isa. iv. 
3.) The aptness and force of the 
figurative use of the terms is suf¬ 
ficiently obvious. 

Book of judgment. (Dan. vii. 
10.) The allusion here is proba¬ 
bly either to the practieo of open¬ 
ing books of account to settle with 
servants or labourers, or to the 
custom of the Persian kings to 
have a book in which a daily re¬ 
cord is made of special services 
performed by any of their sub¬ 
jects, and of the rewards which 
were given to the individuals. 
(Esth. vi. 1-3.) 

Book of the wars of the 
Lord, (Num. xxi. 14,) Book of 
Jasher or the righteous, (Josh. 
x. 13, and 2 Sam. i. 18,) and Book 
of the Chronicles (or annals) 
bf the kings of Judah and Israel, 


BOS 

(1 Kings xiv. 19, 29,) are ftp? 
names of ancient writings known 
to the Jews, but not preserved in 
the sacred canon. 

The remark of the wise man, 
(Eccl. xii. 12,) on the subject of 
making books, is supposed to 
amount to this :—“ That the pro¬ 
pensity of some men to collect and 
amass books for libraries is insa¬ 
tiable ; that it is a business to 
which there is no end ; the desig¬ 
nation of one leading to that of 
another, and that again of an¬ 
other, and soon interminably; and 
that the much study connected 
with this endless labour and ‘ wea¬ 
riness of the flesh’ may render its 
votary a fit subject of the admo¬ 
nition, that 1 the conclusion of the 
whole matter,’ or the great end 
of life, ‘is to fear God and keep 
his commandments.” (See Writ¬ 
ing.) 

BOOTH. (See Garden.) 

BORDER. (See Clothes.) 

BORROW, (Ex. xii. 35.) The 
meaning of the word here trans¬ 
lated borrow is ask, and does not 
imply any promise to return. 

BOSOM. (John xiii. 23.) The 
dress of the Jews was such as al¬ 
lowed them to carry ivithin a fold 
in the bosom of the robe what 
could not be carried in the hand. 
Hence the expressions Isa. xl. 11, 
and Luke vi. 38. It was also used 
to denote a place of rest and secu¬ 
rity. Hence the term Abraham’s 
bosom is figuratively spoken of as 
the abode of Lazarus. (Luke xvi. 
23.) No human name awakened 
such associations in the mind of 
a Jew as that of Abraham. (Luke 
xiii. 28; John viii. 33, 39, 57; 
Acts xiii. 26.) The use of this 
term (John i. 18) imports also the 
peculiar, mysterious, and perfect 
unity of the Father and Son. 

115 



BOS 

BOSSES. (Job xv. 26.) The 
prominent or projecting parts of 
the buckler, and of course tbo 
thicKest and strongest. 

BOTTLE. (Gen.xxi. 14.) An¬ 
cient bottles were made of the 
skins of animals, which were pro¬ 
perly dressed for the purpose. The 



Form of a Bottle. 

openings of the skin were closed, 
except at the neck, through which 
the liquor was to be received and 
discharged, and which was fas¬ 
tened by a string, like a bag. 

The following is copied from a 
fragment of the Antiquities of 



116 


BOW 

Herculaneum, and represents a 
young woman pouring wine from 
a bottle into a cup. 

They were, of course, of differ¬ 
ent sizes and shapes, as the skins 
of kids, goats, or oxen might bo 
used. Bruce describes particu¬ 
larly a bottle which he saw in 
Arabia, made in this manner, of 
an ox-skin, which would hold six¬ 
ty gallons, and two of which were 
a load for a camel. 

Christian missionaries in East¬ 
ern countries frequently speak of 
the goat-skins and leathern bot¬ 
tles in which they carry water in 
their journeys. Where the tra¬ 
velling is rough, and the vessels 
likely to strike against each other, 
they are made of the safest mate¬ 
rials that can be found The 
skins or bottles used for new wine 
were of the freshest and most flex¬ 
ible kind, in order that they 
might the better endure the pro. 
cess of fermentation. (Matt. ix. 

17.) 

The effect of smoke on a skin- 
bottle would bo to blacken and 
shrivel it. (Ps. cxix. 83.) 

BOW. (See Armour.) 

BOW. A posture. (Gen.xxxvii. 
10.) To bow down one’s self is 
expressive of great reverence and 
humility. (Gen. xxiv. 26. 48; 1 
Kings i. 53, and ii. 19.) It was a 
common mode of salutation in the 
East to kneel upon one knee, and 
bow the head until it touched the 
ground. 

It is still the custom in many 
Eastern nations for subjects to 
kneel before the throne of the 
king, and bow their heads slowly, 
till they touch the earth. Sir 
William Jones, in his history of 
Nadir Shah, says, that as Nadir 
approached, the people bowed 
their heads with shame,and touch- 









BOW 

ed the earth with the forehead of 
humiliation 

BOWELS. (1 Kings iii. 26.) 
This term is used by the sacred 
writers, evidently in a figurative 
sense, for affections or emotions 
of the hea’-t. (Col. iii. 12; 1 John 
iii. 17.) 

BOX TREE. (Isa. xli. 19.) 
An evergreen, whose perfect pro¬ 
portions, beauty of foliage, and 
utility might illustrate the pros¬ 
perity and grace which God 
would bestow on Zion. (Isa. lx. 
13.) 

BOZRATH, (Gen. xxxvi. 33,) 
called by the Greeks and Romans 
Bostra, was situated about twen¬ 
ty-four miles southeast of Edrei. 
It is often mentioned in the 
Scriptures as the chief city of 
Edom. (Isa. xxxiv. 6, and lxiii. 
1; Jer. xlviii. 24, and xlix. 13, 
22; Amos i. 12.) It is called by 
Jeremiah a city of the Moabites, 
and it was probably taken from 
Ammon by the Edomites, and 
again from the Edomites by the 
Moabites. As it was situated 
upon the confines of several coun¬ 
tries which were often at war with 
each other, these changes were 
likely to happen. It is now the 
largest city in that district, and 
has been celebrated as a strong¬ 
hold of the Nestorians. 

The prophecies respecting this 
place, some of which are cited 
above, are among the most won¬ 
derful and sublime on record. 

BRACELET. (Gen. xxiv. 30.) 
An ornament (chain or clasp) 
worn on the arm. Among East¬ 
ern princesses it is a badge of 
royalty, and was probably regard¬ 
ed as such in the time of David. 
(2 Sam. i. 10.) The royal brace¬ 
let was of much richer materials, 
and was worn above the elbow; 


BRE 

the common bracelet was worn on 
the wrist. fEzek. xvi. 11.) 

BRANCH. (Ps.civ. 12.) This 
word is often figuratively used by 
the sacred writers, (Ps. lxxx. 15; 
John xv. 5, 6,) and is also one oi 
the titles of the Messiah. (Isa» 
xi. 1, comp, with Isa. liii. 2; Zech. 
iii. 8, and vi. 12.) The family of 
Jesse is represented under the 
figure of the stock of a tree, firm¬ 
ly rooted; and the coming of 
Christ from the seed of David is 
represented as the shooting forth 
of a branch, which is here called, 
by way of distinction and emi¬ 
nence, “ THE BRANCH for it 
may well be said that Christ, even 
in his common nature, far sur¬ 
passed all the house of David, in 
the dignity, power, and glory both 
of his person and office. 

BRASS. (Gen. iv. 22.) A com¬ 
position resembling that which wo 
call brass was probably known in 
very ancient times. That which is 
called brass in some passages of 
the sacred writings was doubtless 
what we call copper. (Deut. viii. 
9.) It was used for a variety of 
purposes about the temple, and 
also for fetters, (Judg. xvi. 21; 2 
Kings xxv. 7,) armour, (1 Sam. 
xvii. 5, 6,) aqjj[ musical instru¬ 
ments, (1 Chron. xv.19; 1 Cor. xiii 
1.) The words brass, brazen, &e. 
occurring under the words Ar¬ 
mour, Altar, Book, &g., are used 
in conformity with the common 
English translation of the Bible, 
and not with technical accuracy. 

BRAZEN SEA. (See Laver. 
BRAZEN SERPENT. (St. 
Serpent.) 

BREAD. (Gen. xiv. 18.) The 
bread of the Jews was generally 
made of wheat. Barley and other 
grains were sometimes used 
(Judg. vii. 13.) 


117 



BRE 

The materials were prepared as 
In modern days. (See Mill, 
Sieve.) The process of knead¬ 
ing it was performed in kneading- 
troughs, (Gen. xviii. 6; Ex* xii. 
34 ; Jer. vii. 18,; or wooden bowls, 
6uch as the Arabians use at this 
day for a like purpose. 

It has been supposed by some 
that the kneading was done upon 
a circular piece of leather, such as 
is now used in Persia, and which 
would be more properly called a 
kneeding-bag, as it draws up like 
a knapsack. Either of the uten¬ 
sils would be easily transported. 
Very simple leaven was used in 
the dough. The loaves were 
shaped like a plate, and when lea¬ 
vened, were ordinarily of the 
thickness of one’s little finger. 
(See Table.) 

The unleavened bread was very 
thin, and was broken, not cut. 
(Lam. iv. 4; Matt. xiv. 19; xv. 36; 
xxvi. 26.) It has been said that 
the thickness or thinness of the 
loaves was regulated by the time 
they were to bo kept; that which 
was to be kept longest being made 
thick, that it might retain its 
moisture. This is contrary to mo¬ 
dern philosophy on this subject, 
as we see in the manufacture of 
ship-bread. (For the manner of 
baking, see Ovens, Cake.) 

The term bread is often used 
for food or provisions in general 

Bread corn (Isa xxviii. 28) is 
used for wheat, barley, or any 
other grain from which bread was 
uado. 

The figurative expressions, 
bread of sorroios, (Ps. cxxvii. 2,) 
and bread of tears, (Ps. lxxx. 5,) 
may denote that the suffering of 
sorrow and the shedding of tears 
had become as mucn a part of the 
portion of every day as one’s dai- 
118 


BRE 

ly bread. So the bnad of wick¬ 
edness, (Prov. iv. 17,J and bread 
of deceit, (Prov. xx. 17,) denote 
not only a living or estate obtain¬ 
ed by fraud and sin, but that to 
do wickedly is as much the portion 
of a wicked man’s life as to eat 
his daily bread. 

BREAKFAST. (See Meals.) 

BREASTPLATE. 1. (Ex. 
xxviii. 15.) A part of the official 
dress of the Jewish high-priest, 
the general appearance of which 



Breastplate. 


is supposed to be given in the cut. 
It was a piece of embroidered 
work, about ten inenes square, 
and made double with a front and 
lining, so as to answer for a noucb 






























































































BRI 


BRI 

or bag. It was adorned with 
twelve precious stones, as repre¬ 
sented in the cut. 

The two upper corners wen 
fastened to the ephod, from which 
it was not to be loosed, (Ex. 
xxviii. 28,) and the two lower cor¬ 
ners to the girdle. The rings, 
chains, and other fastenings were 
of gold or rich lace. It was call¬ 
ed the memorial, (Ex. xxviii. 12, 
29.) inasmuch as it reminded the 
priest of his representative cha¬ 
racter in relation to the twelve 
tribes; and it is also called the 
breastplate of judgment, (Ex. 
xxviii. 15,) perhaps because it was 
worn by him who was, instru¬ 
mentality, the fountain of justice 
and judgment to the Jewish 
church. Others think it is be¬ 
cause the Urim and Thummim 
were annexed to it. (See Urim 
and Thummim.) 

2. (Eph. vi. 14.) The breast¬ 
plate was also that article of an¬ 
cient armour which protected the 
breast. (See Armour.) Its figu¬ 
rative use in the passage above 
cited, and also in Isa. lix. 17, is 
sufficiently obvious. 

B.RICK (Gen. xi. 3) was a 
building material among the 
Jews; but the size of their bricks 
was much larger than ours. Bricks 
found among the ruins of Babylon 
are a foot square, and resemble 
tile rather than brick. They were 
usually hardened by the heat of 
the sun, although kilns were not 
unknown. (2 Sam. xii. 31; Jer. 
jtliii. 2; Nah. iii. 14.) It is said 
that the materials of brick and the 
mode of manufacturing them have 
lately been discovered in some 
ancient monument, by an Italian 
traveller. Our cut is copied from 
une of these monuments. 
BRIDE, BRIDEGROOM, 




Brick-making. 


BRIDE-CHAMBER. (See Mar¬ 
riage.) 

BRIDLE. (See Harness.) 

BRIGANTINE. (Jer. xlvi. 4.) 
Supposed to be the same with the 
habergeon and coat of mail. (See 
Armour.) 

BRIMSTONE. (Ps. xi. 6.) A 
well-known mineral substance, 
exceedingly inflammable, and 
when burning it emits a suffoca¬ 
ting smell. We are told that the 
cities of the plain were destroyed 
by a rain (or storm) of fire and 
brimstone. There is nothing in¬ 
credible in this, even if we sup¬ 
pose natural agencies only were 
employed in it. The soil in that 
and in many other parts of the 
earth is such, that a violent erup¬ 
tion might fill the air with inflam¬ 
ed substances, falling down in 
streams of liquid fire upon those 
devoted cities. The word is often 
figuratively used. (Job xviii. 15; 
Isa. xxxiv. 9.) Whether the word 
is used literally or not, in the pas¬ 
sages which describe the future 
sufferings of the wicked, we may 
be surs that it expresses all which 
119 







BRO 

the human mind can conceive of 
excruciating torment. 

BROTHER, BRETHREN. 
(Gen. iv. 2, and xlii. 13.) A term 
which properly denotes the near¬ 
est consanguinity, that is, male 
children of the same parents, as 
in the texts above cited; but 
sometimes persons of more remote 
kindred, or of the same nation, 
(Gen. xiii. 8; Esth. x. 3 ; Acts vii. 
25, 37, and xiii. 26,) or even those 
who are closely united in affection. 
(2 Sam. i. 26.) In the New Tes¬ 
tament the term is more frequent¬ 
ly applied to the spiritual rela¬ 
tionship which the true followers 
of Christ sustain to him and to 
each other. (Matt, xii. 50; Rom. 
xiv. 10; 2 Thess. ii. 13.) 

BUCKLER. (See Armour.) 

BUILDINGS. (See Dwell¬ 
ings.) 

BUL. (See Month.) 

BULLS of Bashan. (Ps. xxii. 
12.) Bulls in the rich pastures 
of Bashan, being well fed, were 
strong and ferocious ; hence they 
are chosen as symbols of cruel 
and persecuting enemies. (See 
Bashan.) 

BULRUSH. (Isa. xviii. 2.) A 
species of reed, which is found on 
the marshes of the Nile. It grows 
to the height of twelve or fifteen 
feet. The stalks were pliable, and 
capable of being interwoven very 
closely, as is evident from its be¬ 
ing used in the construction of 
arks. (Ex. ii. 3, 5.) It was from 
this vegetable that the papyrus 
was derived, which was used for 
writing. (See Book.) It was made 
of the inside bark, which was cut 
into strips, and the edges cement¬ 
ed together and dried in the sun. 
The fact, that the papyrus was 
used for food when prepared in 
fue way, and for writing when 
120 


BUR 

prepared in another way, explain* 
the passages in which the eating 
of books, Ac. is mentioned. (Jer. 
xv. 16 ; Ezek. iii. 1, 3 ; Rev. x. 8- 
10. For the appearance of the 
bulrush, see an engraving, illus¬ 
trating that art/cle, in Natural 
History of the Bible.) 

BULWARK. (See War.) 

BURDEN. (Ilab. i. 1.) This 
word, when .used in connection 
with some city or nation, (as the 
burden of Jloab, the burden of 
Nineveh, Ac.) expresses the dis¬ 
astrous and calamitous import of 
the prophecy. 

The “ burden of the desert of the 
sea,” (Babylon,) the “burden of the 
valley of vision,” (Jerusalem,) and 
similar expressions, are explained 
by their subject or connection. 

BURNING-BUSH. (See Mo- 

SES.) 

BURNT-OFFERING. (See 
Sacrifice.) 

BURIAL, BURY. (Gen. 
xxiii. 4; Matt. xxvi. 12.) It wai 
customary among the Jews for 
the children or near kindred tc 
close the eyes of the dying. 
(Gen. xlvi. 4.) A loud and genera) 
wailing followed the decease, 
(John xi. 19, 31, 33,) and con¬ 
tinued many days after burial. 
The body of the deceased was 
washed and laid out. (Acts ix. 
37.) It was wrapped in folds of 
linen cloth, and the head bound 
around with a napkin. It is said 
that Lazarus was bound hand and 
foot, with grave clothes, (John xi. 
44;) and it is supposed by many 
that each limb had its separate 
wrapper, as it was customary in 
Egypt to wrap even each finger 
in a separate cloth or band, so 
that hundreds of yards of cloth 
are often unwound from oneof their 
mummies. When thus bound 
































t 



Eastern Ttmb- 






























































BUR 

around, it was plaeed on a bier, 
ir, readiness to be borne to the 
grave. (See Bier, Embalm.) 

The clinmte, and the unclean¬ 
ness which was contracted, under 
the law, from contact with a dead 
body, or oven by coming into the 
same apartment with it, would 
naturally lead to the custom of 
early interments. In Persia, we 
are told, it is not customary to 
keep the dead over two or three 
hours; and the European Jews 
universally bury their dead early. 
There were many exceptions in 
this respect, however. The prac¬ 
tice of embalming was not gene¬ 
ral among the Jews, though spices, 
<fcc. were used in their burials. (2 
Chron. xvi. 14; John xix. 40.) 
Jacob and Joseph (whose bodies 
were embalmed) both died in 
Egypt, where the art of embalm¬ 
ing was very skilfully practised. 
In Jacob’s case we are told, that 
Joseph commanded his servants, 
the physicians, to embalm his fa¬ 
ther, and then he was placed in a 
coffin in Egypt. And thence his 
body was carried to Machpelah, 
in Canaan, and buried. (Gen. 1. 
2, 7, 8.) Coffins were used in 
Egypt and Babylon; but are un¬ 
known in the East, even at the 
present day, except when a body 
is to be conveyed to a distant 
place. (See Embalm.) 

All civilized nations have 
agreed in atten ling with some 
jolemriity the burial o* their dead. 
Among the Jews, the bier was 
followed to the grave by a few of 
the nearest relations. (2 Sam. iii. 
31 ; Luke vii. 14.) Other persons 
attended, and sometimes mourn¬ 
ers (or rather wailers by profes¬ 
sion) were employed to attend the 
body. (Jer. ix. 17 ; Ezek. xxiv. 
17 ; Amos y. 16; Matt. ix. 23.) 


BUR 

This is the custom now in many 
Eastern nations. 

An English missionary in the 
East Indies speaks of having seen 
a number of women and girls as¬ 
sembled to lament over the grave 
of a lad who had been killed by 
a wild buffalo, ten days before. 
The mother sat on the earth at 
one end of the grave, and lean¬ 
ing upon it, cried out, “ Oh, my 
child ! Oh, my child !” The others 
stood around her, crying out and 
exhibiting every sign of distress. 
(Gen. 1. 3, 10; Jer. xxxi. 15.) 

Certain places were appropri¬ 
ated by the Jews to the purpose 
of burying the dead, and they 
were both public and private. 
(Gen. xxiii. 4; 1. 13; Judg. viii. 
32; xvi. 31; 2 Sam. ii. 32; xxi. 
14; 2 Kings xxiii. 6; Jer. xxvi. 
23.) They were usually selected 
in gardens, (2 Kings xxi. 18, 26; 
John xix. 41,) or fields, (Gen. 
xxiii. 11,) or caves in the sides 
of the mountains, (2 Kings xxiii. 
16, 17,) or in rocks, (Isa. xxii. 



Entrance of a Tomb in the rock. 

16;) and to be unburied was re¬ 
garded as exceedingly disgrace¬ 
ful. (1 Sam. xvii. 44-46 ; 2 Kings 
ix. 10; Ps. cxli. 7; Jer. viii. 2, 

121 






u L 

111 ! . 

n 


BUR 

and xxii. 19.) The grave was 
called the house or home of the 
(lead. (Job xxx. 

23; Eccl. xii. 5.) 

The burial places 
were usually in re¬ 
tired situations, and 
Imnce were the re¬ 
sort of demoniacs. 

(Matt. viii. 28,) and 
were usually with¬ 
out the city walls, 
but not always. 
tJosli. xxiv. 30, 33; 

1 Sam. xxv. 1 ; 
ixviii. 3; 2 Kings 
xxi. 18: 2 Chron. 
xvi. 14; xxiv. 16; 
xxxiii. 20 ; Neh. iii. 16.) Though 
solitary, they were selected with 
reference to shade, prospect, <fcc. 
(Gen. xxiii. 17; xxxv. 8; 1 Sam. 
xxxi. 13.) 

The desire to bo buried with 
one’s kindred was very strong, (2 
Sam. xix. 37 ;) and it is remark¬ 
able that the Jews, as a people, in 
all their dispersions and suffer¬ 
ings, retain an ardent desire to be 
buried in their own land. 

It was not unusual for a single 
family to have, near their dwell¬ 
ing-house, a small building, with¬ 
out door or window, built of stone 
or other durable materials, which 
was called the sepulchral-house, 
or family mansion for the dead. 
Dr. Jowctt describes them, and 
nays they are not uncommon in 
Eastern nations at the present 
day. 

It is supposed by travellers that 
the tombs of Joseph and Joshua, 
and some others which were hewn 
in rocks, and the location of which 
is minutely described in the Bi¬ 
ble, are still seen. The following 
cut represents the ground-plan of 
a sepulchre which Maundrell 
122 


BUR 

found and explored, in Aradub, 
(Arpad,) in Syria. 


m 


w 





Through an old and dilapidated 
entrance he gained admission, by 
seven or eight steps, to the cham¬ 
ber a, eleven feet long, and about 
nine wide. This is a kind of an¬ 
te-chamber. On the right, by a 
narrow passage, he entered a 
chamber b, ten feet by eight. This 
contained six cells for corpses, two 
opposite to the entrance, four at 
the left hand, and one not quite 
finished at the right. On the 
other side of the ante-chamber c, 
is a similar chamber, with eleven 
cells, not quite so large. Two 
narrow passages, seven feet long, 
lead to the apartment d. The 
cut will now serve to explain itself 
in some measure. The average 
height of the rooms is six feet 
The sepulchres of the Jews 
were sometimes expensively built, 
and adorned or garnished; and 
were whitened at short intervals, 
so as to make them conspicuous, 
that they might be avoided, as 
contact with them occasioned ce¬ 
remonial uncleanness. Hence the 
force of our Lord’s reproof. (Matt, 
xxiii. 27.) Sometimes titles or 
inscriptions were placed on them 



























BUS 

(2 Kings xxiii. 17.) To build a 
Bepulchre for a man was an ex¬ 
pression of respect and honour. 
(Matt, xxiii. 29; Luke xi. 48.) 
'See Biblical Antiquities, chap, 
vii. $ xi. for full description and 
cut.) 

That sepulchres were not always 
closed may be inferred from seve¬ 
ral passages of the Bible. (2 Kings 
xiii. 21; Ps. v. 9. See Acelda¬ 
ma. See also Omar, pp. 167-173, 
and Selumiel, p. 188.) 

BUSHEL. (See Measures.) 

BUTLER,. (Gen. xl. 1,13.) An 
honourable officer of the king’s 
household, called cup-bearer, 
(Neh. i. 11,) it being his duty to 
fill and bear the cup or drinking 
vessel to the king. The chief 
butler had the charge and over¬ 
sight of the rest. (Gen. xl. 2.) 

BUTTER. (Gen. xviii. 8.) As 
this word is used in the Scrip¬ 
tures, it probably means sour or 
coagulated milk, which, when 
mingled with water, is still re¬ 
garded as a very agreeable and 
refreshing beverage by Eastern 
nations. (Job xx. 17.) Their but¬ 
ter, such as it was, might have 
been sometimes clarified and pre¬ 
served in jars, as at the present 
flay in Asia, and when poured out 
resembles rich oil. 

The figurative expression in 
Job xxix. 6, “/ rcashed my steps 
with butter denotes primarily the 
abundance with which the patri¬ 
arch was blessed; but it is also 


BYT 

supposed by some to refer to the 
great quantities of cr^ain which 
his herds produced, and which 
were trodden into butter. This 
fanciful interpretation aside, the 
passage seems to be self-explana¬ 
tory ; the figurative allusion to 
butter having the same force and 
effect as that to oil. 

The place of butter, as a gene¬ 
ral article of food in the East, was 
supplied in some measure by tho 
vegetable oil which was so abun¬ 
dant. 

Butter was made by pouring 
the milk into a goat-skin, and 
then shaking or treading it to and 
fro, in a uniform direction, untL 
the separation of the butter took 
place. The butter mentioned in 
Judg. v. 25, was probably cream, 
or a preparation, of which cream 
was a component part. It is not 
improbable that the bottle of milk 
in the passage cited, was no other 
than a skin which had been used 
as a churn, and that the refresh¬ 
ment was butter-milk, presented 
in the richest vessel that was at 
hand. Butter-milk is still esteem¬ 
ed a most refreshing beverage by 
the Arabs. 

Butter and honey were used to¬ 
gether, and were esteemed among 
the richest productions of the 
land. And travellers tell us that 
the Arabs now use cream or new 
butter mixed with honey as a 
principal delicacy. 

BYTHINIA. (See Bithynia.) 


CAB 

AB. (See Measures.) 
CABINS, (Jer. xxxvii. 16,) 
or cells, were probably niches or 
apartments within the dungeon, 
for the separate confinement of 


CM 

prisoners. The idea conveyed is, 
that tne prophet suffered the most 
severe and loathsome imprison 
ment. 

CJ2SAR. (See Cesar.) 

123 








CJE 

(LESAREA. (See Cksarea.) 

CiES A RE A-PHILIPPI. (See 
Cesarea-Philippi.) 

CAIAPHAS (John xi. 49, 51) 
was the high-priest of the Jews 
at the time of our Saviour’s trial. 
The office was formerly held for 
life, hut at this time it was filled 
and vacated at the pleasure of the 
Roman government. 

The wonderful miracle of rais¬ 
ing Lazarus from the dead con¬ 
vinced many of the Jews that 
Christ was sent from God; and 
the Pharisees, alarmed at the in¬ 
crease of his followers, summoned 
a council, and pretended that 
their liberties were in danger; 
that the Romans would become 
jealous of them, and that their 
destruction was inevitable if some¬ 
thing was not done at once to 
check his progress. Caiaphas 
was a member of the council, and 
expressed his decided opinion in 
favour of putting Jesus to death, 
as the only way of saving the na¬ 
tion from the evils which his suc¬ 
cess would bring upon them. His 
language was —“ Ye know nothing 
at all; nor consider that it is ex¬ 
pedient for us that one man should 
die for the people , and that the 
whole nation perish not 

This counsel was wicked and 
unjust in the highest degree ; but 
as there was no offence charged, 
it seemed the only plausiblo ex¬ 
cuse for putting Christ to death. 
The high-priest’s language on this 
occasion was prophetic, Oough 
he did not intend it so. He was 
a wicked man, but the Spirit of 
God made use of him to declare 
the divine purposes, and as he 
was high-priest, all his declara¬ 
tions were clothed with authority. 

The evangelist, in giving an 
account of this extraordinary oc- 
124 


CAI 

currence, enlarges on the prophe¬ 
tic language of the high-priest, 
and shows the extent and blessed¬ 
ness of the dispensation of mercy 
through Jesus Christ Nothing 
of this, however, was in the mind 
of the cruel and bigoted high- 
priest. 

After Christ was arrested, he 
was arraigned before Caiaphas, 
and an effort was made to produce 
false testimony sufficient for his 
condemnation. This expedient 
failed, for though two persons ap¬ 
peared to testify, they did not 
agree, and at last Caiaphas put 
our Saviour himself upon oath, 
that he should say whether he 
was indeed the Christ, the Son of 
God, or not. 

The answer was, of course, in 
the affirmative, and was accom¬ 
panied with a declaration of his 
divine power and majesty. The 
high-priest pretended to be great¬ 
ly grieved at what he considered 
the blasphemy of our Saviour’s 
pretensions, and forthwith appeal¬ 
ed to his enraged enemies to say if 
this was not enough. They an¬ 
swered at once that he deserved 
to die, and then, in the very pre¬ 
sence of Caiaphas, and without any 
restraint from him, they fell upon 
their guiltless victim with insults 
and injuries. 

As Caiaphas had no power to 
inflict the punishment of death, 
Christ was taken from him to Pi¬ 
late, the Roman governor, (John 
xviii. 28,) that his execution might 
be duly ordered. (See Annas.) 

CAIN. (Gen. iv. 1.) The first¬ 
born of Adam and Eve, and, of 
course, the first-born of the hu¬ 
man race. He was also the first 
murderer, and the victim of his 
malice was his own brother. fSee 
I Abel.) He whs instigated to this 




CA1 

violence by envy; bis brother’s 
offering having been accepted by 
God, while his own was refused. 
On this account he became de¬ 
jected and angry, and the Lord 
inquired of him why he indulged 
these sinful feelings. If he would 
do well, as Abel had done, he 
would bo equally accepted; and 
if not, the sin must be upon his 
own head. Certainly he had no 
cause of anger towards Abel, who 
was still ready to acknowledge 
him as his elder brother, and to 
yield to him all the privileges of 
birthright. The expostulation was 
of no avail. They were together 
in the field, and Cain took his 
life. 

When the inquiry was put to 
him, where his brother Abel was, 
Cain evaded the question, saying, 
“Am I my brother’s keeper?” But 
the Lord, as if to express the 
greatness of his crime, (Gen. iii. 
13,) replied, “What hast thou 
done ? The voice of thy brother’s 
blood crieth unto me from the 
ground,” where it was shed, or 
where the body was buried; and 
the dreadful sentence was imme¬ 
diately passed upon him which 
doomed him to fruitless toil, and 
to the life of a fugitive and vaga¬ 
bond. Thus was he banished 
*rom society, ( the face of the earth,) 
and from the favour of God. The 
miserable man seen ed conscious 
for a moment of the enormity of 
his guilt. Ho exclaimed, “My 
punishment is greater than I can 
bear,” or (as it may be render* 1) 
my iniquity is greater than that 
it may be forgiven; and he was 
afraid that when it was known 
what an abandoned outlaw he 
was, he would be killed by any 
one that should find him. To 
prevent this, God not only threat- 
11 * 


CAK 

ened an extraordinary punish¬ 
ment upon any one who should 
kill him, but, as we suppose, he 
distinguished him from all other 
men by some visible mark or to¬ 
ken, so that whoever met him 
should know at once who he was. 
Several commentators maintain 
that this mark or token was de¬ 
signed to assure Cain himself of 
his personal safety, and not to 
point him out to others. 

The unhappy man left his home, 
and took up his abode in the land 
of Nod. a country east of Eden, 
where his family increased, and 
where he founded a city. (See 
Nod.) 

CAKE. (1 Kings xvii. 13 ; xix. 
6.) The cake was made of com¬ 
mon dough, with or without lea¬ 
ven. Sometimes it was kneaded 
with oil, and sometimes only rub¬ 
bed over or anointed with it, (Ex. 
xxix. 2.) and baked in flat pieces 
of the thickness of a plate upon 
the hot sand or bricks. (Gen. 
xviii. 6.) Other utensils were 
used. (Lev. ii. 1, 4, 5, 7.) “The 
cake not turned” (Ilos. vii. 8) is a 
figurative expression, illustrating 
the mixture of truth and idolatry, 
(Jews and Gentiles among the 
Ephraiinites,) by dough baked on 
one side only, and therefore nei¬ 
ther dough nor bread. 

Among the Bedouins the dough 
is flattened into thin cakes, and 
baked immediately, either on the 
coals or in a shallow earthen ves¬ 
sel, like a frying-pan, or perhaps 
only a flat iron plate laid upon a 
few stones, and a tiro kindled un¬ 
derneath. (Lev. ii. 5.) 

In Persia, convex iron plates 
are often used, but in either way 
the bread was so very thin that it 
was quickly baked. The Arabs 
around mount Carmel bake such 
125 




CAL 

cakes on the outside of a strong 
earthen or stone pitcher, which 
is heated by coals inside. (See 
Oven.) 

CALAMUS, (Sol. Song iv. 
14; Ezek. xxvii. 19,) or SWEET 
CALAMUS, (Ex. xxx. 23,) or 
SWEET CANE, (Isa. xliii.-24; 
Jer. vi. 20,) were all probably the 
same plants. It was produced 



in Arabia and India, and, of an 
inferior quality, in Egypt and Sy¬ 
ria. It was one of the ingredients 
of the sacred ointment, and an 
article of Syrian commerce. It 
grows about two feet in height, is 
very fragrant, and resembles our 
common reeds. 

CALEB (Num. xiii. 6) was ths. 
on of Jephunneh, of the tribe of 
T uflah. When the Israelites, on 
their passage from Egypt to Ca¬ 
naan, had arrived at the wilder¬ 
ness of Paran, Moses was instruct¬ 
ed by Jehovah to send twelve 
men, one from each of the tribes, 
as explorers, to visit the promised 
land, and ascertain its situation 
and fertility; the number and 
tharacter, as well as the manners 
and customs of the population, 
126 


CAL 

’ and bring them a report. Caleb 
and Joshua were among the 
twelve; and after making the 
*our, which occupied forty days, 
they returned to the Israelites, 
bringing with them, as they were 
directed to do, some of the rich¬ 
est products of the soil, which 
were both the evidence and sam¬ 
ple of its fertility. They all 
agreed that the land was exceed • 
ingly fruitful, but ten of the ex¬ 
ploring party represented the in¬ 
habitants as very numerous and 
gigantic in stature. Caleb saw 
the discouraging eifect of this re¬ 
presentation on the people, and 
proposed to them to go up at once 
and take possession of the land, 
assuring them of their ability to 
do it. He was confident that God 
would be faithful to his promise, 
however numerous and formidable 
might be their opposers. 

The ten persisted in their dis¬ 
couraging representations; until 
the people, filled with fears and 
discontents, were resolved to aban¬ 
don the attempt, and they and 
their adherents were upon the 
point of revolting from Moses and 
Aaron, and putting themselves 
under a new leader, to return to 
bondage in Egypt. At this crisis, 
Caleb and Joshua, grieved at the 
folly and madness of the people, 
repeated the assurance that the 
land was an exceeding good land, 
and in beauty and fertility all 
which had been promised ; that if 
they would follow God’s direc¬ 
tions, and go forward fearlessly 
in his strength, they would easily 
subdue the inhabitants, and ob¬ 
tain complete possession of their 
territory. So excited were the 
people, however, by the represen¬ 
tations of the ten others of the 
party, that they proposed to stone 



CaL 


CAL 

Joshua and Caleb. This conduct 
was so displeasing to God, that 
he caused every Israelite who was 
over twenty years of age, except 
Caleb and Joshua, to die in the 
wilderness, and before they came 
to the promised land. Forty-live 
years afterwards, when the con¬ 
quest was completed and the land 
apportioned among the tribes, Ca¬ 
leb, being then eighty-five years 
of age, applied to Joshua for his 
share, reminding him of the pro¬ 
mise of God, by which he and 
Joshua were excepted from the 
gentral curse of the people. He 
testified to the faithfulness and 
kindness of God in preserving his 
life and health in a remarkable 
degree until that time, and pro¬ 
posed to take, as his share of the 
land, Kirjath-arba, the stronghold 
of the giants, and the 
centre of their fortifi¬ 
cations. His request 
was granted, and he 
accordingly attacked 
and subdued Kirjath- 
arba, and thence pro¬ 
ceeded to Kirjath-se- 
pher, another strong¬ 
hold, afterwards call¬ 
ed Debir. Here he 
proposed to give his 
daughter Achsah in 
marriage to the man 
who should capture 
the city. His nephew, 

Othniel, undertook the 
enterprise and succeeded, and re¬ 
ceived the promised reward. Ca¬ 
leb’s possessions were called by his 
name. (Num. xiii. and xiv.j Josh, 
xiv. and xv.; 1 Sam. xxx. 14.) 

There are two other persons of 
the same name mentioned. (1 
Chron. ii. 18, 50.) 

CALF. (Gen. xviii. 7.) A fatted 
oalf was regarded by the Jews as 


the choicest animal food. (1 Sam. 
xxviii. 24; Amos vi. 4 ; Luke xv. 
23.) The allusion in Jer. xxxiv 
18, is to an ancient custom of ra¬ 
tifying a contract or covenant, in 
the observance of which an ani¬ 
mal was slain and divided, and 
the parties passed between the 
parts, signifying their willingness 
to be so divided themselves, if 
they failed to perform their cove¬ 
nant. (Gen. xv. 9, 10, 17.) 

Calf, molten (Ex. xxxii. 4,) 
was an idol god prepared by Aa¬ 
ron, in compliance with the re¬ 
quest of the children of Israel, 
who had become impatient of the 
absence of Moses, and desired 
some visible image or representa¬ 
tion of the Deity. (See Aaron.) 
It was probably made of wood, 
and thickly overlaid with gold. 


The golden calves of Jeroboam 
1 Kings xii. 28) were objects of 
worship set up by that king in 
the land of Israel, to prevent the 
ten tribes from resorting to Jeru¬ 
salem to worship, and so more 
effectually to separate them from 
the house of David. Ono of the 
idols was in Dan and the other in 
Bethel, the two extremes of hi3 
127 



Egyptian Calf-idol. 

































Cal 

kingdom. It is supposed this 
wicked king ha d become acquaint¬ 
ed with the forms and objects of 
idolatrous worship while he dwelt 
in Egypt. (1 Kings xi. 40.) Ilis 
sin is almost always mentioned 
whenever his name is used. (See 
Jeroboam.) 

Calves of our lips (IIos. xiv. 
2) is a figurative expression sig¬ 
nifying the fruits of our lips, or 
our offerings of praiso to God. 
Calves were used in sacrifices, 
and the injunction of the prophet 
requires us to render praises and 
thanksgivings to God as the offer¬ 
ing of our lips, instead of the ani¬ 
mal sacrifice. (Ileb. xiii. 15.) 

CALNEH. (Gen. x. 10 j Amos 
vi. 2.) One of the cities of Baby¬ 
lonia, built by Nimrod, and sup¬ 
posed to be the same with Calno , 
(Isa. x. 9,) Canneh , (Ezek. xxvii. 
23,) and the Ctesiphon of more 
modern times. It was situated on 
the east bank of the Tigris, oppo¬ 
site to Babylon, and was a place 
of commercial importance. 

CALVARY Luke xxiii. 33; 
called Golyotha, John xix. 17,) 
was the name given to a slight 
elevation north of the ancient city 
of Jerusalem, perhaps half a mile 
distant from the temple. The 
spot is within the w r alls of the 
modern city. It was called Gol¬ 
gotha, or the place of a skull, 
either from its shape, or from the 
circumstance that it was the usual 
place of executing criminals. To 
the mind of the Christian the as¬ 
sociations of the place are pecu¬ 
liarly interesting and sacred, for 
it was here that the blood of Jesus 
was shed—thatblood whichcleans- 
eth from all sin. (See Selumikl, 
eiap. xi., and Map of Jerusa¬ 
lem.) 

CAMEL. (Matt, xxiii. 24.) A 
128 


CAM 

well-known and highly useful 
animal in Eastern countries, and. 
by the law of Moses, unclean. 
(Lev. xi. 4; Deut. xiv. 7.) He is 
usually six or seven feet in height, 
and is exceedingly docile arid pa¬ 
tient of labour. His feet are con¬ 
structed with a tough, elastic sole, 
which prevents them from sinking 



Camel. 


in the sand. He has upon the 
back one, and sometimes two, 
humps or protuberances, which 
yield to pressure, and form a sort 
of saddle, on w hich his burden is 
laid. (Isa. xxx. 6.) Within his 
body is a cavity, divided into little 
apartments or cells, that fill when 
the animal drinks, which usually 
occupies him a quarter of an hour, 
and this supply serves him for 
twenty or thirty days, while he 
traverses the desert. His food is 
coarse, as leaves, twigs, thistles, 
&c. &c. These qualities all com¬ 
bine to adapt the animal to the 
countries he inhabits, and to the 
services required of him. He is, 
perhaps, more surefooted than the 
ass, more easily supported, and 
capable cf an incomparably great¬ 
er burden. Hence the people of 









CAM 

A* j2*st call the camel the land- 
He can carry a burden of 
six cx eight hundrei pounds, at 
the rato of thirty miles a day; 
and on short journeys, ten to 
twelve hundred pounds; and there 
is one species of the camel that 
will travel one hundred miles a 
day. Chains and other trappings, 
useful or ornamental, were some¬ 
times fastened to the camel’s 
neck. (Judg. viii. 21, 26.) The 
flesh and milk are used for food, 
and the hair, which is short and 
softer than that of the ox kind, is 
useful for garments. (Matt. iii. 4. 
See Camel’s Hair.) 

The ordinary life of the camel 
Is from thirty to fifty years. Ca¬ 
mels were formerly among the 
chief possessions of the wealthy. 
(Gen. xii. 16; xxx. 43; xxxvii. 
25; Judg. vi. 5, and vii. 12; 1 
Sam. xxx. 17; 1 Kings x. 2; 1 
Chron. v. 21; 2 Chron. xiv. 15; 
Job i. 3, and xlii. 12; Isa. xxx. 6.) 

The expression in Matt. xix. 
24, is figurative, denoting some¬ 
thing beyond human power. The 
same form of expression is used 
among the Malays and by the 
rabbins in respect to the elephant. 
Another figurative expression oc¬ 
curs (Matt, xxiii. 24) in which 
the inconsistency of the scribes 
and Pharisees (who attended to 
the most unimportant ceremonies 
of their religion, while they were 
unjust, unmerciful, and faithless) 
is compared to one who should 
very carefully strain out (not at) 
a gnat or other small insect from 
the liquor he was about to drink, 
and yet leave in the vessel, to be 
swallowed, an animal as large as 
a camel. (See Prink.) 

Travellers sometimes throw 
over the camel, upon the top of 
his burden, e pair of panniers, in 


CAM 

which they ride, <one on either 
side. A covered box, like a car¬ 
riage body, is sometimes hung 
upon the animal in the same man¬ 
ner, and in these females may ride 
and be sheltered from the heat. 
(Gen xxiv. 64.) It is easy to see 
how Rachel might have concealed 
her father’s idols. (Gen. xxxi. 
34.) The camel is said to choose 
ruinous and desolate places for 
his habitations, and hence the 
force of the prophetic language 
respecting Rabbah, (Ezek. xxv. 
5 ;) though the prophecy would be 
abundantly verified if the place 
should merely become a stopping- 
place for caravans. 

Camel’s Hair (Matt. iii. 4) wap 
made into cloth. (2 Kings i. 8; 
Zech. xiii. 4.) Sometimes the 
fabric was wrought of the finest 
and softest part of the hair, and 
was then a very rich and luxuri¬ 
ous article of dress. A coarser 
kind was used for the covering of 
tents, and for the upper garments 
of shepherds and camel-drivers. 
Travellers tell us that modern 
dervises wear cloth of this kind, 
and also leathern girdles. We 
know that John the Baptist’s rai¬ 
ment was of this kind, for it is 
put in opposition to soft raiment. 
(Matt. xi. 8; Luke vii. 25.) 

CAMELEON. (See Chame¬ 
leon.) 

C A M P. (Ex. xvi. 13.) This 
term is frequently used in refer¬ 
ence to the movements of the 
children of Israel, and many pas¬ 
sages of the Levitical law relate 
to things that are to be done 
within or without the camp. 

The form of encamping is par¬ 
ticularly prescribed in Num. iL 
The tabernacle, which was the 
abode of the glorious Leader of 
the people, occupied the centre. 



CAM 


CAM 



and nearest to this were the tents 
of the Levites, who were intrusted 
with the principal care of it. 
(Num. iii.) The whole body of 
the people, embracing upwards of 
600,000 fighting men, besides wo¬ 
men and children, were formed in 
four divisions, three tribes con¬ 
stituting a division, so that the 
tabernacle was enclosed in a hol¬ 
low square. Each of these divi¬ 
sions had a standard, as well as 
each tribe, and each of the large 
family associations of which the 
tribes were composed. Each tribe 
had its captain or commander as¬ 
signed by God’s direction. 

The view of such a mass of peo- 
130 


pie, maintaining the most perfect 
order and subordination, might 
well excite the admiration of the 
beholder. (Num. xxiv. 2-5.) It 
is not difficult to imagine the emo¬ 
tions which such a view would 
awaken in one who, from the sum¬ 
mit of mount Peor, looked down 
upon the vast congregation of the 
Lord’s people, gathered around 
the sacred symbols of his presence» 

How beautiful are tny tents, O Jacob t 
And thy tabernacles, O Israel! 

As the valleys are they spread forth ; 

As gardens by the river's side ; 

As lign-aloes which Jehovah hath planted, 
As cedars beside the waters. 

(Num. xxiv. 5, 6.' 

CAMPHIRE. (Sol. Song i. 14, 


















CAN 

and iv. 13.) A plant of great 
beauty and fragrance. It grows 
in Egypt And other countries of 
the East, and is called alhenna. 



Camphire. 

This cut is from a drawing taken 
by a French traveller in Egypt. 
The flowers are clustered like the 
lilac, and the leaves, when dried 
and pulverized, make an orange 
dye, with which the females stain 
their hands and feet. What we 
call camphor is an entirely differ¬ 
ent substance. (See Youth’s 
Friend, vol v.) 

CANA of Galilee, (John ii. 
I,' according to the latest and 


CAN 

best authorities, was a small vil¬ 
lage lying about nine miles north¬ 
east of Nazareth. It is now called 
Kand el-Jelil; is under the go¬ 
vernment of a Turkish officer, and 
contains, perhaps, three hundred 
inhabitants, chiefly papists. It was 
in this place that our Saviour per¬ 
formed the miracle of changing 
water into wine, and the natives 
pretend to show the house where 
it was done, and even one of the 
stone water-pots ! Large stone 
pots are found there, holding from 
twenty to thirty gallons, 'fheyare 
not regarded as relics, for the an¬ 
cient use of them seems to be un¬ 
known to the present inhabitants. 

It was here also that the noble¬ 
man applied to Christ to heal his 
son, who was sick in Capernaum, 
and at the point of death; and by 
his divine will, without a word or 
action, and oven at a distance of 
thirty miles from the sick bed, the 
disease was checked and the child 
recovered. 

Nathaniel was a native of this 
place. 

Another town of the same name 
(Kanah) belonged to the tribe of 
Asher, and seems to have been 
near Sidon. (Josh. xix. 28.) 

CANAAN. (Gen. ix. 25.) Son 
of Ham and grandson of Noah. 
Ham having been guilty of cri¬ 
minal conduct towards his father, 
a prophetic curse was pronounced 
by Noah on so much of Ham’s 
posterity as should descend from 
and through Canaan. The curse 
was inflicted upon the Canaan- 
ites, when their land was subdued, 
and its inhabitants (the Hivites, 
Jebusitos, &c.) were cut off or 
subjected to heavy tribute by the 
Israelites, the descendants of 
( Shem; and afterwards, when the 
! scattered romnants of their tribes 
131 





CAN 


CAN 



were conquered and exterminated 
at Tyre, Thebes, Carthage, <fcc. by 
the Greeks and Romans, who were 
descended from Japheth. 

Canaan, land op. (Gen. xii. 

132 


5.) The country inhabited by th6 
posterity of Canaan, (see preced¬ 
ing article,) who were hence call¬ 
ed Canaanites, and which was 
given, by God, to the children of 

























CAN 

Israel, the posterity of Abraham, 
as their possession. (Ex. vi. 4; 
Lev. xxv. 38.) The original boun¬ 
daries are supposed to have been 
mount Lebanon on the north, the 
wilderness of Arabia (Shur, Pa- 
ran, and Zin) on the south, and 
the river Jordan on the east. On 
the west, their possessions extend¬ 
ed at some points to the margin 
of the Mediterranean. Their boun¬ 
daries on this side were partially 
restricted by the Philistines, who 
held the low lands and strong ci¬ 
ties along the shore. (Gen. x. 19.) 
Besides the possessions of the Is¬ 
raelites, the land of Canaan em¬ 
braced Phenicia on the north, and 
Philistiaon the southwest. (Zeph. 
ii. 5.) 

The country was entered by 
the Israelites on the east side, at 
a point of the Jordan opposite 
Jericho. The tribes of Gad and 
Reuben and half the tribe of Ma- 
nasseh had selected possessions 
for themselves on the east of Jor¬ 
dan, from the conquests which 
had been made on their march. 
The natives of the country were, 
for the most part, subdued after 
a succession of severe struggles, 
(Num. xxxiii. 51-56,) and their 
territory was divided among the 
tribes and families of the Israel¬ 
ites according to their numbers. 
This apportionment was made by 
what would be called, in modern 
phrase, aboard of commissioners, 
consisting of Eleazar the high- 
priest, Joshua, and the twelve 
chiefs of the tribes ; and tnis was 
done in such a way that each tribe 
occupied a distinct section, and 
each family a distinct lot, so that 
every neigbourhood was made up 
of family relations. 

The accompanying map shows 
the supposed position, extent, and 
12 


I CAN 

divisions of the land of pron>'-«o» 
so far as they can be ascertained 
from the sacred history. The 
length from north to south was 
less than one hundred and eighty 
miles, and the width did not ex¬ 
ceed seventy-five miles. 

The expulsion of the Caraan* 
ites is an act perfectly defensible, 
and consistent with the strictest 
principles of justice. The mea* 
sure of their iniquities was full. 
(Lev. xviii. 24, Ac.) The kind of 
judgment visited upon them was 
much more strikingly illustrative 
of the power and presence of God, 
than a pestilence or earthquake; 
and the extermination of all their 
authority and influence was ne¬ 
cessary to prevent the Israelites 
from being seduced into their 
abominable practices. 

The possessions of the Israelites 
were extended by conquest far 
beyond the limits above named, 
and in the time of David and So¬ 
lomon they stretched to the Eu¬ 
phrates and Orontes on the one 
hand, and to the remotest confines 
of Edom and Moab on the other, 
and embraced upwards of 26,000 
square miles. (1 Kings w. 21; 2 
Chron. viii.) The population va¬ 
ried in a like proportion. The 
number of the Israelites who 
crossed the Jordan is estimated 
at 2,000,000, while from an en¬ 
rolment made for David’s army, 
it is presumed by some that the 
population must have exceeded 
5,000.000. (See Selumiel, pp. 
120, 121. See also article City.) 

The following table presents at 
one new the proprietors of the 
country before and after the Jew¬ 
ish conquest, and the general di¬ 
visions or provinces into which it 
was divided in the time of our 
Saviour. 


133 




CAN 


CAN 


ancient Canaanitish 

Division. Jsraelitish Division. 


Roman 

Division. 


Ridouians. ..Tribe of Asher. (In Lebanon.) 

Unknown. ... Napa ;ali. (Northwest of the lake of Gennesaret.) 

Perizzites...Zebulon. (West of Gennesaret.) 

Same.Issachar. (Valley of Esdraelon and mount Taboi., 

HivitC8.Half true of Mnnasseh. (Dor and Cesarea.) 

Same.Ephraim. (Sheebem and Samaria.) 

Cebusites.Benjamin. (Jericho and Jerusalem.) 

Amorites, Hittites.Judah. (Hebron and Judea proper.) 

Philistines.Simeon. (Southwest of Judah, Duu, and Joppa.) 

Moabites.Reuben. (Gilead and Heshbon.) 

Ammonites, Gilead.Ammonites. (Gilead.) 

Kingdon of Bashan.Half tribe of Manasseh. (Golan Bashan.) 


| Upper G alilo* 
^ Lower Galileo 
l Samaria. 


Judea. 


jju 

^G ileal. 
) 


Although the extent and boun¬ 
daries of these divisions cannot 
be accurately defined, the bear¬ 
ings of the chief towns and cities 
from each other, and from Jeru¬ 
salem, the capital of the country, 
are satisfactorily ascertained. 

As to Jerusalem itself, there is 
no more doubt of its ancient loca¬ 
tion than there is of Rome or Car¬ 
thage ; and there is not an import¬ 
ant place in the whole land which 
is not so connected both with pro¬ 
fane and sacred history, as to fur¬ 
nish an unbroken chain of refer¬ 
ence to it. The writings and 
traditions of the Jews before the 
birth of Christ, and the writings 
and traditions both of his friends 
and enemies after that event, 
would have a general reference 
to places of particular interest in 
the history of the nation and in 
that of individuals. And even 
■tho efforts of pagans to desecrate 
the most hallowed spots, have 
served only to perpetuate the re¬ 
membrance of them. 

And besides all this, the land 
of promise is still a part of our 
earth. The hills still stand round 
about Jerusalem, as they stood in 
ihe days of David and of Solomon. 
The dew falls in Hermon ; the ce¬ 
dars grow in Lebanon, and Ki- 
shon, “ that ancient river,” (Judg. 
v. 21,) still draws its stream from 
Tabor, as in the times of old. 
“ The sea of Galilee still presents 
134 


the same natural accompani 
ments; the fig-tree springs up by 
the wayside; the sycamore spreads 
its branches, and the vines and 
olives still climb the sides of the 
mountains. The desolation which 
covered the cities of the plain is 
not less striking at the present 
hour, than when Moses, with an 
inspired pen, recorded the judg¬ 
ment of God. The swellings of 
Jordan are not less regular in 
their rise than when the Hebrews 
first approached its banks ; and he 
who goes down from Jerusalem to 
Jericho, still incurs the greatest 
hazard of falling among thieves. 
Thero is, in fact, in the scenery 
and manners of this ancient land 
a perpetuity that accords well with 
the everlasting import of its his¬ 
torical records, and which enables 
us to identify, with the utmost 
readiness, the local imagery of 
every great transaction.” 

As to the fertility of the coun¬ 
try, the evidence is conclusive. Its 
character in this respect, as given 
by Moses, (Deut. viii. 7-9,) is fully 
supported by profane writers, as 
well as by the present character 
of the soil, although the miserable 
condition of the inhabitants and 
the desolation of war have pre¬ 
vented any proper cultivation in 
later ages. 

At the time the children of Is¬ 
rael took possession of Canaan, it 
was governed by petty kings, of 












CAN 

various cities or provinces. Then 
Joshua became ruler under the 
express authority and direction 
of Jehovah. After Joshua, for a 
few years, the government was 
administered by elders. Then 
®ame the judges for about three 
hundred and twenty years; and 
then the kings for upwards of five 
hundred years, or until the con¬ 
quest of the country by the Baby¬ 
lonians. 

The vast resources of the land 
of Canaan, and the power of its 
kings, may be estimated, in some 
measure, not only from the con¬ 
sideration with which it was re¬ 
garded by Egypt, Tyre, and As¬ 
syria, but by the strength and po¬ 
pulation of the kingdoms into 
which the original country, as it 
was under David, was subsequent¬ 
ly divided. In the reign of Solo¬ 
mon, Damascusrevolted and shook 
off the Jewish yoke. At his death, 
B. c. 971, ten of the tribes re¬ 
nounced their allegiance to the 
throne of Judah, and formed the 
kingdom of Israel, having Sama¬ 
ria for its capital; while Judah 
and Benjamin remained together, 
with Jerusalem for a capital. 

In the year b. c. 721, the for¬ 
mer kingdom, having existed two 
hundred and fifty years, under 
nineteen wicked kings, was con¬ 
quered by the Assyrians under 
Shalmaneser, and carried into cap¬ 
tivity. The latter existed aboutone 
hundred and thirty years longer, 
and was then subdued <»nd laid 
waste by Nebuchadnezzar, and the 
temple at Jerusalem destroyed, 
b. c. 588. (2 Kings xxv.; 2 Chron. 
xxxvi.; Jer. xxxix. and lii.) 

The land of Canaan remained 
under subjection to the Chaldeans, 
Mtdes, and Persians, until b. c. 
323, when it fe'. into the hands 


CAN 

of the kings of Syria, where it re¬ 
mained until B. c. 65, when it be¬ 
came a province of the Roman 
empire. 

At the time of the coming oi 
Christ, Canaan was divided into 
five provinces; Judea, Samaria, 
Galilee, Perea, and Idumea. The 
province of Judea consisted of the 
tribes of Judah, Benjamin, Dan, 
and Simeon. The rest of th; Holy 
Land, according to the Roman di¬ 
vision, consisted of Samaria, Ga¬ 
lileo, Perea, Decapolis, Gaulonitis, 
Galaaditis, Batanea, and Aurani- 
tis. Samaria contained in it the 
tribes of Ephraim, Issachar, and 
the half tribe of Manasseh. Ga¬ 
lilee, the tribes of Zebulon, Asher, 
and Naphtali. Perea, on the other 
side of Jordan, consisted of the 
tribes of Gad and Reuben. De¬ 
capolis was part of the half tribe 
of Manasseh. Gaulonitis was north 
of it. Galaaditis was a hilly coun¬ 
try, extending from mount Leba¬ 
non through the half tribe of Ma¬ 
nasseh and the tribes of Gad and 
Reuben. Further north, in the 
half tribe of Manasseh, was Bata¬ 
nea, and more northward still, was 
Auranitis, or Iturea. Beyond 
this, bordering on the territory of 
Damascus, was Trachonitis. 

On the death of Herod, Arche- 
laus, his eldest son, succeeded to 
tho government of Judea, (Matt, 
ii. 22,) Samaria, and Idumea, with 
the title of tetrarch ; Galilee being 
assigned to Herod Antipas, and 
Iturea (Luke iii. 1) and tho ad¬ 
jacent countries beyond Jordan 
to the third brother, Philip. But 
in less than ten years, the domi¬ 
nions of Archelaus became annex¬ 
ed, on his disgrace, to the Roman 
province of Syria, and Judea was 
, thenceforth governed by Roman 
procurators. Jerusalem, after its 
135 




CAN 

final destruction by Titus, A. D. 
Tl, remained desolate and almost 
uninhabited, till the emperor Ha¬ 
drian colonized it, and erected 
temples to Jupiter and Venus on ■ 
its site. The empress Helena, in 
the fourth century, set the exam¬ 
ple of repairing as a pilgrim to 
tho Holy Land, to visit the scenes 
consecrated by the gospel narra¬ 
tive; and the country became en¬ 
riched by the crowds of devotees 
who flocked there. In the begin¬ 
ning of the seventh century, it 
was overrun by the Saracens, who 
held it till Jerusalem was taken 
by the Crusaders in the twelfth. 
Then for about eighty years, the 
Holy Land drank continually of 
Christian and Saracen blood. In 
1187, Judea was conquered by 
Saladin; on the decline of whose 
kingdom it passed through vari¬ 
ous revolutions, and, at length, 
in 1317, was finally swallowed up 
in the Turkish empire. 

“ Trodden down 

By all in turn, Pagan, and Frank, and Tar¬ 
tar,— 

So runs the dread anathema,—trodden down 
Beneath the oppressor; darkness shrouding 
thee 

From every blessed influence of Heaven ; 
Thus hast thou lain for ages, iron-bound 
As with a curse. Thus art thou doomed to 
lie, 

Yet not forever.” 

In the modern distribution of 
die territory, we find the pashalic 
of Acre, or Akka, includes the an¬ 
cient territory of Asher, Zebulon, 
Issachar, half Manasseh, and 
Naphtali. The pashalic of Gaza, 
now united with that of Acre, em¬ 
braces Dan, Simeon, Judah, Ben¬ 
jamin, and Ephraim; and the pa¬ 
shalic of Damascus has Reuben, 
Gad, and the other half of Manas¬ 
seh. The population of this inte¬ 
resting country now consists chief¬ 
ly of Turks, Syrians, Arabs, Jews, i 
136 


CAN 

and Greeks. (See Hebrews. Set 
also Evening Recreations, vol 
ii. pp. 74-106; vol. iii. pp. 116- 
144; and Biblical Antiquities, 
vol. i. chap. ix. $ 1-4, for a full 
and perspicuous history of the 
Israelitish land and government.) 

The general outlines of the sur¬ 
face of the country may be thus 
laid down. The Jordan, or river 
of Dan, which rises under the lofty 
peaks of mount Lebanon, and 
flows in a direction almost con¬ 
stantly southward, with the lake 
of Tiberias, through which it 
passes, and the Dead sea, which 
it forms by its discharge, divides 
Palestine from north to south. 

In the western division, between 
the Mediterranean and the lake of 
Tiberias, lie the two Galilees. The 
plain of Esdraelon, which occupies 
the greater part of this tract, (be¬ 
ing two days’ journey, or nearly 
fifty miles in length, and twenty 
in breadth,) is described by travel¬ 
lers, as one vast meadow, covered 
with the richest pasture. This 
plain is enclosed on all sides by 
the mountains, and not a house or 
tree is to be discovered in it. It 
is completely commanded by Ac- 
cho, so that tho possessor of that 
port is the lord of one of the rich¬ 
est territories in the Holy Land. 
To the south of Galilee lies the 
district of ancient Samaria: it is 
mountainous, but well cultivated, 
and forms at present the most 
flourishing part of the Holy Land, 
Judea proper comprises the ter 
ritory extending from the Dead 
sea to the Mediterranean, and is 
composed of a range of limestone 
hills, rising by stages from the 
level of the coast, and becoming 
more rugged and rocky as jou 
approach Jerusalem from Joppa, 
Between Joppa and Gaza west- 





CAN 


CAN 

ward of the mountains of Judea, 
lies the tract distinguished as the 
plain of the Mediterranean sea, 
the ancient territory of the Phi¬ 
listines, including the five cities 
of Gaza, Askelon, Ashdod, Gath, 
and Ekron. (Josh. xiii. 3, and 1 
Sain. vi. 17.) This district still 
bears the name of Phalastin, and 
forms a separate pashalic. 

The land of Canaan was called 
the land of Israel, (1 Sam. xiii. 
19,) because it was occupied by 
the descendants of Jacob or Isra¬ 
el. The holy land, (Zech. ii. 12,) 
because God’s presence was con¬ 
tinually manifested there, as the 
leader and governor of his chosen 
people ; and especially may it be 
regarded as such, since the suffer¬ 
ings and death of Christ have 
consecrated it. The land of pro¬ 
mise, (Heb. xi. 9,) because it was 
promised to Abraham and his 
posterity as their possession. The 
land of Judah, (Jer. xxxix. 10,) 
because Judah was the leading 
tribe; the land of the Hebrews, 
v Gen. xl. 15,) or the descendants 
of Eber, an ancestor of Abraham. 
The modern name of Palestine, 
or the land of the Philistines, was 
originally applied to the region 
lying along the coast of the Me¬ 
diterranean, southwest of the land 
of promise; but in its present 
usage denotes the whole country 
bounded by the Jordan on the 
east, the Mediterranean on the 
west, Arabia on the south, and 
Lebanon on the north. (See Sy¬ 
ria.) 

CANAANITES. (See preced¬ 
ing article.) 

CANDACE. (See Philip.) 

CANDLE (Job xviii. 6; is often 
used figuratively by the sacred 
writers, to denote light generally. 
(See Lamp.) 


CANDLESTICK, golden, 
(Ex. xxv. 31,) was a splendid ar¬ 
ticle of the tabernacle furniture, 
made of fine gold, and computed 
by some to have been worth, at the 
modern value of gold, 3,000,008 
of dollars. It consisted of a shaft 
or stem supposed to have been 
five feet high, with six branches. 
The branches came out from the 
shaft at three points, two at each 
point, as in the accompanying cut, 
and the width of the whole can¬ 
dlestick, across the top, was about 
three feet and a half. It was 
richly adorned, with raised work, 
representing flowers, and also 
knops or knobs, and little bowls 
resembling half an almond shell. 
At the extremity of each branch 
there was a socket for the candle, 
and also at the top of the main 
shaft, making seven in all. (Rev. 
i. 12, 13, 20.) Tongs to remove 
the snuff, and dishes to receive it, 
as well as oil vessels, were articles 
of furniture belonging to the can¬ 
dlestick, and were all made of 
gold. The lights were trimmed 
and supplied daily with the purest 
olive oil. They were lighted at 
night and extinguished in the 
morning; though some suppose 
that a part of them, at least, were 
kept burning through the day. 
The candlestick was so situated 
as to throw the light on the altar 
of incense and on the table of 
shew-bread, occupying the same 
apartment, and from which the 
natural light was excluded. (Seo 
Biblical Antiquities, vol. ii. 
chap, ii., and Destruction op 
Jerusalem, chap, xiii.) (See 
Cut on page 138.) 

CANE. (See Calamus.) 

CANKER-WORM, (Joel i. 4,) 
elsewhere called the caterpillar, 
(Jer. Ii. 27,) was one of the army 
137 


12 * 





of destroying insects by which 
the land of Judea was laid waste. 
The particular species of insect 
'utended by the prophet is uncer¬ 
tain, though the prevailing opi¬ 
nion is, that it was of the locust 
'jibe. Its voraciousness and mul- 
itude are sufficiently indicated 
*y the connection in which it is 
mentioned. (Nah. iii. 15, 16.) 

CANNEH. (See Calnkh.) 

CAPERNAUM, (Matt. iv. 13.) 
A city on the western shore of the 
eea of Tiberias, where our Saviour 
138 


often resided, and where some of 
his most wonderful works wera 
done, and where also he delivered 
some of his most pointed dis¬ 
courses. (See Mark i. 21, 37, and 
ii. 1 -28; John vi. 25-70, and comp 
with Isa. ix. 1, 2.) Notwithstand¬ 
ing it was thus highly favoured 
with the presence and instructions 
ot the Lord of glory, it was the 
subject of the most fearful denun¬ 
ciations. (Matt. xi. 20-24.) The 
prediction of its downfall was long 
ago fulfilled; and though it was 































CAP 

once a city of renown, and the 1 
metropolis of all Galilee, the site 
it occupied is now uncertain. 
Whon Mr. Fisk, an American mis¬ 
sionary, travelled in Syria in 
1823, he found twenty or thirty 
uninhabited Arab huts; occupying 
wliat are supposed to be the ruins 
of the once exalted city of Caper¬ 
naum. 

CAPHTOR, CAPHTORIM. 
(See Crete.) 

CAPPADOCIA. (1 Pet. i. 1.) 
One of three interior provinces of 
Asia Minor. (See Map to article 
Paul.) It was bounded east by 
Armenia, north by Pontus, west 
by Lycaonia, and south by Cilicia. 
Christianity was probably intro¬ 
duced into this province at an 
early period, (Acts ii. 9,) and the 
existence of Christian churches 
there is easily traced up to a pe¬ 
riod as late as the tenth century. 

CAPTAIN. (Deut. i. 15.) An 
officer in the Jewish army whose 
rank or power was designated by 
the number of men under his 
command, as captain of fifty, or 
captain of a thousand; and the 
commander or chief of the whole 
army was called the captain of 
the host. The divisions of the 
army were regulated in some mea¬ 
sure by the division of families, 
as the head3 of families were usu¬ 
ally officers. (2 Chron. xxv. 5.) 
Captains of hundreds, or larger 
companies, were probably what 
would be called i*. modern phrase, 
6taff officers, and formed the coun¬ 
cil of war. (1 Chron. xiii. 1.) 

Captain of the temple. (Acts 
iv. 1.) Either the commander of 
the Roman garrison stationed 
near the temple, or the chief of 
the priests and Levites who kept 
guard around and within that 
sacred edifico. 


CAP 

[ CAPTIVE (Gen. xiv. 14) usu¬ 
ally denotes one taken in war. 
Among Eastern nations such per¬ 
sons were treated with great cru¬ 
elty, and were subjects of merchan¬ 
dise. (Joel iii. 3.) The Romans 
sometimes compelled a captive to 
be joined face to face with a dead 
body, and to bear it about until 
the horrible effluvia destroyed the 
life of the living. (Rom. vii. 24.) 

CAPTIVITY. (Num. xxi. 29.) 

A term usually employed to de¬ 
note an important era in the his¬ 
tory of the Jewish people. 

To punish their rebellions and 
idolatries, God suffered them to 
come into frequent bondage to 
surrounding nations. Several of 
their captivities took place at an 
early period of their history, of 
which a particular account is 
given in the first ten chapters of 
Judges. 

Soon after the close of Solo¬ 
mon’s glorious reign, the king¬ 
dom was divided. Ten of the 
tribes separated themselves, and 
took the name of the kingdom of 
Israel, leaving the tribes of Judah * 
and Benjamin to constitute the 
kingdom of Judah. Each of these 
two kingdoms suffered a distinct 
captivity. That of Israel is called 
the Assyrian, and that of Judah 
the Babylonish captivity. 

In thie year of the world 3264, 
Tiglath-pileser, the king of Assy¬ 
ria, made war upon Israel, and 
carried a large number of their 
people (chiefly those of the tribe* 
of Reuben, Gad, and Manasseh) 
into captivity, (2 Ivings'xv. 29; 1 
Chron. v. 26,) and the residue re 
mained under their own king, but 
paid tribute to the Assyrian gov¬ 
ernment. After the lapse of twen¬ 
ty years this tribute was refused, 
and therefore Shalmaneser, son 
139 




I CAP 

of Tiglath-jileser, besieged and 
(aftor three years) captured and 
destroyed Samaria, the capital of 
the kingdom, and the great mass 
of the neople were transported to 
provinces beyond the Euphrates, 
and some doubt is entertained 
whether they ever returned. (2 
Kings xvii. 5, 6, and xviii. 10,11; 
Ilos. i. 6.) Jewish historians say 
they never did return. The fol¬ 
lowing among other passages are 
employed to support an opposite 
opinion: Ezra ii. 59; vi. 16, and 

viii. 35; Isa. xi. 12, 13, and xxvii. 
12, 13 ; Jer. iii. 18 ,• xvi. 15; xxxi. 
7-20, and xlix. 2; Ezek. xxxvii. 
16; Hos. i. 10, 11; Amos ix. 14; 
Obad. 19-21; Mic. ii. 12; Zech. 

ix. 13, and x. 6, 10. (See He¬ 
brews.) 

The first captivity of Judah 
took place under king Jehoiakim, 
in the year of the world 3398, 
when Daniel and his companions 
were among his captives. The 
second was in the seventh year of 
Jehoiakim, about 3404; the third, 
in the reign of Jehoiachin, a. m. 
3406. The fourth, or seventy 
years’ captivity, was under Zcde- 
kiah’s reign, in the year of the 
world 3416. (For a particular ac¬ 
count of these events, see 2 Kings 
xxiv.; 2 Chron. xxxvi.; Jer. xxv. 
xxvi. xxix. xxxii. xxxiv. Iii.; 
Ezek. xii.; Dan. i. 1, 2.) The suf¬ 
ferings in which these captivities 
involved them are affectingly de¬ 
scribed in Ps. cxxxvii. 1-5, and 
Jer. iv. 19-31. 

In 3457 the Jews were allowed 
to return, (Ezra i. 1;) but it was 
not until 3486, or seventy years 
from the period of their fourth 
captivity, that they were permit¬ 
ted to rebuild the temple. (See 
Ejasama, pp. 25-28.) 

Children op the captivity. 
140 


CAR 

j (Ezra iv. 1.) A common figure 
' of speech denoting those who were 
| in captivity, or perhaps, sometimes 
literally, their posterity. Turn 
again , (Ps. cxxvi. 1,) turn away, 
(Jer. xxix. 14,) turn back, (Zeph. 
iii. 20,) or bring again (Ezek. xvi, 
53) the captivity, are figurative 
phrases, all referring to the Jew¬ 
ish nation in bondage, and their 
return to Canaan. A similar ex¬ 
pression is used in relation to in¬ 
dividuals, as in Job xlii. 10 : The 
Lord turned the captivity of Job, 
that is, he released him from the 
unusual sufferings and perplexi¬ 
ties to which he had been in 
bondage, and caused him to re¬ 
joice again in the favour of God. 
He led captivity captive, (Eph. iv. 
8,) or he led those as his captives 
who had made captives of others, 
is a figurative allusion to the vic¬ 
tory which our blessed Redeemer 
achieved over sin and death, by 
whom our ruined race are brought 
into bondage. (Rom. viii. 21; 
Gal. iv. 24; Heb. ii. 15; 2 Pet. ii. 
19.) 

CARBUNCLE. (Ezek. xxviii. 
13.) A precious stone. Its colour 
is a deep red mingled with scar¬ 
let, and when held up in the rays 
of the sun, it loses its deep tinge, 
and resembles burning charcoal. 
It is not certain, however, that 
the carbuncle of the Scriptures is 
the same species of fossil to which 
we give that name. 

C A R CII E M I S H. (2 Chron. 
xxxv. 20.) A town on the east¬ 
ern banks of the Euphrates, where 
the Chebar or Khaboor falls into 
it. It is now known as Kirkisia. 
It was taken from the Assyrians 
by the king of Egypt, (2 Kings 
xxiii. 29,) who left it in charge of 
a garrison. Nebuchadnezzar king 
of Babylon, afterwards tock U 




CAR 

from the Egyptians with great 
daughter, in fulfilment of the re¬ 
markable prophecy of Jeremiah. 
(Jer. xlvi 1-12.) 

CARMEL, mount. (Isa. xxxiii. 
9.) One of the most remarkable 
points on the shores of the Medi¬ 
terranean. It is the highest peak 
of a range of mountains (of the 
same name) rising in the plain of 
Esdraelon, and running five or 
six miles in a northwest course 
till it terminates in a promontoi-y 
on the coast, south of the bay of 
Acre. It is from fifteen hundred 
to two thousand feet above the 
level of the sea. (Amosix. 3.) Its 
shape represents a flattened cone, 
and it is the finest and most-beau¬ 
tiful mountain in Palestine. Its 
soil was once fertile and highly 
cultivated. (Isa. xxxiii. 9,-xxxv. 
2; Jer. 1.19.) Its name signifies 
a fruitful field, or a country of 
vineyards and gardens. Modern 
travellers tell us that the oaks, 
wild vines, olive-trees, and fra¬ 
grant flowers still indicate its for¬ 
mer productiveness, though it has 
sufficiently deteriorated to fulfil 
the prediction of the prophet. 
(Amos i. 2.) The graceful form 
and verdant beauty of its summit 
are alluded to, Sol. Song vii. 5. 
The base of the mountain was 
washed by “that ancient river, 
the river Kishon,” (Judg. v. 21,) 
and the plain of Sharon spread 
out towards the south. We are 
told that while Lebanon raised to 
heaven a summit of naked and 
barren rocks, covered the greater 
part of the year with snow, the 
top of Carmel, how naked and 
sterile soever its present appear¬ 
ance, was clothed with perennial 
verdure; so that the lofty genius 
of Isaiah, guided by the spirit of 
inspiration, could not find a more 


CAR 

appropriate figure to represent tin 
flourishing state of the Redeemer’s 
kingdom, than “ the excellency 
of Carmel and Sharon.” The sum¬ 
mit of Carmel is remarkable for 
its pure and enlivening atmo¬ 
sphere. 

A recent traveller of repute 
gives us the following description 
of Carmel and its vicinity, which 
differs somewhatfrom the received 
impression:— 

“ We descended into a valley, 
passed over a plain, and again 
ascended another valley, all in the 
finest parts of Carmel. At every 
step its ancient glory became 
more and more evident. It was 
the most inviting season, for it 
was spring. The verdure is fresh 
and vivid, the sun of summer has 
not yet scorched it. The haw¬ 
thorn, the jasmine, and many a 
tree and shrub, whose odorous 
and elegant bunches of blossoms 
are unknown to me by name, are 
in flower. The fir-tree exhales 
its resinous particles most power¬ 
fully ; the oak, the myrtle, and 
the laurel, have tempered their 
dark winter green with leaflets of 
a lighter hue. There is not a 
flower I have seen in Galilee, or 
on the plains along the coast, that 
I do not find here in Carmel, from 
the crocuses on the rocky ground 
to the fennel-plaSits and narcis¬ 
suses of the Leontes; from the in¬ 
tense red, white, and purple ane¬ 
mones of the plains, to the ferns 
that hide themselves in the dark 
sepulchral caves. Carmel, indeed, 
is still Carmel; the fruitful, the 
fragrant, the graceful, the lovely 
mountain that it was in the days 
of old. Rut his glory is withered, 
or hidden, so that the travellet 
along the common highways be 
holds it not. It is not the radi- 
141 




CAR 

anco of the rising ar.d setting sun, 
tnat is the incomparable glory of 
Carmel; it is the inner character 
of his hills, their great fertility, 
that have made his name tower 
above all the mountains of Pales¬ 
tine.” 

“ From the great sea the eye 
sweeps along Akka and its great 
plain, with its northern cape Nak- 
hurah, and its wooded hills to the 
east. The summits of Hermon 
and Lebanon rise far, very far in 
the distance, piercing the blue 
hea vens with their glittering snow- 
clad peaks. Beneath you lies the 
great plain of Esdraelon, with the 
mountains of Nazareth and Oil- 
boa, between which Tabor and 
Little Hermon rise in view. Na¬ 
zareth lies hid in an amphitheatre 
of hills. Endor, Nain, Jezreel, 
Jenin, are all in sight, and a large 
village in the wooded highlands, 
to the southeast of Carmel.” 

This promontory is a place of 
deep interest in the annals of the 
Jews, (1 Kings xviii. 19, 42; 2 
Kings ii. 25, and iv. 25,) and was 
once the resort of crowds of Chris¬ 
tian devotees, and the residence 
of an order of monks called Car¬ 
melites, who had a convent there, 
which was pillaged and destroyed 
by the Arabs after the retreat of 
the French army, in 1799, who 
used it as an hospital for their 
sick and wounded during the siege 
of Acre. 

There are many traditions and 
superstitions which travellers 
have preserved, about the caves 
and grottos which abound in this 
mountain; but they will not be in 
place here. 

Carmel, town of. (Josh. xv. 
55.) A city and hill, five miles 
west of the Dead sea, and be¬ 
tween the wilderness cf Ziph and 
142 


CAS 

the wilderness of Maon. It wa i 
the residence of Nabal. (1 Sam. 
xxv. 2, and xxvii. 3.) 

A limestone mountain, called 
El Carmel, is described by travel¬ 
lers as the same with the ancient 
city and hill. 

CARRIAGES. (Acts xxi. 15.) 
The load or burden of man or 
beast; baggage (Isa. x. 28) oi 
mat, on which any thing is car¬ 
ried. (1 Sam. xvii. 20, trench, or 
place of the carriagee. Isa. xlvi. 
1.) “They took up their carri¬ 
ages,” i. e. they packed up their 
things, and commenced their jour¬ 
ney. (Acts xxi. 15.) 

CART. (See Wagon.) 

CART-ROPE. (Isa. v. 18.) 
This is a strong figurative expres¬ 
sion, the most natural meaning of 
which is shown by two Jewish 
'sayings—“ Wo to them that begin 
to sin a little, and they go on and 
increase until their sins are as a 
cart-rope;” and, “ The evil ima¬ 
gination is at first like a spider’s 
thread, but at last it is like to cart- 
ropes.” There may be a remote 
allusion also to the cords with 
which the sacrifices were bound. 

CASEMENT. (See Window.) 

CASSIA. (Ex. xxx. 24.) The 
bark of a tree of the same species 
with cinnamon and sassafras, and 
one of the ingredients of the holy 
anointing oil. It was an article 
of Tyrian trade, (Ezek. xxvii. 19,) 
and remarkable for its fragrance. 
(Ps. xlv. 8.) 

CAST OUT, (John ix. 22, and 
34, comp.,) or excommunicate, 
was to cut off from the privileges 
of the Jewish church. 

CASTOR and POLLUX, (Acts 
xxviii. 11,) in heathen mytholo¬ 
gy, were the names of twin sons 
of Jupiter, who were supposed tc 
preside over the destinies of mil- 



CAT 

*>rs. Hence an image represent- 
'ng them was often seen on the 
prow of ancient ships, like the 
figure-heads of modern days. The 
word sign is supposed by some 
not to signify the name of the 
ship, but only the protecting im¬ 
age of the deity under whose aus¬ 
pices she sailed. We are inclined 
to believe that the sign was the 
only designation the ship had, 
and that this mode of expression 
by the apostle, signified to the 
merchants of Alexandria and 
Malta what particular vessel was 
intended. This particularity of 
detail in the sacred narrative is 
highly corroborative of its truth. 

CATERPILLAR. (1 Kings 
viii. 37.) A tribe of insects of 
vast number and destructive vo¬ 
racity. Hence they were often 
employed as the agents in the 
execution of God’s judgments, 
(Ps. lxxviii. 46, and cv. 34,) and 
figuratively represent a great mul¬ 
titude. (Isa. xxxiii. 4; Jer. li. 
14, 27.) They were regarded as 
among the most desolating visita¬ 
tions of God’s hand. 

CATTLE. (Gen. i. 25.) In 
the common scriptural use of this 
term it embraces the tame quad¬ 
rupeds employed by mankind, as 
oxen, horses, sheep, camels, goats, 
Ac. (Gen. xiii. 2; Ex. xii. 29; 
and xxxiy. 19; Num. xx. 19; 
xxxii. 16, and Ps. 1. 10, and Job 
i. 3, where the word translated 
substance would be more properly 
rendered cattle.) 

The allusion in Job zxxvi. 33, 
is explained by the well-known 
fact that certain animals of this 
class are peculiarly sensitive to 
the change of air which precedes 
rain. 

CAUL. (Isa. iii. 18.) The at¬ 
tire of the bead, u ado of net-work 


CEL 

and ornamented. In Ilos. xnl. 8, 
I will rend the caul of their liean x 
the word caul denotes a membra¬ 
nous vessel lining some of the 
internal organs of the body. The 
figure represents a raging beast 
of prey seizing his victim, and 
tearing out its vitals. 

CAUSEWAY. (IChron. xxvi. 
16.) A raised way or path. (2 
Chron. ix. 4.) In most of the 
passages where it occurs, it signi¬ 
fies any public way or high road, 
and, indeed, is so translated in 
Judg. xx. 31, 32; 1 Sam. vi. 12; 
Prov. xvi. 2. 

The same word is rendered 
ways in Ps. lxxxiv. 5, and here 
signifies the ways to Zion, by 
which the devout Jews ascended 
to worship in the temple, and the 
remembrance of which was con¬ 
tinually present in the hearts of 
those who loved them, and who 
loved also the holy place and ser¬ 
vice to which they led. 

CAVE. (Gen. xix. 30.) Caves 
were very common in Judea, and 
were made use of as temporary 
dwelling-places, (Gen. xix. 30;) 
as places of concealment, (Josh. x. 
16; Judg. vi. 2; 1 Sam. xiii. 6; 
xxii. 1, 2, and xxiv. 3; 2 Sam. 
xxiii. 13; 1 Kings xviii. 4; xix. 9; 
Heb. xi. 38;) and as burial-places. 
(Gen. xxiii. 17, 19, and xlix. 29; 
John xi. 38.) (See Oaves of the 
Earth.) 

CEDAR. (2 Sam. vii. 2.) Ono 
of the most valuable and majestic 
trees of Eastern forests. It grows 
to the height of seventy or eighty 
feet. Tho branches are thick and 
long, spreading out almost hori¬ 
zontally from the trunk, which i? 
sometimes thirty or forty feet in 
circumference. (Ezek. xxxi. 3, 
6, 8.) Maundrell measured one 
which was thirty-six feet and sty 





JEN 


CED 




inches in the girth, and one hun¬ 
dred and eleven feet in the spread 
of its boughs. The wood is of a 
red colour and bitter taste, which 
is offensive to insect^, and hence 


Cedar Tree 

it is very durable, having been 
known to last (as historians as¬ 
sert) upwards of two thousand 
years. It was used for the most 
noble and costly edifices. This 
timber served not only for beams 
for the frame, and boards for 
covering buildings, but was 
also wrought into the walls. 

(1 Kings vi. 36, and vii. 12.) 

The mountfins of Lebanon 
were famous for the growth 
of the cedar, but travellers 
tell us that the words of pro¬ 
phecy are verified, for now a 
child may write them. (Isa. 
x. 19. See Lebanon.) 

(For a full description of 
this tree, with the explanation 
of its figuiative use in the 
sacred writings, see article 
Cedar, in Bible Natural 
History.) 

CEDRON. (See Kidron.) 

CEIL. (See Ceiling.) 

CELLARS. (1 Chron. 
xxv ii 27.) Of cellars, such as 
are common among us. nothing 
144 


was known in the East, if we ex 
cept the chambers which are used 
in Persia for the storing of earthen 
jars or other vessels of wine. 
Among the Hebrews and Greeks 
these jars were buried up to the 
neck in the ground. The word 
wine-cellars in the passage cited, 
probably denotes the patches of 
ground used to bury wine. (Se^ 
Wine.) 

CENCHREA. (Acts xviii. 18.) 
A seaport on the eastern side of 
the isthmus of Corinth, and nine 
miles distant from that city. It 
was the seat of a Christian church. 
(Rora. xvi. 1, 4.) 

CENSER. (Lev. x. 1.) A ves¬ 
sel used in the temple service, for 
the purpose of carrying the fire in 
which the incense was burned. It 
was made of pure gold. (1 Kings 
vii. 50; Ileb. ix. 4.) The censer 
was held in one hand, and con¬ 
tained the fire taken from the 
perpetual supply on che altar of 
burnt-offering. The incense was 


Censer. 

carried in the other hand ; ard ai 








CRN 

the high-priest, once a year, en¬ 
tered the holy of holies, he strew¬ 
ed the pulverized incense upon 
tihe fire, and the cloud of smoko 
ascended up in a dark volume, 
and filled the apartment with its 
fragrance. It is called a spoon, 
(Kara. vii. 14,) and vial, (Rev. 
c. 8.) 

The foregoing cut represents 
the probable form of the vessel, or 
the charger and censer combined. 

CENTURION. (Matt. viii. 5.) 
The title of an officer of the Ro¬ 
man army, who had command of 
one hundred soldiers. 

CEPHAS. (John i. 42.) A Sy¬ 
riac surname given to Peter, 
which in the Greek is rendered 
Petros, and in Latin Petrus, both 
signifying a rock. (See Peter.) 

CEREMONIES, (Num. ix. 3,) 
or ORDINANCES, (Heb. ix. 1,) 
denote the external rites of reli¬ 
gion, or the forms and circum¬ 
stances by which it is rendered 
solemn and magnificent,—parti¬ 
cularly under the Mosaic dispen¬ 
sation. 

CESAR (AUGUSTUS.) (Luke 
ii. 1.) Nephew and successor of 
Julius Cesar, emperor of Rome. 
The name Augustus, signifying 
august or noble, was a compli¬ 
mentary title, decreed to him by 
the Roman senate, whence is de¬ 
rived the name of the month Au¬ 
gust. Cesar was the regal title of 
the emperors, and hence Tiberius 
is called Cesar, (Matt. xxii. 21,) 
and Nero is called Cesar. (Acts 
xxv. 11.) The title Augustus 
was a personal distinction; but 
after tho death of the individual 
to whom it was given, it was re¬ 
garde I and used as a part of the 
royal title. 

CESAR (CLAUDIUS.) (Acts 
xi. 28.) An emperor of Rome, 
13 


CES 

who succeeded Caius Caligula, 
A. D. 41. Four different famines 
are mentioned by profane histori¬ 
ans as having taken place luring 
his reign; one of which was very 
severe in Judea, extended into 
adjoining countries, and continu¬ 
ed nearly three years. Such a 
famine was predicted by a pro¬ 
phet named Agabus, who came 
from Jerusalem to Antioch, about 
the year a. i>. 35 or 45 ; and the 
expression, throughout all the 
world, evidently intends its gene¬ 
ral prevalence in other parts of 
the world besides Judea. (See 
Agabus.) 

In the ninth year of his reign, 
Claudius, by a decree, banished 
the Jews (probably including the 
Christian converts) from Rome. 
(Acts xviii. 2. See Tiberius Ce¬ 
sar.) 

CESAREA. (Acts xxiii. 33.) 
A considerable town on tho coast 
of tho Mediterranean, between 
Joppa and Tyre, about sixty-two 
miles from Jerusalem. It is 
sometimes called Cesarea of Pa¬ 
lestine, to distinguish it from Ce- 
sarea-Philippi, (see next article,) 
and is supposed by some to be the 
Hazor of the Old Testament. 
(Josh. xi. 1.) Herod the Great 
contributed chiefly to the magni¬ 
ficence of the city by building 
some of the most splendid of its 
edifices, and constructing a fine 
harbour for it. He called it Ce- 
saroa, in honour of the emperor 
Cesar Augustus. After the de¬ 
struction of Jerusalem, when Ju 
dea became a Roman province, 
Cesarea was the chief city of Pa¬ 
lestine, (Adts xxiv. 27, and xxv. 
1, 13,) and was often visited by 
Paul, (Acts ix. 30; xviii. 22, 
xxi. 8;) and it was here that he 
made his eloquent defence before 
K 145 




CES 

Felix, Festus, and Agrippa, (Acts 
xxiii. xxv. and xxvi.;) and here 
he suffered two years’ imprison¬ 
ment. 

Philip the evangelist resided 
here, (Acts xxi. 8,^ and also Cor¬ 
nelius, who, with his family, were 
tho first-fruits from among the 
Gentiles, under the preaching of 
Peter. (Acts x.) 

A traveller, who passed the 
ruins of Cesarea in 1831, says, 
“Perhaps there has not been in 
the history of the world an exam¬ 
ple of any city, that in so short a 
space rose to so extraordinary a 
height of splendour, or ihat ex¬ 
hibits a more awful contrast to 
its former magnificence, by the 
present desolate appearance of its 
ruins. Not a single inhabitant 
remains. Its theatres, once re¬ 
sounding with the shouts of mul¬ 
titudes, echo no other sound than 
the nightly cries of animals roam¬ 
ing for their prey.” 

Napoleon encamped here after 
raising the siege of Acre, and 
speaks of the broken fragments 
of marble and granite columns 
which surrounded him. 

CESAREA-PHILIPPI (Matt, 
xvi. 13, and Mark viii. 27) was a 
town in the northern part of Ju¬ 
dea, in the vicinity of mount Iler- 
mon. Some have supposed it is 
the same with Laish or Loshem, 
and also the Dan of the Old Tes¬ 
tament. (Josh. xix. 47; Judg. 
xviii. 29. See Dan.) Philip the 
tetrarch, son of Herod, contri¬ 
buted largely to its prosperity, 
and gave it the name of Cesarea, 
in honour of Tiberius Cesar. It 
is called Cesarea-Philippi, or Ce¬ 
sarea of Philip, to distinguish it 
from a town of th 3 same name on 
the coast. (See preceding article.) 
It now contains about two hun- 
148 


CHA 

dred houses, and is inhabited 
chiefly by Turks. 

CHAIN. (See Feet.) 

CHALCEDONY.- (Rev. xxi. 
19.) A precious stone found in 
Europe and in several districts of 
the United States. The common 
cornelian is one of its varieties. 

CHALDEA. (Jer. 1. 10.) 
CHALDEANS. (Job i. 17.) The 
country of which Babylon was the 
capital, and which was hence call¬ 
ed Babylonia, is a level region of 
Asia, watered by the Euphrates 
and Tigris, between which rivers 
it was situated. These rivers, 
when swollen by the waters from 
the mountains of Armenia, over¬ 
flowed their banks, and fertilized 
the whole country. Hence the 
strong, figurative language in Isa. 
xxi. 1; Jer. li. 13. In the year 
b.c. 630, the Chaldeans, a wander¬ 
ing race, not unlike the modern 
Arabs, (Job i. 17,) descended from 
Taurus and Caucasus, subdued 
western Asia, destroyed Jerusa¬ 
lem, (b. c. 588— a. m. 3416,) con¬ 
quered Tyre and Phenicia, and 
founded an empire, which extend¬ 
ed to the shores of the Mediterra¬ 
nean, and which from them was 
called Chaldea. 

Babel or Babylon (whence 
the name 'Babylonia) was the ca 
pital of this mighty empire. It 
had long been distinguished iot 
its commerce and science. Learn¬ 
ing was confined to the priests, 
who were employed in the ser¬ 
vices of their religion, in medi¬ 
cine, magic, astrology, &c. Their 
pretended knowledge was kept 
secret from the people, and hence, 
under this name, they became a 
distinct class of magicians and 
conjurers, called Chvldeans. 
(Dan. iv. 7.) 

Ir A. d. 536, this vast country 




CHA 

was united with Persia; and in 
A. D. 640, they both fell under the 
dominion of Mohammed, and 
finally, a. d. 1639, into the hands 
of the Turks, who still hold them. 
The two names, Chaldea and Ba¬ 
bylonia, appear to have been often 
applied to the same country. (Jer. 
xxiv. 5; xxv. 12; 1. 8; Ezek. xii. 

13. ) The original name of at 
least a section of Chaldea, was 
Shincir. (Gen. x. 10; Dan. i. 1, 
2. See Babylon, Syria, Siiinar. 
See also Evening Recreations, 
vol. ii. pp. 69, 70.) 

CHALK-STONES. (Isa. 
xxvii. 9.) A soft mineral sub- 
stanco, resembling what we call 
limestone. To make the stones 
of the Jewish altars like chalk-, 
stones is to crumble and destroy 
them. 

CHAMBER. (Gen. xliii. 30.) 
Usually the private apartments of 
a house are called chambers. (2 
Sam. xviii. 33; Ps. xix. 5; Dan. 
vi. 10.) Particular rooms of this 
class in Eastern houses were de¬ 
signated by significant terms. 

Guest-chamber. (Mark xiv. 

14. ) This we may suppose to have 
been a spacious unoccupied room, 
usually in the upper part of the 
house, and furnished suitably for 
the reception and entertainment 
of guests and for social meetings. 
The proverbial hospitality of the 
Jews would make such provision 
necessary, and especially at Jeru¬ 
salem, in festival seasons, when 
every house in the city w r as the 
stranger’s home. (Mark xiv. 15; 
Luke xxii. 12; Acts i. 13.) 

Inner chamber. (2 Kings ix. 
2.) A chamber within another 
chamber. 

Little chamber. (2 Kings iv. 
10 .) An apartment built upon 
and proj acting from the walls of j 


CIIA 

the main house, and communion 
ting by a private door with the 
house, and by a private stairway 
to the street. 

Upper chamber, or loft, (Acts 
ix. 37,) is supposed to have occu¬ 
pied the front part of the building, 
over the gate or outer entrance, 
and to have been used to lodge 
strangers. (Comp. 1 Kings xvii. 
19 and 23, with 2 Kings iv. 10. 
See Dwellings, paragraph Up¬ 
per room.) 

CHAMBERING. (Rom. xiii. 
13.) Low intrigue for licentious 
purposes. 

CHAMBERLAIN. (2 Kings 
xxiii. 11.) An officer who has 
charge of the royal chambers, or 
the king’s lodgings, wardrobes, 
&c. In Eastern courts, eunuchs 
were commonly employed for this 
service. (Esth. i. 10, 12, 15.) The 
sixth officer of the British crown 
is the lord high chamberlain. The 
title in Rom. xvi. 23, probably 
denotes the steward or treasurer 
of the city. 

CHAMELEON. (Lev. xi. 30.) 
A species of the lizard, of very 



Chameleon . 

singular construction and appear- 
i ance. Its tail is as long as iti 
147 




CHA 

whole body, and being wound 
around the branches of trees, as¬ 
sists the animal in climbing or 
suspending itself. It feeds on in¬ 
sects, and to catch them it is pro¬ 
vided with a tongue nearly as 
long as its body, which it darts 
out and then draws back again, j 
contracting it into a small com¬ 
pass. This organ is covered with 
a glutinous substance, by which 
flies and other insects are arrested 
and drawn in for the animal’s 
food. Its colour is changeable, 
but not to the extent nor from the 
causes which are vulgarly sup¬ 
posed. It is by no means certain 
that the chameleon known to us 
was the animal which was reck¬ 
oned unclean by the Levitical 
law. 

CHAMOIS. (Oeut. xiv. 5.) 
The animal intended in this pas¬ 
sage was probably of the family 
of antelopes; and as the chamois 
of modern natural history is found 
in the highlands of Switzerland, 
Germany and Greece, at the 
height and in the same climate 
with the mountains of Judea, it is 
not unlikely that the same animal 
which we know as the chamois 
was regarded as unclean by the 
Jewish law. 

CHANCE (1 Sam. vi. 9) might 
be better rendered occurrence, and 
is so rendered in several ancient 
versions. In Eccl. ix. 1-11, the 
sacred writer is illustrating the 
weakness and blindness of man, 
and showing that all the events 
and occurrences of his life are 
appointed by intnite wisdom and 
power. Ir the passage first above 
cited, the word implies simply 
this,—that if the cattle, without 
any guidance of man, should leave 
their calves and their pastures, 
and the roads which they were 
U8 


CHA 

accustomed to go in, and should 
draw the ark towards Bethshe- 
mesh, (thenearestpointof the land 
of Israel,) then the Philistines 
might infer from this supernatu¬ 
ral occurrence, that God’s hand 
had afflicted them as a punish¬ 
ment for detaining the ark ; but 
if nothing like this should appear, 
they might suppose that their 
singular affliction was the result of 
natural though unknown causes. 
What men speak of as happening 
by chance, are those occurrences 
which take place without any ap¬ 
parent cause, as in Luke x. 31, 
“It so happened that a priest,” 
<fcc., i. e. he had no design to pass 
by the wounded man, &c.; though 
they are not the less actually the 
result of divine appointment. The 
word, in its atheistical use, is 
as unphilosophical as it is im¬ 
pious. 

CHANCELLOR. (Ezra iv. 8, 
17.) A distinguished officer of 
the Jewish court, of whose parti¬ 
cular functions we have now no 
knowledge. 

CHANGEABLE SUITS OF 
APPAREL. (See Clothes.) 

CHANGES OF RAIMENT. 
(See Clothes.) 

CHANGERS OF MONEY, or 
MONEY-CHANGERS. (Matt, 
xxi. 12 ; John ii. 14.) WhenJudea 
became a province oi Rome, the 
Jewi were required to pay taxes 
in Roman currency, and at the 
same time the annual tribute for 
the service of the sanctuary was 
the half shekel of Jewish curren¬ 
cy. To exchange these, one for 
the other, was the business of the 
money-changers, like the business 
of modern brokers. To obtain 
custom, they stationed themselves 
in the courts of the temple, the 
place of general resort for stran- 




CHA 

gers from every part of Judea, 
and their oppressive and fraudu¬ 
lent practices probably justified 
the allusion of our Saviour to a 
den of thieves. Perhaps, they 
were also accustomed to pay and 
receive interest on loans, and this 
practice is recognised in Matt, 
xxv. 16, 27. 

CHANT. (See Viol.) 

CHAPEL, (Amos vii. 

13,) or SANCTUARY. A 
place of worship. Bethel 
is called the king’s chapel 
by one of the idol priests, 
because there the king of 
Israel paid idolatrous wor¬ 
ship to the golden calves. 

(See Bethel.) 

CHAPITERS, (Ex. 
xxxvi. 38,) or CAPI¬ 
TALS, (as they are call¬ 
ed in modern architecture,) are 
the upper or ornamental part of 
a column. 

CHAPMEN (2 Chron. ix. 15) 
are called, in the cor¬ 
responding passage, (1 
Kings x. 15,) spice-mer¬ 
chants. The classes 
might be distinguished 
as the merchants and 
grocers of modern days. 

The reverence to the 
king was probably in 
the form of duties on 
their imports. 

CHARAN. (See IlA- 

RA N.) 

CHARGER. (Num. 
vii. 13 ; Eara i. 9 ; Matt, 
xiv. 8, 11.) A shallow 
bowl or basin, used for receiving 
the blood at the preparation of 
the sacrifices. (See Censer.) 

CHARIOT. (Gen. xll. 43, and 
xlvi. 29; 2 Kings x. 15 ; Acts viii. 
28.) Until within three or four 
hundred years nothing was Known- 
13* 


CHA 

of the convenience and even luxu¬ 
ry of modern vehicles of pleasure. 
The chariots of the early agos 
were probably little superior in 
stylo or convenience to modern 
carts or wagons, if the representa¬ 
tions of them which we have de¬ 
rived from remote ages are re¬ 
liable. 


The treasurer of the Ethiopian 
queen was riding in a chariot 
when Philip met him and opened 
to him the Scriptures. 


Travellers describe a clumsy 
carriage used in Asia at the pre¬ 
sent day, which is formed like a 
large wicker basket, eight feed 
long, supported by four solid 
wheels, convex on each side. 
These carriages were made of 
149 





















CIIA 

wood, and were often burnt in war. 
(Ps. xlvi. 9; Sol. Song iii. 9; Nah. 
ii. 13.) Chariots were used by 
warriors, as in 2 Kings ix. 21-24. 

Where chariots are mentioned 
as of iron, (Josh. xvii. 18,) it is 
probable that the iron instruments 
with which they were often hea¬ 
vily armed gave them such a de¬ 
signation. The word chariot is 
used for the horses by which it is 
drawn, (2 Sam. viii. 4; x. 18,) and 
again for the riders of horses and 
other animals. (Isa. xxi. 7, 9.) 

Captains of chariots, (Ex. 
Xv. 4,) or, literally, mounted three 
standers. This expression, in an 
English translation, might be sup¬ 
posed to denote the officer or offi¬ 
cers who had charge of the chariot 
forces; but the literal meaning, 
above given, makes the passage 
obscure. The cut, from an Egyp¬ 
tian tomb, nearly or quite as an¬ 
cient as the period to which the 
above-cited passages relate, fur¬ 
nishes a key to this otherwise 
difficult expression. It represents 
three men standing upon a chariot, 



two of whom are prepared for ac¬ 
tion, and the third manages the 
horses. They were probably se¬ 
lected for their valour, and, per¬ 
iod 


CIIA 

haps, formed by themselves a dis¬ 
tinct division of the army, and 
each had its distinct officer. (Ex. 
xiv. 7.) 

Chariot of the cherubims (1 
Chron. xxviii. 18) means the frame 
work on which the cherubims 
rested, and one pattern of which 
might resemble the body of a cha¬ 
riot. (See Amminadab, War, 
Harness.) 

Chariot cities, (2 Chron. i. 
14,) or cities specially designated 
for storing the chariots of war 
during the time of peace, as ma¬ 
gazines and arsenals of modern 
times are used. 

Chariot horses. (2 Kings vii. 
14.) Horses that were peculiarly 
fitted, by size, spirit, docility, or 
special training, for service in 
chariots; as carriage, draft, and 
saddle-horses of later days. 

Chariot man. (2 Chron. xviii. 
33.) Driver, or charioteer. 

Chariots of the sun. (2 Kings 
xxiii. 11.) Chariots which had 
been consecrated to the sun by 
the idolatrous customs of the kings 
of Judah. Such consecration of 
horses and vehicles was common, 
especially in Persia. 

The word chariots is sometimes 
used figuratively for hosts or ar¬ 
mies, (Ps. lxviii. 17;) and Elijah, 
by his prayers and counsels, and 
power with God, was the “chariot 
and horsemen of Israel,” (2 Kings 
ii. 11, 12,) inasmuch as he did 
more for them than all the chari¬ 
ots and horsemen which they 
could muster. (Ps. xx. 7; Isa. 
xxxi. 1.) 

Chariots (for war.) (Judg. 
iv. 3.) One class of carriages 
thus denominated were used as 
the common vehicles of princes 
I and generals; but another formed 
I the most terrible of military en- 








CHA 


CIIA 



Chariot 

•ines, and were employed in great 
numbers. (1 Sam. xiii. 5; 1 Chron. 
xviii. 4.) Like other ancient car¬ 
riages, they had usually only two 
wheels ; and iron scythes, strong 
and sharp, were affixed to the 
extremities of the axles on each 
side. 


of War. 

Warriors sometimes fought 
standing on them, or leaping from 
them upon the enemy. The cha¬ 
riots in the army of Cyrus were 
capacious enough to permit twenty 
men to fight from them. 

The following sketch of the 
wooden war-chariot used by the 



Aniilur form of the War-chariot. 


151 








CRA 

Parthians, may illustrate the ge¬ 
neral appearance and uses of the 
chariot of earlier days. 

CHARITY. (1 Cor.xiii.l.) In 
this and parallel passages, the 
word love would more properly 
express the sentiment intended. 
(See Love.) Charity, in the po¬ 
pular acceptation of the word, is 
almsgiving. (See Alms.) 

CHARM, CHARMER. (See 
Adder, Asp, Divination.) 

CHARRAN. (See Haran.) 

CHATTER. (See Crane, 
Swallow.) 

CHEBAR. (Ezek. i. 1, 3.) A 
river in the land of the Chaldeans. 
A colony of the captive Jews re¬ 
sided here, and the prophet Eze¬ 
kiel also, with whose predictions 
the place has very interesting as¬ 
sociations. 

CHEDORLAOMER. (Gen. 
xiv. 1, 5.) One of the kings who 
formed an alliance against the 
five cities of the plain, and whose 
spoils tvere taken from them by 
Abram. (See Abram.) 

CHEEKBONE. (Ps. iii. 7.) 
The figurative language of this 
passage presents the psalmist sur¬ 
rounded by his enemies as by a 
herd of wild beasts, and denotes 
their complete deprivation of the 
power of seizing upon or devour¬ 
ing their prey. 

CHEESE, (1 Sam. xvii. 18,) cr 
the pressed curd of milk, was a 
common article of food among the 
Jews, and is now, among many 
nations of the East. The word 
occurs but three times in our 
Scriptures, and in each of them 
the original word is different. (2 
Sam. xvii. 29; Job x. 10.) Tra¬ 
vellers tell us that new cheese, or 
the curd of cream salted, was a 
luxury of the richest tables. The 
milk Yi as separated bv a rude sort 
t52 


CHE 

of churning, (see Butter,) and the 
curd was placed in a close-woven 
rush or wicker basket, and so 
pressed as to retain the form of 
the basket, like pine-apple cheese? 
of our dairies. Ten baskets of 
curds of this kind were not an un 
suitable present for Jesse to make, 
even to an officer of Saul’s army. 
(See Milk.) 

CHEMARIMS. (Zeph. i. 4.) 
The priests of idol gods, as in 2 
Kings xxiii. 5. and IIos. x. 5, 
where the same word is translated 
idolatrous priests. 

CHEMOSH. (Num. xxi. 29.) 
The name of an idol of the Moab¬ 
ites, (Jer. xlviii. 7,) which bishop 
Newton and others suppose to 
have been the same with Baal- 
peor. It is called “ the abomina¬ 
tion of the Moabites,” as Moloch 
was the abomination of the Am¬ 
monites. Solomon built a place 
for its worship in the suburbs of 
Jerusalem, (1 Kings xi. 7,) which 
Josiah afterwards destroyed. (2 
Kings xxiii. 13.) The people of 
Chemosh are his worshippers. 
(Jer. xlviii. 46.) 

CIIEPHIRAH, (Josh. ix. 17,) 
formerly belonged to the Gibeon- 
ites. It afterwards fell into the 
hands of the tribe of Benjamin, 
and was occupied by this tribe 
after their return from captivity. 
(Josh, xviii. 26; Ezra ii. 25 ; Neh. 
vii. 29.) 

CIIERETHIMS. (Ezek. xxv. 
16.) CHERETHITES. (1 Sam. 
xxx. 14.) These names are ap¬ 
plied to a part of David’s army, 
(2 Sam. xv. 18, and xx. 7,) which 
seems to have been a distinct 
corps. (2 Sam. viii. 16-18.) It is 
probable they were either origi¬ 
nally Philistines, skilful in arehe > 
ry, (comp. 1 Sam. xxx. 14. 16, 
with Zeph. ii 5.) and thus ijuali- 








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under the "Macc abar ttnJc lilnm® anlVirLoes 
& Illustrative of the Period of 
C H R1 ST and the APOSTLES. 


Longitude East tVom Greenwich 


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CHE 

fled to become asortof body-guard 
to the king; or that they were Is¬ 
raelites who were with David 
among the Philistines or Chereth- 
ites, and hence their corps was 
known by this name in the army. 
They are usually joined with the 
Pelethites, (2 Sam. viii. 18,) who 
are supposed to have been native 
Israelites of the tribe of Reuben, 
(Num. xvi. 1,) or Judah. (1 
Chron. ii. 33. See Crete.) 

CHERITH. (1 Kings xvii. 3, 
5.) A small brook which emptied 
into the Jordan, and in the vici¬ 
nity of which Elijah concealed 
himself and was supported by 
ravens. 

A recent traveller describes the 
bed of this brook as a thicket of 
wild fig-trees and oak-shrubs, in¬ 
tertwined with oleanders. The 
water seems to hide itself at the 
base of the flowery rock, and al¬ 
together affords a most agreeable 
resting-place for the way-worn 
traveller. Here he thinks the pro¬ 
phet was directed to abide, and 
here food was supplied to him by 
the direct hand of God. 

CHERUB, CHERUBIM. 
(Ezek. x. 5, 7.) The word cheru¬ 
bim occurs first, Gen. iii. 24, and 
is applied to the guard which was 
placed over Eden after the expul¬ 
sion of fallen man. 

Among the directions given to 
Moses respecting the form and 
construction of the mercy-seat, 
one was, to make a cherub at each 
end, whose face should be turned 
inward, and whose wings should 
cover the mercy-seat. From be¬ 
tween these figures or cherubim 
God communed with Moses con¬ 
cerning the children of Israel. (Ex 
xxv. 22 ; Num. vii. 89 ; ) Sam. iv. 
4; Ps. lxxx. 1, and xcix 1.) 

The size and shape of the fig¬ 



ures representing the cherubim in 
Solomon’s temple, are described 
particularly in 2 Chron. iii. 10-13. 
(See Biblical Antiquities, vol. 
ii. chap. ii. pp. 51-63.) 

CHESTNUT TREE. (Gen. 

xxx. 37.) A well-known tree, 
which is figuratively used (Ezek. 

xxxi. 8) in connection with the 
cedar and fir, to illustrate the 
greatness of the Assyrian king¬ 
dom. - The tree known to us as 
the plane, or buttonwood, is sup¬ 
posed to be intended by the sacred 
writers, and the original has 
sometimes been so translated. 

CHIEF OF ASIA, (Acts xix. 
31.) Certain wealthy persons were 
appointed annually in the Asiatic 
provinces of Rome, to preside over 
the religious rites, public games, 
Ac. which they maintained in ho¬ 
nour of the gods, and at their own 
expense. They received their 
title from the name of the pro¬ 
vince; as the chief or priest of 
Caria was called Cariarch ; or Ly- 
cia, Lyeiarch, Ac. Several of 
these chiefs or priests were hold- 
ins games at Ephesus, when the 
153 
















CHI 

tumult was excited in that city 
because Paul’s preaching inter¬ 
fered with the personal interest 
of Demetrius. These people were 
friendly to the apostle, and advised 
him not to expose his person 
unnecessarily to the fury of the 
populace. 

CHIEF PRIEST. (See 
Priest.) 

CHIMHAM. (2 Sam. xix. 37.) 
It is possible he was a son of Bar- 
zillai, but it cannot certainly bo in¬ 
ferred from 1 Kings ii. 7, which 
is sometimes cited to prove it. 
Some have supposed that David 
gave Chimham a parcel of land, 
which was afterwards known by 
his name. (Jer. xli. 17.) 

CHIMNEY. (See Dwellings.) 

CHINNERETH, (Num. xxxiv. 
11; Deut. iii. 17,) or CHINNE- 
ROTH, (Josh. xi. 2, and xii. 3,) 
or CINNEROTII, (1 Kings xv. 
20,) were names of a place and 
lake in Lower Galilee. The town 
of Cinneroth was on the western 
shore of the lake, near the border 
of Zebulon and Naphtali. The 
town is supposed to have been the 
fame with Tiberias, and thq lake 
is called the lake of Gennesaret, 
the sea of Galilee, and the sea of 
Tiberias, which is its present 
name. 

There is no part of Palestine to 
be compared with the environs of 
this lake for climate, fertility, and 
richness of scenery. Many cities 
of note (as Capernaum, Bethsai- 
da, and Chorazin) stood upon its 
hores. The river Jordan flows 
hrough it, and it formerly aboun 1- 
ed with fish, and gave occupation 
to four of the first disciples of our 
Saviour, who were born in its vi¬ 
cinity, and were called from their 
worldly business to follow him. 
Much of the time of his ministry 
154 


CHI 

was spent, and many of his most 
wonderful works weie done, on 
these shores. Though this lake 
was less than twenty miles long, 
by six or eight wide, it was sub¬ 
ject to violent squalls. The wind 
from the south, sweeping down 
the sides of the mountains, and 
setting up against the strong cur¬ 
rent of the Jordan, rendered the 
lake boisterous and full of peril. 
No craft is seen upon its waters 
in modern days. The Arab fish¬ 
ermen wade in with hand-nets, 
and take what fish they can. 

In 1823, the old town was sur¬ 
rounded by a wall, but within it 
was very ruinous, and the plain 
for a mile or two south was strew¬ 
ed with ruins. The Jordan, where 
it issued from the lake, was so 
shallow that cattle and asses ford¬ 
ed it easily. Rev. Mr. Fiske, an 
American missionary, who visited 
the place, was shown a house 
called the house of Peter, which 
is used as the Groek Catholic 
church, and is the only church in 
the place. The number of Chris¬ 
tian families is thirty or forty, all 
Greek Catholics. There were two 
sects of Jews, each of whom had 
a synagogue. The Jewish popu¬ 
lation w r as estimated at about 
1000. On the 1st of January, 
1837, Tiberias was destroyed by 
an earthquake. (Sec Views of 
Palestine, p. 27, and Omar, pp. 
120, 121, and Life of Peter.) 

CHIOS. (Acts xx. 15.) A 
mountainous island on the coast 
of Asia Minor, between Lesbos and 
Samos, thirty-two miles long and 
fifteen broad,inhabited by Greeks. 
It is now called Scio, and was the 
scene of a memorable massacre 
by the Turks in 1823 
C1IISLEU. (See Months.) 
CHITTIM. (Dan. \i. 30.) Pro- 




CHI 

bably this name was originally 
applied to the island i£ Cyprus, 
but afterwards became a general 
name for the maritime countries 
and islands of the Mediterranean. 
In Isa. xxiii. 1, we are told that 
the news of the destruction of 
Tyro should bo revealed to the 
ships of Tarshish, as they passed 
the land of Chittim or island of 
Cyprus. 

The prophecy of Balaam, (Num. 
xxiv. 24,) of the visitation which 
should come on Asshur, (Assyria,) 
and Eber, (the Hebrews,) proba¬ 
bly referred to the Greek and lto- 
man invasion of those countries 
respectively. (See Cyprus.) 

C H I U N. (Amos v. 26.) An 
idol which the Israelites made 
and worshipped in the wilderness. 
(See Remphan.) 

CHORAZIN. (Matt. xi. 21.) 
A town on the shore of the sea of 
Tiberias, (where Christ wrought 
miracles,) but its precise location 
Is not known. 

CHORASIIAN. (See Ashan.) 
CHRIST JESUS. (Eph.ii.10.) 
This is a compound name, signi¬ 
ficant of two characters. Christ 
is from the Greek word Christos, 
which signifies anointed. The 
word Messiah, in the Hebrew, 
corresponds to the word Christos, 
in the Greek. Ilcnce the Jews 
or Hebrews speak of him as the 
Messiah, and Christians speak of 
him as the Christ. He is called 
Christ, or the anointed, in allu¬ 
sion to the custom of anointing 
with oil such as wero set apart to 
a sacred or regal office. (Ex. 
xxviii. 41, and xxix. 7 ; 1 Sam. ix. 
16 : xv. 1; 2 Sam. xxiii. 1; 1 Kings 
xix. 16.) This was a consecrating 
ceremony, making the person ot 
the subject of it sacred. (1 Sam. 
xxiv 6; 2 Sam. xix. 21.1 Chron. 


CHR 

xvi. 22.) It was also emblematic 
cal of the effusion of the Holy Spi¬ 
rit. (1 John ii. 20, 27 ; comp. Matt, 
iii. 16,17; John iii. 34.) The Son 
of God was pre-eminently thh 
Anointed. (ISam. ii. 10; Isa. lxi. 

1; Dan. ix. 24, 26.) 

The word Jesus is derived from 
a Hebrew word signifying to save, 
or sent to save. (Matt. i. 21; Luko 
ii. 11, 21.) The word Joshua has 
the same meaning, and is a very 
common name among the He¬ 
brews, and would have been more 
properly used in Acts vii. 45, and 
Ileb. iv. 8, than Jesus. 

The word Christ was originally 
used, not as a part of tho name, 
but as indicative of character or 
office : thus Jesus, the Christ, was 
a descriptive phrase, like John 
the Baptist. (Matt. xxvi. 63; 
Mark viii. 29; xiv. 61; John i. 
20, 25, 41; vi. 69; vii. 41; x. 24; 
xi. 27; xx. 31.) Such an official 
appellation was necessary to dis¬ 
tinguish the Redeemer from 
others who were called Joshua or 
Jesus. Grotius says that the name 
Jesus was dropped at a very early 
period after tho ascension, and 
Christ alone generally used; 
though we find upon examination, 
that the word Christ is almost al¬ 
ways used alone in the Gospels, 
while in the Acts and Epistles, 
Jesus Christ, or the Lord Jesus 
Christ, is the prevailing expres¬ 
sion. 

When God was pronouncing tho 
dreadful sentence of condemnation 
upon our first parents, it was his 
sovereign pleasure, without any 
solicitation or act of man, to inti¬ 
mate a purpose of mercy in the 
following language: And the Lord 
God said unto the serpent, I will 
put enmity between thee and the 
woman, and between thy seed[pos- 



CHR 

terity ) and Tier seed; it (or Tie, 
i. o. her seed) shall bruise thy head, 
and thou shalt bruise his (or its) 
heel. 

In this single verse lies the 
grand principle of all true religion. 
It is the root and substance of all 
the prophecies and promises of 
after-times. The war between sin 
and holiness was then waged, and 
has since been prosecuted without 
intermission. (Rom. vii. 23.) The 
Son of God and all true believers 
are “the seed of the woman.” 
(Comp. Acts xiii. 23; Gal. iv. 4, 
and Heb. ii. 16, with-John xvii. 
21-23.) The devil and all his 
servants represent the serpent and 
his seed. (John viii. 44; 1 John 
iii. 8.) The temptations, suffer¬ 
ings, and ignominious death of 
Christ, and the fierce opposition 
and cruel persecution which his 
true followers have endured in 
various ages of the world, are 
significantly described by the 
bruising of the heel; while the 
complete victory which our glori¬ 
ous Redeemer has himself achiev¬ 
ed over sin and death, and which 
his grace enables the believer also 
to obtain, and the still more per¬ 
fect and universal triumph which 
he will finally accomplish, are all 
strikingly illustrated by tho bruis¬ 
ing of the serpent’s head. 

The books of heathen mytho¬ 
logy furnish curious allusions to 
this wonderful passage of the Bi¬ 
ble. In one of them, Thor is re¬ 
presented as the eldest of sons, a 
middle divinity, a mediator be¬ 
tween God and man, who bruised 
the head of the serpent and slew 
him. And in one of the oldest 
pagodas oi India are found two 
sculptured figures, representing 
two incarnations of one of their 
supreme divinities j the first to be 
158 


CHR 

bitten by a serpent, an il the second 
to crush him. 

Tho text which we have been 
illustrating is the first intimation 
of a Saviour which was given to 
our world after it was ruined by 
sin; and throughout all succeed¬ 
ing ages of the church and of the 
world, in the wonderful system of 
sacrificial and ceremonial observ¬ 
ances, in all the types and sha¬ 
dows of the Jewish law, in the 
whole current of prophecy, and in 
all the changes and revolutions 
of ancient kingdoms and nations, 
the Hebrews were so clearly in¬ 
structed in the character and 
offices of the promised Messiah, 
that their unbelief and rejection 
of him, when he actually appeared, 
seem unaccountable on any other 
hypothesis, than that they were 
judicially blinded. And especially 
must we thus regard their con¬ 
duct, when it is considered how 
accurately the minute circum¬ 
stances of his birth, life, and death 
are predicted. (See InfidelClass, 
pp. 38-43.) So that it has been 
truly said, that a very full and 
well-connected life of Christ could 
be prepared from the materials 
which the prophecies alone would 
supply. 

The Jews, as a nation, grossly 
misapprehended tho character of 
the Messiah and the purpose of his 
mission. So clearly were his ad¬ 
vent and offices predicted in the 
words of prophecy, that a general 
expectation of the appearance of 
some great deliverer prevailed. 
They were even accustomed to - 
regard his coming as the grand 
era in the annals of the world; 
for they spoke of the two great 
ages of history, tho one as pre¬ 
ceding and tho other as following 
this wonderful event. Their 



OHR 

views, however, were on the whole 
very narrow, and in the mass of 
the people were eievated very lit¬ 
tle, if at all, above the temporal 
advantages of their nation. Their 
foolish hearts were too much dark¬ 
ened to see that his kingd >m was 
to be spiritual; that their deliver¬ 
ance was to be from the power 
and dominion of sin; that the 
blessings he would confer would 
be holiness and life everlasting; 
and that the benefits of his atone¬ 
ment, mediation, and glorious 
reign, would be shared by all, 
both Jews and Gentiles, who 
should repent, and believe his 
gospel. 

How long these groundless ap¬ 
prehensions prevailed, even in the 
minds of those who had the best 
opportunity to know the truth, 
may be seen from Luke xxiv. 21, 
and Acts i. 6. 

We find that about the time of 
the Messiah’s appearance, Sime¬ 
on, Anna, and others of like faith, 
were eagerly expecting the pro¬ 
mised salvation. (Luke ii. 25—38.) 

At the appointed time the Re¬ 
deemer of the world appeared. 
He was born in the year of the 
creation 4000, at Bethlehem, in 
Judea, of a virgin, named Mary, 
who was espoused to Joseph ; and 
through them he derived his de¬ 
scent from David, according to 
prophecy. Though we may not 
be able tc trace this genealogy, 
we may be sure of the fact from 
the circumstance that the Jews 
never questioned it. This would 
undoubtedly have been the strong¬ 
hold of their unbelief, for if it 
could have been shown that the 
•ndividual who claimed to bo their 
Messiah was not descended from 
David, they might have justified 
themselves in rejecting him, by 
14 


CHR 

referring to their Scriptures. (Pst 
lxxxix. 3, 4, and cx. 1. Comp. 
Acts ii. 25-36 ; Isa. xi. 1-10 ; Jer. 
xxiii. 5, 6; Ezek. xxxiv. 23, 24, 
xxxvii. 24, 25; John vii. 42.) 

At the proper time he was sub¬ 
jected to the rite of circumcision, 
under the Jewish law, and'was 
called Jesus, according to the 
command. (Matt. i. 21; Luke 
ii. 21.) 

After a temporary stay at Beth¬ 
lehem, (whither they went to be 
taxed, in compliance with a de¬ 
cree of the govern ment,) they were 
preparing to return to Nazareth, 
the place of their residence ; but 
they were admonished, by an an¬ 
gel, of a cruel decree which had 
been issued by Herod the king, 
requiring the indiscriminate mas¬ 
sacre of all the male children in 
Bethlehem and its vicinity, who 
were not over two years old. By 
this massacre he hoped to cut off 
the infant Jesus, who, as he sup¬ 
posed, from some confused appre¬ 
hensions of his character, might 
make some pretension to the go¬ 
vernment of the country. 

In obedience to the divine inti¬ 
mation, Joseph took the infant 
and its mother and went into 
Egypt, where they remained until 
another message from God inform¬ 
ed them that Herod was dead, and 
they might safely return into the 
land of Israel. So they took up 
their abode in Nazareth, a small 
town in Galilee, where Jesus re¬ 
mained, subject to his earthly pa¬ 
rents, until he was thirty years 
of age. The sacred writer says 
that the residence of Christ at 
Nazareth was a fulfilment of that 
which was spoken by the prophet, 
He shall be called a Nazarene. 
Probably to come from Nazareth 
was regarded as a reproach, (Johc 







CHR 

l. 46; vii. 52;) and hence, to call 
a man a Nazarene, was to apply 
to him, in one word, all that the 
prophets said of tho humble and 
despised origin of the Messiah. 
(Ps. xxii.; Isa. liii.) At twelve 
he went up to Jerusalem with his 
parents, at the feast of the pass- 
over, and astonished the Jewish 
rabbies by his wisdom and know¬ 
ledge. The design of the evan¬ 
gelists being to record only the 
events of his public ministry, we 
are not favoured with many par¬ 
ticulars of Christ’s life upon earth 
during the intervening period. 

When he was about thirty years 
of age, he went from Nazareth to 
the river Jordan, where John was 
preaching and baptizing, (Mark 
i. 3-9,) for John foreknew, super- 
naturally, that tho followers of 
Jesus were to be initiated by this 
rite, and that they were likewise 
to receive the higher baptism of 
the Spirit. John at first declined 
administering the ordinance to 
him, for he recognised in Christ 
the great fountain and author of 
that inward and spiritual grace 
of which the ordinance itself was 
but thp outward and visible sign. 
He therefore sought rather to be 
himself baptized by Christ; but 
upon being informed by his divine 
master that a compliance was ne¬ 
cessary, in order that he might 
sanction by his example the min¬ 
istry of John, and the use of this 
significant rite, John administered 
the ordinance, and thereupon there 
was a visible and audible mani¬ 
festation of God’s presence, so¬ 
lemnly attesting the divinity and 
messiahship of Christ. (Matt, 
iii. 16.) 

He then commenced his public 
ministry. Calling around him 
twelve humble,unlearned men,to 
158 


CHR 

Tto the companions of his journey- 
ings, and the witnesses of his con¬ 
duct, conversation, preaching, and 
miracles, and the propagators of 
his religion after he should have 
accomplished the work of redemp¬ 
tion, he began to make known the 
great purposes of his incarnation. 
For three years he exhibited to a 
faithless and perverse generation, 
the most indubitable evidence of 
his divine authority and power. 
He forgave sins, rebuked unclean 
spirits so that they came out of 
such as were possessed by them ; 
commanded the winds and the 
seas, and they obeyed him; heal 
ed all manner of diseases; raised 
the dead, and showed conclusive¬ 
ly, in every variety of form, that 
he possessed all the divine attri¬ 
butes that there was any fit op¬ 
portunity to employ, for the bene¬ 
fit either of the bodies or souls of 
men. 

In all his ministrations,—under 
every species of insult, contradic¬ 
tion, and misrepresentation,—he 
most perfectly illustrated the pre¬ 
cepts and principles of the religion 
he taught. His love and compas¬ 
sion ; his forbearance and forgive¬ 
ness; his meekness and wisdom; 
his simplicity and holiness; his 
equanimity and self-possession, 
have never had, and never will 
have, a parallel in any finite being. 
It seems impossible that his his¬ 
tory can be read with an unpre¬ 
judiced mind, and fail to produce 
the conviction that it is of him, 
and of no other, that the prophet 
says, His name shall be called 
Wonderful, Counsellor, the 
Mighty God, the Everlasting 
Father, the Prince op Peace. 
(Isa. ix. 6.) 

When the grand purpose of his 
extraordinary mission was about 




CHR 

io be consummated, he gave bis 
disciples full instructions respect¬ 
ing their duty, intimated to them 
the difficulties and dangers which 
would attend the propagation of 
the religion, but assured them of 
strength, grace, and final success 
in the enterprise. He then in¬ 
stituted a simple but most affect¬ 
ing memorial of his sufferings and 
death, which were to close his 
earthly ministry. And while in 
the garden of Gethsemane, bow r ed 
down, even unto death, with ex¬ 
ceeding sorrow, and in prospect 
of what he was about to bear for 
man’s offence, the traitor, who was 
one of tho little company of twelve 
disciples, drew near, and by a kiss 
signified to a band of ruffian sol¬ 
diers that he was the object of 
their pursuit. Then ensued a 
mock trial, every stage of which 
was crowded with injuries and 
insults, and in the midst of which 
he was denied with oaths and 
curses by the most bold and for¬ 
ward of his disciples. Wanton 
and unprovoked abuse, cruel 
mockingsand scourgings, in short, 
whatever could increase the inten¬ 
sity of bodilyand mental suffering, 
were heaped upon tho guiltless 
Redeemer without measure or 
mercy. They were such as the 
most base and contemptible male¬ 
factor seldom endured, and were 
terminated by the excruciating 
and disgraceful death of the cross. 
After hanging for upwards of 
three hours, till life was entirely 
extinct, (John xix. 33,) the body 
was taken down, and committed 
to a tomb hewn out of solid rock ; 
and, notwithstanding all the safe¬ 
guards which the rnnlice and cun¬ 
ning of his persecutors and mur¬ 
derers ^ould invent, to secure him, 
he rose from the dead on the third 


CHR 

day, as he had foretold; ana aft a 
giving to his disciples and hun 
dreds of others, in a variety of 
ways, and at different times, dur¬ 
ing the space of nearly six weeks, 
the most indubitable evidence of 
the fact that he had risen, he led 
a chosen company out to Beth¬ 
any; he there bestowed on them 
his parting benediction, and, as¬ 
cending up to heaven in their pre¬ 
sence, a cloud received him out 
of their sight. 

Being thus raised up, and by 
the right hand of God exalted to 
be a Prince and a Saviour, to give 
repentance and remission of sins, 
he soon furnished to his faithful 
disciples the evidence of his power 
and grace. (Acts ii.) And the his¬ 
tory of God’s dealings with the 
church of Christ, from the begin¬ 
ning hitherto, abundantly shows 
the perfectness of his sacrifice and 
intercession, and that he is the 
end of the law for righteousness 
to every one that believeth. (Rom. 
x. 4.) He is the way, the truth, 
and the life; and no man coineth 
to the Father but by him. (John 
xiv. 6.) As our great liigh-priest 
and intercessor, (Rom. viii. 34; 
Heb. iv. 14; vii. 25; 1 John ii. 1, 
2,) he hath entered, by his own 
blood, into the holy place, having 
obtained eternal redemption foi 
us. He hath put away sin by tho 
sacrifice of himself, (Heb. ix. 26,) 
and thus hath perfected forever 
them that are sanctified, (Heb. x. 
14,) so that they may have bold¬ 
ness to enter into the holiest by 
his blood, by the new and living 
way, which he hath consecrated, 
through the veil, that is to say, 
his flesh. (Heb. x. 19, 20.) Thus 
the seed of the woman hath bruis¬ 
ed the serpent’s head—the sting 
of death is removed. (1 Cor. xv 
15V 



CIIR 

55.) He that had the power of 
death, that is, the devil, is sub- 
dueu , and they are delivered who, 
through fear of death, were all 
their lifetime subject to bondage. 
(Heb. ii. 14, 15.) Life and im¬ 
mortality are brought to light. (2 
Tim. i. 10.) Because he lives, we 
shall live also. (John xiv. 19; 
R mi. vi. 8 ; 2 Cor. xiii. 4 : 1 Thess. 
v. 10; 2 Tim. ii. 11.) He com¬ 
forts, sustains and guides all true 
believers, of whatever country, 
colour, or denomination they may 
be, through this world of tribula¬ 
tion; reveals to them fountains in 
the wilderness, and springs in the 
desert; passes with them through 
flames and floods ; gives them the 
victory over sin and death, and 
bestows on them, as a free gift, 
eternal life and blessedness,—a 
crown of glory that fadeth not 
away. 

Whoever seriously examines the 
great plan of salvation by Christ, 
in all that preceded, and has thus 
far attended its very partial and 
incipient development, will be led 
to exclaim with the apostle, With¬ 
out controversy, great is the 
mystery of godliness. (1 Tim. iii. 
]f>.) The revelation of it sheds 
light on all preceding and suc¬ 
ceeding time. It raises the veil 
through which the institutions 
and ordinances of the Jewish dis¬ 
pensation seemed like a vain and 
burdensome ritual, and shows us 
of what, glorious things they were 
the imperfect types and shadows, 
[t discloses a mode of redemption 
from the curse of God’s violated 
law,—safe, suitable and plain for 
man;—just, consistent and glo¬ 
rious for the lawgiver; and it re¬ 
veals tne sanction of a judgment 
to come, in which the principles 
and purposes of the divino govern- 
IftC 


CHR 

ment will be carried out in the 
unchangeable destinies of men 
and angels; all God’s ways will 
bo vindicated in the view of an 
assembled world, and his perfect 
attributes will shine forth in new, 
endless, and infinite glory. 

It has been well said, that the 
sum and substance of the entire 
Bible is, “Jesus Christ cruci¬ 
fied TO SAVE LOST SINNERS.” 
The moment we lose sight of this 
grand and amazing desigu,— 
which eternal love and mercy 
combined with infinite justice and 
holiness to conceive and execute, 
—the Jewish Scriptures, from be¬ 
ginning to end, present only a 
vain and perplexing show, and 
the glory of tne divine revelation 
is extinguished. 

(For a full and deeply interest¬ 
ing sketch of the rise and progress 
of the religion of Christ, and of 
his character and ministry, see 
Biblical Antiquities, vol. ii. 
chap. i.: Christ our Saviour; 
Sister Mary’s Stories, {No. 6, 
Wonderful Redeemer ;) First 
Lessons, Lesson xiii.-xix. 

It may be proper, before clos¬ 
ing this article, to suggest the 
leading points and principal re¬ 
ferences, respecting the true and 
proper divinity of the Lord Jesus 
Christ. 

I. The names and titles of the 
Supreme Being are applied to 
him. (Rom. ix. 5 ; 1 John v. 20; 
Rev. i. 11. Comp. Isa. vi. 1-10, 
with John xii. 41.) 

II. The principal attributes of 
God are ascribed to Christ; as, 
Eternity, (John i. 1; viii. 58, 
Rev. xxii. 13;) Omniscience, 
(Matt. ix. 4; John xvi. 30; xxi. 
17; Rev. ii. 23;) Omnipotence, 
(Phil. iii. 21; Col. ii. 9, 10;) Om- 
nipresence, (Matt, xviii. 20 j 




CHR 

txviii. 20; John iii. 13;) and Un¬ 
changeableness. (Heb. xiii. 8.) 

III. The works and preroga¬ 
tives of God are ascribed to him, 
%uch as the Creation of all things, 
(Isa. xliv. 24 ; John i. 1, 3 ; Col. i. 
16 , 17;) and their Preservation, 
(Heb. i. 3;) Forgiveness of sins, 
(Dan. ix. 9, comp, with Ps. cxxx.; 
Matt. ix. 2, 6 ; Col. iii. 13 ;) power 

to RAISE THE DEAD, and to JUDGE 

the world. (Matt. xxv. 31-33 ; 
John v. 2-29; Rom. xiv. 10; 2 
Cor. v. 10.) 

IV. He is the object of religious 
worship. (Phil. ii. 10, 11; Heb. 
i. 6 ; Rev. v. 11-13.) 

The following passages may 
also be cited : Ps. xlv. 6, 7 ; comp. 
Isa. vii. 14, with Matt. i. 23; Isa. 
viii. 14, with 1 Pet. ii. 8; Isa. xliv. 

23, 2;4 ; Ps. lxxxix. 8, 9, with Mark 
iv. 37-39 ; John ii. 24, 25 ; iii. 31; 
xiv. 7, 9 ; xx. 28 ; Acts i. 24 ; vii. 
59, 60; x. 36; Rom. xiv. 9; Eph. 
i. 20-23; iv. 8-11; Phil. ii. 9-11; 
Col. ii. 9; 1 Tim. iii. 16; 2 Pet. 
iii. 18; Rev. i. 5, 6; v. 8; vii. 9- 
17 ; xxi. 22, 23; xxii. 16. 

False Christs. (Matt. xxiv. 

24. ) Our Lord warned his disci¬ 
ples that false Christs should arise. 
Not less than twenty-four differ¬ 
ent persons of such pretensions 
have appeared; and the defence 
of their claims to the messiahship 
has cost the Jews a great expense 
of life and treasure. One of them, 
Cariba, or Barchocheba, lived ear¬ 
ly in the second century. He put 
himself at the head of the Jewish 
nation as their Messiah ; they ad¬ 
hered to him. The Romans made 
war upon him; and the Jews 
themselves allow, that in their de¬ 
fence of this false Messiah, they 
lose between Jive and six hundred 
thousand soids! In the twelfth 
century, not less than eight or ten 

14* L 


CHR 

impostors appeared under the 
same name, and were followed by 
great numbers of the Jews. Most 
of them were punished for their 
imposture with death, and usually 
involved a multitude of their de¬ 
luded followers in persecution and 
death. The last that gained any 
considerable number of converts 
was Mordecai, a Jew of Germa¬ 
ny, who lived in 1682. He fled 
for his life, and his end is not 
known. 

CHRISTIAN (Acts xxvi. 28) 
was a name given to the followers 
of our Saviour. It was first used 
at Antioch, (Acts xi. 26,) about the 
year 42 or 43, and probably (like 
the names Nazarenes and Galile¬ 
ans) as a term of reproach or con¬ 
tempt. This supposition is con¬ 
firmed by the circumstance that 
the word oocurs in only three 
places in the New Testament, viz. 
in the two passages before cited, 
and in 1 Pet. iv. 16, where it is 
strongly implied that the very 
name was associated with re¬ 
proach and suffering. Tacitus, a 
profane historian, tells us of the 
low, or vulgar people, called the 
followers of Christ, or Christians. 

The term Christian is now em¬ 
ployed, (1.) In contradistinction 
to Pagans and Mohammedans; 
and, (2.) To denote the open pro¬ 
fessors of religion, in contradis¬ 
tinction from those who are not 
professors. In some countries it 
is still a term of bitter reproach, 
and the assumption of it is attend¬ 
ed with persecution, cruelty and 
death. 

The Christian religion is re¬ 
ceived at the present day (as it 
is supposed) by less than one 
quarter of the inhabitants of the 
world. Some have estimated the 
numbers as follows •— 


J61 



CHB 


Jews.2,500,000 

Mohammedans.140,000,000 

Pagans.482,000,000 

papists.80,000,000 

Protestants...65,000,000 

Greeks.30,000,000 

CHRONICLES, (1 Kings xiv. 
19,) or ANNALS. In its general 
signification, this term denotes a 
chronological history, or an ac¬ 
count of facts and events in the 
order of time. The thirteenth and 
fourteenth books of the Old Tes¬ 
tament are called the first and se¬ 
cond books of Chronicles; and are 
in some sense supplemental to the 
two books of Kings which pre¬ 
cede them. They appear to have 
been compiled from the national 
diaries or journals, but it does not 
satisfactorily appear who com¬ 
piled them. These voluminous 
diaries are referred to frequently 
under different names, (1 Kings 
xiv. 19 ; 1 Chron. xxvii. 24; Esth. 
li. 23;) but are not to be con¬ 
founded with the abstract which 
constitutes the books to which this 
article refers. 

The principal object of the au¬ 
thor of these books seems to have 
been, to point out, from the public 
records, the state of the different 
families before tho captivity, and 
the distribution of the lands 
among them; that each tribe 
might, as far as possible, obtain 
«he ancient inheritance of their 
fathers at their return. So that 
this portion of the Old Testament 
may be considered as an epitome 
of all the sacred history, but more 
especially from the origin of the 
Jewish nation to their return 
from the first captivity ; embrac¬ 
ing a period of nearly 3500 years. 
The first book traces the rise and 
propagation of the children of 
Israel, from Adam, together with 
a circumstantial account of the 
162 


CHU 

reign and transactions of David: 
the second continues the narra¬ 
tive; relates the progress and dis¬ 
solution of the kingdom of Judea, 
(apart from Israel,) to the year ot» 
the return of the people from Ba¬ 
bylon. Samuel, Kings and Chro¬ 
nicles should be read and com¬ 
pared together, as they relate 
substantially the same histones, 
though with different degrees of 
particularity, and with different 
means of information : so that the 
whole contains but one history; 
and what is obscure or defective 
in one part may be explained or 
supplied in another. 

CHRYSOLITE. (Rev. xxi. 20.) 
This was anciently a general name 
for all precious stones in which a 
golden or yellow colour was pre¬ 
valent. It more particularly de¬ 
noted a stone resembling in colour 
the modern topaz. The stone now 
called chrysolite is green, tinged 
with yellow. It is not verv valu¬ 
able, is seldom found larger than 
a buck-shot, and comes chiefly 
from the Levant. 

CHRYSOPRASUS. (Rev. xxi. 
20.) A species of the beryl, found 
in Brazil and Ceylon, and in some 
parts of the United States. 

CHUB. (Ezek. xxx. 5.) From 
the connection of this word, it is 
presumed to havo been an Ethio¬ 
pian tribe or province. 

CHUN, (1 Chron. xviii. 8,) call¬ 
ed Berothai in 2 Sam. viii. 8; and 
Berothah, in Ezek. xlvii. 16. 

CHURCH. (Matt. xvi. 18.) 
This word is variously used by 
the sacred writers, but its import 
is generally to be inferred from 
its connection. It may be suffi¬ 
cient to notice particularly twc 
uses of the term. 

Sometimes it denotes simply an 
assembly ot persons for any pur- 









CHU 

pose, (Acts xix. 41;) but in the 
New Testament it is applied par¬ 
ticularly to Christians as a body 
or community. (Acts ii.47.) Itis 
also applied to the people of God 
in all ages of the world, whether 
Jews or Christians. (Acts vii. 38 ; 
xii. 1; Eph. iii. 21; v. 25.) For 
although there have been two 
dispensations, viz. that of the law 
by Moses, and that of the gospel 
by Jesus Christ, yet the religion 
of the Bible is, and ever has been, 
and ever will be one religion. 
Whether they lived before or after 
the coming of Christ, true believ¬ 
ers are all one in Christ Jesus. 
(Gal. iii. 28.) Of this church or 
company of the redeemed, the 
Lord Jesus Christ is now the 
head, and the church is therefore 
called the body, (Col. i. 18, 24,) 
and comprises the redeemed who 
have gone to heaven as well as 
those who are or will be on the 
earth. (Heb. xii. 23.) 

Particular portions of the whole 
body of Christians are also called 
the church, as the church at Je¬ 
rusalem, at Corinth, <fcc. (Acts 
viii. 1; 1 Cor. i. 2; iv. 17.) 

As the incarnation, death, re¬ 
surrection, and reigning of Christ 
in heaven, constitute him the 
founder and head of the church 
as it now exists, he is compared 
to “ the chief corner-stone” in the 
building, (Eph. ii. 20,) on whom 
the whole structure is dependent. 
For this purpose God “hath put 
all things under his feet, and given 
him to be the head over all things 
to the church, which is his body, 
the fulness of him that filloth all 
in all.” (Eph. i. 22.) 

The figurative language which 
is employed by Christ himself, as 
well as by his apostles, to denote 
the nature of his relations to the 


CIL 

church, (as composed of all trufl 
believers,) and its relations to 
him, are of the most significant 
character. Some of them have 
been intimated above ; others are, 
that of husband and wife, (Eph. 
v. 30-32;) a vine and its branches, 
(John xv. 1-6;) and a shepherd 
and his flock, (John x. 11.) And 
it is generally supposed that So¬ 
lomon’s Song is a highly figura¬ 
tive and poetical illustration of 
the mutual love of Christ and the 
people of his church in all ages. 

In modern times, the word is 
applied to various associations of 
Christians, united by a common 
mode of faith or form of govern¬ 
ment, as the Episcopal church, the 
Baptist church, the Moravian 
church, the Presbyterian church, 
the Papal church, &c. 

CHURL. (Isa. xxxii. 5, 7; 
comp. 1 Sam. xxv. 3, 10, 11, 17, 
with passage in Isaiah.) 

CHURN. (See Butter.) 

C HUS H AN-RISHATHAIM. 
(Judg. iii. 8-10.) A king of Me¬ 
sopotamia, and an oppressor of the 
Israelites. Othniel, Caleb’s ne¬ 
phew, delivered them from his do¬ 
minion. 

CIELED. (2 Chron. iii. 5.) 
CIELING. (1 Kings vi. 15.) East- 
ern floors and cielings were just 
the reverse of ours. Their ciel¬ 
ings were of wood, painted, (Jer. 
xxii. 14;) ours are of plaster; 
their floors were of plaster or soma 
sort of tiles, and ours of wood. 
Some public buildings in Europe 
are cieled with wood, and we 
sometimes see wooden cielings in 
our own country. 

CILICIA. (Acts xxi. 39.) A 
province in the southeastern dis¬ 
trict of Asia Minor, lying on the 
northern coast, at the eastern ex¬ 
tremity of the Mediterranean sea, 
163 



CIN 

Its cnpital city was Tarsus, the 
birthplace of Paul. The syna¬ 
gogue of “ them of Cilicia,” (Acts 
vi. 9,) was a place of Jewish wor¬ 
ship in Jerusalem, appropriated 
to the use of Jews who might be 
at Jerusalem from the province 
of Cilicia. A similar custom in 
modern times is the fitting up of 
public houses to accommodate 
strangers from particular States 
or countries. Paul, being of this 
province, was probably a member 
of this synagogue, and, perhaps, 
one of the defeated opposers and 
controvertists of Stephen. (Comp. 
Acts vi. 10 ; vii. 58.) 

CINNAMON. (Sol. Song iv. 
14.) A well-known aromatic, pro¬ 
duced from the inner bark of a 
tree which grows chiefly in Cey¬ 
lon ; and being peeled off, and cut 
into strips, curls up, in the form 
in which it is usually seen. The 



Cinnamon. 

cinnamon-tree is a species of the 
laurel. Cinnamon was one of the 
ingredients of the holy oil, (Ex. 
xxx. 23,) and was probably an 
article of commerce in ancient 
Babylon. (Rev. xviii. 13.) 

CINNERETH, CINNEROTH. 
CSee Chinnereth.) 

CIRCLE (Isa. xl. 22) means, in 
164 


CIR 

this passage, the line within which 
the earth revolves, and figura¬ 
tively describes a position from 
which every part of its surface 
can be seen. In Prov. viii. 27, 
the same word is rendered com¬ 
pass, and denotes the boundary 
or mound within which the waters 
are restrained. The Creator is 
represented as marking out the 
habitation of the vast expanse of 
waters, with the same ease with 
w r hich a designer or draftsman 
delineates the plan of a building, 
or a surveyor of an estate. 

CIRCUIT. ‘ (Job xxii. 14.) A 
circular path or route. (1 Sam. vii. 
16.) In the passage from Job, 
God is figuratively represented as 
confining his presence to the high 
heavens. (Comp. ver. 11,12, with 
ver. 13, 14.) In Ps. xix. 6, the 
circuit of the sun is represented 
as extending from one end of hea¬ 
ven to the other, or from east to 
west. 

CIRCUMCISED. (Gen. xvii. 
10.) CIRCUMCISION. (John 
vii. 22.) Circumcision was a re¬ 
markable rite or ceremony of the 
Jewish religion, which consisted 
in cutting around the flesh of the 
foreskin of all males, on the 
eighth day after their birth. This 
rite was established as the token 
of God’s covenant with Abraham, 
(Gen. xvii. 9-14,) who immediate¬ 
ly subjected himself and all his 
family to its observance. The 
precept of circumcision was re¬ 
newed to Moses, (Ex. xii. 44; 
Lev. xii. 3; John vii. 22, 23,) re¬ 
quiring that all should submit to 
it who would partake of the pas¬ 
chal sacrifice. And the Jews have 
always been very scrupulous in 
its observance, though it was 
omitted in their journey through 
the wilderness for obvious rea- 



CIS 

Bone. Many other nations have 
adopted the rite; and it is the 
chiof ceremony of initiation into 
the religion of Mohammed, though 
it is regarded only as a tradition¬ 
ary precept, and is not performed 
till the child i3 five or six years 
old. The instrument used for this 
purpose was a knife, a razor, or 
even a sharp stone. (Ex. iv. 25; 
Josh. v. 3.-) 

The design of this requirement 
obviously was, to fix upon the per¬ 
sons of all the natural male de¬ 
scendants of Abraham a distin¬ 
guishing mark, separating them 
from all the rest of the world. As 
this rite was peculiar to the Jews, 
they are called the circumcision, 
and the Gentiles the uncircumci¬ 
sion. (Rom. iv. 9.) 

The terms uncircumcised and 
uncircumcision are also used to 
denote impurity or wickedness 
generally; and to circumcise the 
heart was to become tractable and 
docile. (Ex. vi. 12, 30 ; Jer. iv. 4; 

vi. 10; ix. 26; Ezek. xliv. 7 ; Acts 

vii. 51.) Jews who renounced Ju¬ 
daism, under the Roman persecu¬ 
tion, sometimes endeavoured to 
erase the mark of circumcision ; 
and probably Paul may allude to 
this, 1 Cor. vii. 18. (See Cove¬ 
nant, Concision.) 

CISTERN. (Prov. v. 15.) The 
face of the country, and the pecu¬ 
liarity of the climate, made cis¬ 
terns indispensable in Judea. 
They were generally, if not uni¬ 
versally, private property. (Num. 
xxi. 22.) Some were formed by 
merely excavating the earth; 
others were covered reservoirs, 
into which the water was conduct¬ 
ed; and others still were lined with 
wood, or cement, or hewn out of 
the rock with great labour, and 
ornamented with much skill. 


CIT 

When the pits were empty, there 
was a tenacious mire at the bot¬ 
tom, and they were used as the 
places of the most cruel and ex¬ 
treme punishments. It was into 
such a pit probably that Joseph 
was cast. (See also Ps. xi. 2. 
Jer. xxxviii. 6.) Large cisterns 
are now found in Palestine, at in¬ 
tervals of fifteen or twenty miles. 
One of them is described by a 
modern traveller to be six hun¬ 
dred and sixty feet long by two 
hundred and seventy broad. 
These cisterns were the chief de¬ 
pendence of the people for water; 
hence the force of the allusion, 
Jer. ii. 13. (See Conduit.) 

CITY. (Gen. iv. 17.) It is not 
very easy to determine by what 
the Jews distinguished villages 
from towns, and towns from cities. 
Probably, at first, a number of 
tents and cottages formed a vil¬ 
lage. They were brought toge¬ 
ther by family relationship, by 
local attractions, or, more proba¬ 
bly, for mutual defence against 
more powerful clans or tribes. 
When their situation became in¬ 
secure, they began to protect 
themselves by a ditch or hedge, 
or perhaps a wall. The advance¬ 
ment from this rude state, to the 
fortified towns and cities of an¬ 
cient days, was easy and rapid. 
Some have supposed that cities 
were always walled, (Num. xiii. 
28;) but there is no evidence of 
this. We know they were often 
(if not always) fortified, and many 
of them were very populous. The 
streets were narrow, so that, in 
some of them, (as we are told,) 
loaded camels could not pass each 
other; and even at this day, in 
Alexandria and Cairo, mats are 
spread across the streets, from 
house tc house, for shade. 

165 



OIT 

We know, however, that many 
of them were spacious. Some¬ 
times, in Asiatic cities, a broad 
street, or a section of it, is cover¬ 
ed for the accommodation of mer- 
eliants or tradesmen, and such 
places are called Bazaars; and 
the prominent branch of business 
transacted there gives the name 
to the street; as, the woollen dra¬ 
pers, coppersmiths, <fcc. Around 
the gates of cities was the princi¬ 
pal concourse of people, (Neh. 
viii. 1; Job. xxix. 7;) and there¬ 
fore these stations were desirable 
for booths or stalls, for the sale 
of merchandise. (2 Kings vii. 1.) 
These square or open places are 
probably intended in 2 Chron. 
xxxii. 6, and Neh. iii. 16; viii. 1, 
3. Some cities vrere adprned with 
open squares and large gardens. 
One-third of the city of Babylon, 
we are told, was occupied with 
gardens; and Cesarea, Jerusalem, 
Antioch and other of the largest 
cities were paved. 

Fenced City, (2 Kings x. 2,) or 
Defenced Cities. (Isa. xxxvi. 
1.) A fortified city. To build a 
3ity, and to fortify or fence it, in 
the oriental idiom, mean the same 
thing. Th3 fencing, or fortifica¬ 
tion, was usually with high walls, 
and watch-towers upon them. 
(Deut. iii. 5.) The walls of for¬ 
tified cities were formed, in part, 
at least, of combustible materials, 
(Amos i. 7, 10, 14,) the gates be¬ 
ing covered with thick plates of 
iron or brass. (Ps. cvii. 16; Isa. 
xlv. 2; Acts xii. 10.) There was 
also within the city a citadel or 
tower, to which the inhabitants 
fled when the city itself could not 
be defended. (Judg. ix. 46-52.) 
These were often upon elevated 
ground, and were entered by a 
flight of steps. (See Gate.) 

166 


CIT 

At the time when Abraham 
came into the land of Canaan, 
there were already in existence 
numorous towns, which are men 
tioned in the book of Genesis; 
Sodom, Gomorrah, Zeboim, Ad- 
mah, Bela, Hebron, and Damas¬ 
cus. This last is truly venerable, 
as it is beyond doubt the oldest 
city in the world. The spies who 
were sent over Jordan brought 
back an account of well-fortified 
cities. In the book of Joshua, we 
read of no less than six hundred 
towns, of which the Israelites took 
possession. When the city of Ai 
was taken, its inhabitants, who 
were put to the sword, amounted 
to 12,000, (Josh. viii. 16-25 ;) and 
we are told that Gibeon was a 
still greater city. (x. 2.) It is 
commonly calculated that, in Eu¬ 
rope, one-third or one-fourth of a 
nation is comprised in cities and 
towns. Reckoning the Hebrews, 
then, at 3,000,000, it would give 
about 1250 for'the average popu¬ 
lation of the towns; and, for 
greater safety, it is probable that 
half the inhabitants dwelt in 
towns. Now in Gibeah (Judg. 
xx. 15) there were seven hundred 
men who bore arms, and, of 
course, not less than 3000 inhabi¬ 
tants. By a similar calculation, 
wo conclude that the forty-eight 
cities of the Levites contained 
each about 1000 souls. In the 
time of David, the population of 
Palestine was between five and 
six millions; and we may suppose 
that the towns and cities were 
proportionably increased. On the 
great annual festivals, Jerusalem 
must have presented a sublime 
spectacle of countless multitudes, 
when all the males of the nation 
were required to be there assem¬ 
bled. On suih times the city it- 



CIT 

lelf was insufficient to contain the 
host of Israel, and thousands en¬ 
camped around on its outskirts. 
After the return from the Babylo¬ 
nish captivity, the population of 
the towns may have been incon¬ 
siderable ; but the subsequent in¬ 
crease was most rapid; so that, in 
the time of Josephus, the small 
villages of Galilee contained 15,- 
000 inhabitants, and the larger 
towns, 50,000. At the same pe¬ 
riod, Jerusalem was four miles in 
circuit, and had a population of 
150,000. The same author tells 
us, that under Cestius, the num¬ 
ber of paschal lambs was 256,500, 
which would give an amount of 
about 2,000,000 attending the 
passover. At the time of the fatal 
siege of Jerusalem, more than a 
million of persons were shut in by 
the Romans; so that the space 
included by tbe four miles must 
have been remarkably econo¬ 
mized. 

City of David. (1 Chron. xi. 
5.) A section in the southern 
part of Jerusalem, embracing 
mount Zion, where a fortress of 
the Jebusites stood. David re¬ 
duced the fortress, and built a new 
alace and city, to which he gave 
is own name. (See Biblical 
Antiquities, vol. ii. pp. 62, 63 ; 
and Selumiel, pp. 50,51.) Beth¬ 
lehem, the native town of David, 
is also called, from that circum¬ 
stance, the city of David. (Luke 
ii. 11.) 

City op God (Ps. xlvi. 1) was 
one of the names of ancient Jeru¬ 
salem, and its appropriateness is 
evident from Deut. xii. 5. 

Holy City. (Neh. xi. 1.) The 
sacredness of the temple extended 
itself in some measure over the 
city, and hence Jerusalem itself 
was called the Holy City, and is 


CIT 

so distinguished in the East at the 
present day. 

Cities op Refuge (Deut. xix. 
7, 9; Josh. xx. 2, 7, 8) were six 
of the Levitical cities divinely ap¬ 
pointed by the Jewish law as 
asylums, to which those were 
commanded to flee, for safety and 
protection, who had been unde- 
signedly accessory to the death of 
a fellow-creature. The kinsmen 
of the deceased, or other person 
who might pursue to kill him, 
could not molest him in one of 
these cities, until his offence was 
investigated, and the judgment of 
the congregation passed. If he 
was not within the provisions of 
the law, he was delivered to the 
avenger and slain. The custom 
of blood revenge was deeply rooted 
among the Israelites, and con¬ 
tinues among the Arabs to this 
day; and the institution of cities 
of refuge was wisely designed to 
check the violence of human pas¬ 
sion. Several sections of the 
Jewish law have relation to this 
subject. Eor the size and situa¬ 
tion of the cities, see Num. xxxv. 
4, 5, 14; the description of per¬ 
sons, and the manner of killing, 
in cases which entitled the slayer 
to protection, Num. xxxv. 15-23 
Deut. xix. 4-11. For the mode 
of ascertaining whether the of¬ 
fence was worthy of death, and 
the consequences of the judgment, 
see Num. xxxv, 24-33; and for 
the rules to be observed by the 
manslayer, in order to avail him¬ 
self of the benefit of the city of 
refuge, see Num. xxxv. 25-28. It 
is doubtful whether the trial of 
the manslayer was had at the 
city of refuge, or in the vicinity 
of the place where the offence oc¬ 
curred. Perhaps there were two 
processes; one introductory to the 
167 



s 


CLA 

other, as we have a preliminary 
examination to determine if the 
party accused shall be held to an¬ 
swer for his offence. This first 
process might have been at the 
city of refuge. The Jewish wri¬ 
ters say that, at every cross-road, 
signs were erected in some con¬ 
spicuous place, pointing to the 
cities of refuge, on which was in¬ 
scribed, “ Refuge, Refuge, 
which, with many other similar 
provisions, were designed to direct 
and facilitate the flight of the un¬ 
happy man who was pursued by 
the avenger of blood. There were 
other sacred places, as it is sup¬ 
posed, particularly the temple and 
the altar of burnt-offerings. (Ex. 
xxi. 14. See Biblical Antiqui¬ 
ties, vol. i. chap. ix. £ 5 ; and the 
Refuge, chap, i.) 

Cities with Suburbs. (Josh, 
xxi. 41, 42.) This expression is 
explained by reference to Num. 
xxxv. 1-5. (See Treasure-ci¬ 
ties, Walls.) 

CLAUDA. (See Crete.) 

CLAUDIUS LYSIAS. (Acts 
xxiii. 26.) The chief captain or 
commander of a band of soldiers, 
stationed as a public guard over 
the temple. (John xviii. 12; Acts 
v. 26.) His conduct on the occa¬ 
sion of the uproar in Jerusalem, 
and his interposition for the pro¬ 
tection of Paul, on two occasions 
where his life was in jeopardy, 
are creditable to his efficiency 
and humanity. (Acts xxi. xxii. 
xxiii.) 

CLAY. (Isa. xv. 9.) This 
substance was used by the an¬ 
cients as it is by us. It was mix¬ 
ed by treading. (Isa. xli. 25.) It 
was fashioned by the motion of a 
wheel or frame, (Jer. xviii. 3,) and 
was baked or burnt in a kiln. (Jer. 
xliii. 9. For its figurative uses, 
168 


CLE 

see Natural History of tbb 
Bible, pp. 80-83.) 

CLEAN and UNCLEAN. (Lev 
x. 10.) These words are of fre¬ 
quent occurrence and obvious 
meaning in the sacred writings, 
but it is in their peculiar applica¬ 
tion, by the Jewish law, to per¬ 
sons, animals and things, that 
they are now to be considered. 

In order to partake of tbe pri¬ 
vileges of the Jewish church, and 
to engage acceptably in its out¬ 
ward worship, the individual must 
not only be circumcised, but he 
must be ceremonially clean ; that 
is, he must be free from unclean¬ 
ness. How the various kinds of 
uncleanness were contracted, what 
time it continued, and what was 
the process of purification, we 
have particularly described, Lev. 
xi-xv.; Num. xix.; and a very 
vivid and interesting sketch of the 
whole ceremony will be foui,d in 
Biblical Antiquities, voL ii. 
chap. vii. 

The division of animals into 
clean and unclean existed before 
the flood, (Gen. vii. 2,) and was 
probably founded upon the prac¬ 
tice of animal sacrifice. Those 
animals only which divide the 
hoof and chew the cud were re 
garded as clean, (Lev. xi. 3, 4;) 
and the same chapter enumerates 
a variety of beasts, birds, reptiles, 
fishes, and things which are un¬ 
clean. (See also Ex. xxii. 31; 
xxxiv. 15, 26; Deut. xiv. 21.) 
What was the design of these dis¬ 
tinctions, and how they were abo¬ 
lished, may be learned with suffi¬ 
cient accuracy from a comparison 
of scripture with scripture. (Lev. 
xx. 24-26 ; Acts x. 9-16; xi. 1-4; 
18-21, Heb. ix. 9-14.) It ha? 
been observed, that one object of 
these appointments may have 



CLE 

been, to maKe the Jews suspicious 
of Gentile customs and entertain¬ 
ments, and so induce them to ab¬ 
stain from all intercourse with 
them. We find in the New Tes¬ 
tament that eating with the Gen¬ 
tiles was regarded as a peculiar 
aggravation of the offence of as¬ 
sociating with them. (Matt. ix. 
11; Acts xi. 3.) It may be re¬ 
marked also, that some of the 
prohibited animals were unwhole¬ 
some ; and the Hebrews were, at 
least, taught by these strict regu¬ 
lations habitually to regard their 
relation to God, and the necessity 
of abstaining from every thing 
that snould offend his infinite ho¬ 
liness, or involve the least appear¬ 
ance of pollution. It is very evi¬ 
dent that the Jews would not 
worship animals that were set 
apart as unclean, and still less 
would they worship those they 
ate; so that, so far as the idol- 
worship of animals was concern¬ 
ed, it was very effectually guarded 
against. 

CLEOPAS. (See Alpheus.) 

CLOAK. (See Clothes.) 

CLOTH, LINEN. (Seo 

Pr ATITPC I 

CLOTHES. (Matt. xxiv. 18.) 
The art of making cloth was 
known very early. The skins of 
animals supplied the place of 
cloth at first; but we may suppose 
that spinning and needle-work 
were so far perfected as to furnish 
cloth, of a coarse kind at least, at 
an early period. (Ex. xxxv. 25; 
Judg. v. 30.) The beauty of dress 
consisted in the fineness and co¬ 
lour of the cloth. (See Colours, 
Sackcloth.) 

The Asiatic modes of dress are 
nearly the same from age to age; 
and hence much light is thrown, 
by modern observation, on the 
J5 


CLO 

subject of the clothing of the He¬ 
brews. We may suppose their 
ordinary dress to have consisted 
of the inner garment, the outer 
garment, a girdle, and sandals 
One of the oldest and simplest 
garments was a strip of cloth (linen 
or cotton) bound around the loins 
with a string or band, and reach¬ 
ing to the knees. It is the only 
garment of the Arabs. Such a strip 
appears to have been what is call¬ 
ed the inner garment of the dress. 
This is so slight a dress, that those 
who have no other are said to be 
naked. (Isa. xx. 2-4; John xxi. 
7.) In its improved state, it was 
larger and longer, and supplied 
with sleeves. The coat was some¬ 
times woven in a loom, and had 
no seams. (Ex. xxviii. 32; John 
xix. 23.) The phrase coats and 
garments (Acts ix. 39) means in¬ 
ner and outer garments. The 
word hosen (Dan. iii. 21) is sup¬ 
posed to designate an under gar¬ 
ment, not unlike trousers. These 
were worn by the Persian kings. 

The inner garment was at first 
single, as above described ; soon a 
strip of cloth was thrown over the 
shoulder, and covered the arm. 
It was sewed at the sides, and ex¬ 
tended to the knees. This is now 
a common dress in Arabia. Next 
came sleeves; first to the elbows, 
and then to the wrists. This gar- 
ment would resemble a shirt, ex- 
cept at the neck. The sleeves of 
this garment, among the Arabs, 
are wide and open, and easily 
thrown off. To make bare the arm 
is a lively and beautiful figure, 
representing the removal of all 
encumbrances from the most pow¬ 
erful limb of the body, that it may 
be put forth in its utmost strength. 
^Isa. Iii. 10.) 

Girdles. When the garments 
169 



CLC 

came to be made Hog and flow¬ 
ing, they were confined around 
the loins with girdles, which not 
only served to bind them to the 
body, but also to hold them when 
tucked up. This insreased the 
gracefulness of their appearance, 
and prevented them from inter¬ 
fering with labour or motion. 
Hence, to gird up the loins became 
a significant figurative expression, 
denoting readiness for service, ac¬ 
tivity, and watchfulness; and to 
loose the girdle was to give way to 
repose and indolence. (2 Kings 
iv. 29 ; Job xxxviii. 3 ; Isa. v. 27 ; 
Jer. i. 17; Luke xiL 35; John xxi. 
7 ; Acts xii. 8 ; 1 Pet. i. 13.) This 
girdle was a belt or band of cord, 
cloth, or leather, six inches or 
more in breadth, with a buckle 
affixed to loosen or draw it closer. 
Travellers say that Eastern gir¬ 
dles of this day are wide enough 
for a mat, or covering, and that, 
when of this width, they are plait¬ 
ed in folds. 

Sometimes the girdle was made 
of linen, (Ezek. xvi. 10,) and was 
often adorned with rich and beau¬ 
tiful ornaments of metals, precious 
stones, and embroidery. 

The girdle was used to carry 
weapons, (2 Sam. xx. 8,) money, 
and other things usually carried 
/n the pocket. The Arabs carry 
their daggers in it, pointing to the 
right side; and, through all the 
East, it is the place for the hand¬ 
kerchief, smoking materials, and 
the implements of one’s profes¬ 
sion. (See Inkhorn.) The word 
translated purses, (Matt. x. 9,) is 
in other places translated girdle. 
The girdle not only protected the 
body, but braced it with strength 
and firmness. The girdle is sup¬ 
posed by some to have been a 
chief article or appendage of the 
170 


CLO 

arm our: hence, to have it con¬ 
tinually fastened upon the person 
is emblematical of great fidelity 
and vigilance. And because it 
encircled the body very closely, 
the perfect adherence of the peo¬ 
ple of God to his service is figu¬ 
ratively illustrated by the cleav¬ 
ing of the girdle to a man’s loins. 
(Jer. xiii. 11.) In the same view, 
righteousness and faithfulness are 
called by tjje prophet (Isa. xi. 5) 
the girdle of the promised Mes¬ 
siah. 

The outer or upper garment , 
(Matt. xxi. 8,) or cloak, (Matt. v. 
40,) was probably a square or ob¬ 
long strip of cloth, two or three 
yards long, and, perhaps, two 
yards wide. Such a garment is 
now worn by the Arabs. It was 
simply wrapped round the body, 
as a protection from the weather; 
and, when occasion required, it 
might be thrown over the shoul¬ 
der and under the arm, somewhat 
like an Indian blanket, and be 
fastened with clasps or buckles, 
two corners being in front, which 
were called skirts, and were often 
used as aprons sometimes are 
among us. (Ex. xii. 34; 2 Kings 
iv. 39 ; Luke vi. 38.) The Arabs 
throw this garment over the left 
shoulder and under the right arm, 
and thu6 cover the whole body, 
leaving only the right arm ex¬ 
posed. This garment was the poor 
man’s bed-clothing. (Ex. xxii. 
26, 27; Job xxii. 6 ; xxiv. 7.) This 
was probably the cloak and the 
coat or linen garment to which 
reference is had, (Matt. v. 40,) 
<iod, in a more ample form, was 
called a robe, (Luke xxiii. 11.) or 
a mantle. (2 Kings ii. 8.) It is 
supposed that the fringes, with the 
blue riband, (Nuai. xv. 38,) were 
placed on the corners or borders 





CLO 

of this garment. (Matt, xxiii. 5.) 
They are seen still on ancient 
monuments. 

In winter, fur dresses, or shins, 
were worn, as at the present day, 
in Eastern countries. A dress of 
sheep or goat-skins is, perhaps, 
meant in 2 Kings i. 8, and in 
Zech. xiii. 4. The common skins 
of this kind were worn by the 
poorest and meanest people, (Heb. 
xi. 37;) but the fur dresses were 
sometimes very costly, and con¬ 
stituted a part of the royal appa¬ 
rel. The word translated robe 
(Jon. iii. 6) is supposed to mean 
a fur garment. The sheep’s cloth¬ 
ing (Matt. vii. 15) was considered 
emblematical of innocence and 
gentleness, and was the disguise 
of the false prophets, who were, 
in truth, fierce and ravenous as 
wolves, for the blood of souls. 
The word translated sheets (Judg. 
xiv. 12, 13) is supposed to denote 
some kind of garment worn next 
to the skin, and probably the 
same which is spoken of, under 
the general name of fine linen, in 
Prov. xxxi. 24; Isa. iii. 23; and 
Mark xv. 46. (See Sheets.) 

The linen cloth mentioned Mark 
xiv. 51, was probably an article 
of bed-clothing, caught up in 
haste, and thrown around the 
body. Some suppose that this 
young man was following our Sa¬ 
viour, while his professed disci¬ 
ples were fleeing in all directions, 
and that those around him sup¬ 
posed him to be one of his adhe¬ 
rents, and so laid hold upon him. 
If this view is rejected, the only 
way accounting tor the intro- 
uuction of an incident so entirely 
unconnected, as it seems to be, 
with the narrative, or, at least, 
’inessential to it, is to regard it as 
illustrative of the confusion and 


CLO 

excitement which attended the 
arrest of our divine Redeemer by 
the lawless rabble. The Arabs 
use the same garment for a com¬ 
plete dress by day, which serves 
them for a bed and covering by 
night. (Deut. xxiv. 13.) Such 
also is the use of the Highland¬ 
er’s plaid. (See Sheets.) 

The common dress of female* 
was probably as cheap and simple 
as that of males. A loose flowing 
outer garment, with a belt or zone 
upon the waist, and a veil, was 
probably the principal dress. The 
veil or hood was considered a to¬ 
ken of modesty in unmarried wo¬ 
men, (Gen. xxiv. 65,) and of sub¬ 
jection and reverence in those 
that were married. (1 Cor. xi. 3- 
10.) The upper garment or robe 
was often made full; and, when 
tucked up, the front of it would 
answer the purpose of a large 
apron; which is one meaning of 
the word translated veil. (Ruth 
iii. 15.) The Arabs put their 
hykes or cloaks to a like use. 

Handkerchiefs. (Acts xix. 12.) 
These were common among the 
Hebrews; and travellers inform 
us that the people of Eastern na¬ 
tions at this day carry them in 
their hands, and that they are 
often wrought beautifully with the 
needle. 

Aprons, (Gen. iii. 7; Acts xix. 
12,) we have no reason to doubt, 
were, in form and purpose, sub¬ 
stantially like those in common 
use at the present day. 

Sandals and shoes. (Deut. xxv. 
9; Mark vi. 9.) The sandal was 
at first a flat piece of wood or lea¬ 
ther, suited to the sole of the foot, 
and bound upon it by straps or 
strings. The fastening was called 
a latchet. (Gen. xiv. 23.) 

The f allowing represent variou* 

171 



CLO 

forms of sandals which are still 
in common use in many countries 
of the East. 


OLO 

The common sandal is made of 
a piece of hide, from the neck of 
a camel, and sometimes of several 




Different forms of Sandals. 


thicknesses sewed together. It is 
fastened by two straps, one of 
which passes between the great 
and second toe, and the other 
around the heel, and over the in¬ 
step. Hence it appears that the 
shoe was easily slipped off, and 
that it afforded no protection from 
the dust and dirt. Sandals were 
never worn in the house, as it was 
considered a violation of good 
manners. The taking off the 
shoes was a mark of reverence 
shown to exalted persons and sa¬ 
cred places. At the doors of Hiu 
doo pagodas, sandals are collected 
in great numbers; and the same 
ceremony is required by the 
Turks, even of Christians and 
strangers. 

The necessity of washing the 
feet after every walk is obvious, 
and it was the first token of hos¬ 
pitality to supply water for this 
purpose. /Gen. xxiv. 32; Luke 
172 


vii. 44.) To unloose the straps or 
latchets was the business of a me¬ 
nial, (Mark i. 7,) as was also the 
washing of the feet. (John xiii. 
1-16.) 

The wooden sandal is much 
worn in Arabia, Judea, and Egypt. 
Though often expensive and neat, 
it was usually a cheap, coarse, 
and very clumsy article. 

Mitre, (Ex. xxxix. 28,) or bon - 
net, (Ex. xxviii. 40,) seems to have 
been part of the sacred dress only. 
The Arab women wear a cap of 
folded cloth, not unlike the mo¬ 
dern turban. Bonnets are men¬ 
tioned as a part of female dress, 
(Isa. iii. 20 ;) but it is not known, 
at this day, with any certainty, of 
what material the Jewish bonnets 
were made, nor the shape or mode 
of wearing them. 

Change of raiment or garments. 
(2 Kings v. 5, 22.) It is custom¬ 
ary in the East, at th's day, to 
















/ 


CLO 

make presents of garments; and 
the Asiatic princes keep changes 
of raiment ready made, for pre¬ 
sents to persons of distinction, 
whom they wish particularly to 
honour. The simple and uniform 
shape of the garments make this 
custom practicable, and accounts 
also for the change of one per¬ 
son’s dress for another’s, which is 
mentioned in sacred history. (Gen. 
xxvii. 15; 1 Sam. xviii. 4. See 
also Deut. xxii. 5; Luke xv. 22.) 

Changeable suits of apparel (Isa. 
iii. 22) are supposed to have been 
made of some thin fabric, orna¬ 
mented with embroidery, and 
worn over garments of various co¬ 
lours ; of which, beautiful repre¬ 
sentations are to be seen in Indian 
paintings. 

Coat of many colours. (Gen. 
xxxvii. 3.) This was regarded as 
of peculiar value. A traveller 
mentions, that the noble families 
among the Turks at Haleb clothe 
their children, when small, in 
loose coats of fine texture, and 
woven of variegated threads ; and 
speaks of them as very beautiful. 

Among the appendages to Jew¬ 
ish dress were jewels of gold and 
silver, bracelets, necklaces, ear¬ 
rings, <fec. Nose and ear-rings are 
very common in the East. A cele¬ 
brated traveller (Chardin) says he 
never saw a woman or girl in 
Arabia or Persia without a ring 
in the left nostril. The thread 
(Gen. xiv. 23) is supposed by some 
to mean the thread on which pre¬ 
cious stones were hung for neck- 
chains. (Ezek. xvi. 11., Brace¬ 
lets were worn on the arms by 
both sexes, (2 Sam. i. 10,) and by 
femaloe upon the leg also. (Isa. 
iii. 19, 20.) Women in Persia and 
Arabia wear rings about the an¬ 
kle, full of little bells. (Isa. iii. 
15 * 


CLO 

16.) Hand-mirrors, made of molt¬ 
en brass, and finely polished, 
were also a common accompani¬ 
ment of female dress, (Ex. xxxviii. 

8; Isa. iii. 23,) and were either 
carried in the hand or suspended 
from the girdle or neck. In later 
times, these mirrors were made of 
polished steel. 

All the Grecian and Roman 
women, without distinction, wore 
their hair long. On this they la¬ 
vished all their art, disposing it 
in various forms, and embellishing 
it with many ornaments. In an¬ 
cient medals and statues we see 
the plaited tresses, interwoven 
with expensive and fantastic de¬ 
corations, so pointedly condemned 
by the apostle, as proofs of a vain 
mind, and as inconsistent with 
the modesty and decorum of Chris¬ 
tian women. (1 Tim. ii. 9. 10 ; 1 
Pet. iii. 1, 3, 4. See Phylacte¬ 
ries.) 

We are told (Deut. viii. 4) that 
' the raiment of the Hebrews did 
not grow old during their journey 
of forty years; and some have 
supposed that it was literally so, 
and that the clothes of the chil¬ 
dren were miraculously made to 
grow with their growth. The 
better opinion seems to be, that 
they were so provided with clothes 
and other necessaries, as to be 
comfortable and decent, ir. theii 
external appearance, during ah 
that tedious journey. (See J our- 
neyings op Israel, and Omar, 
pp. 23-25.) 

Rending clothes. /See Rend.) 

CLOSET. (See Dwelling.) 

CLOUD, pillar op. (Ex. xiii. 
21.) When the people of Israel 
commenced their march through 
the wilderness, God caused a 
cloud, resembling a pillar, to pass 
before the camp. In the day- 
173 






CLC 

time, it was tike a cioua, dark a ud | 
heavy, and in the night bright 
and shining, like fire; though 
some have supposed there were 
two clouds, one to shade, and the 
other to give light to the camp. 
It also served as a signal for rest 
or motion. (Num. ix. 17-23.) 

CLOUTED. (Josh. ix. 5.) 
Worn out and patched. 

CNIDUS. (Acts xxvii. 7.) A 
city of Asia Minor, situated on 
the point of a peninsula of the 
same name, and lying northwest 
of the island of Rhodes. 

COAT. (See Clothes.) 

COCK. (See Cock-crowing.) 

COCKATRICE. (Jer. viii. 17.) 
A harmless species of lizard. The 
word in the Scriptures, however, 
evidently denotes a very venom¬ 
ous reptile. (Isa. xiv. 29.) Some 
have inferred from Isa. lix. 5, 
that it was of the viper tribe. 
Others have supposed the hooded 
snake is intended, which is known 
among the Portuguese as the most 
venomous of serpents. Natural¬ 
ists tell us that its bite is always 
incurable, and proves fatal usu¬ 
ally within an hour. This ser¬ 
pent is, however, unknown in Ju¬ 
dea and the adjacent countries. 
In the passage from Jeremiah 
above cited, allusion is made to 
the unyielding cruelty of the 
Chaldean armies under Nebu¬ 
chadnezzar, who were appointed 
ministers of divine vengeance on 
the Jewish nation for their mani¬ 
fold and aggravated sin ;. 

COCK-CROWING. (Markxiii. 
35.) A name given to the watch 
of the night, from midnight to 
daybreak. Some perplexity has 
been occasioned by the difference 
between the expressions in Matt, 
xxvi. 34, “ before the cock crow, 
thou ehalt deny me thrice and 
174 


COL 

| Mark xiv. 30, “before the coeh 
crow twice, thou ehalt deny me 
thrice .” To reconcile this seem¬ 
ing variance, it is stated that 
there were two cock-crowings; 
one soon after midnight, and the 
other about three o’clock; and 
that the last, which was the sig¬ 
nal of approaching day, was spo¬ 
ken of as the cock-croxoing. To 
this it has been answered, that 
only one hour elapsed between 
the denials. (Luke xxii. 59.) This 
is true of the second and thiru; 
but there seems to be no authority 
for saying it of the first and se¬ 
cond. It seems most natural to 
suppose, that the phraseology in 
both cases was substantially the 
same, and that the Jews under¬ 
stood, by the phrase, “ before the 
cock croxc,” the same time which 
was denoted by the phrase, “ be¬ 
fore the cock crow twice:” both 
referred to that cock-crowing 
which especially and most dis¬ 
tinctly marked a watch or divi¬ 
sion of the night. 

COCKLE. (Job xxxi. 40.) 
This word, as we use it,, denotes a 
common wild plant, usually found 
in the borders of fields and among' 
grain. The original, perhaps, re¬ 
fers to some offensive and poison¬ 
ous weed; but it is not necessary 
to suppose any thing more than 
a reference to noisome weeds ge¬ 
nerally. 

COFFIN. (See Bury.) 

COHORT. (See War.) 

COLLEGE. (2 Kings xxii. 14.) 
Perhaps a place of instruction in 
or near the court of the temple, but 
more probably a range or block 
of buildings in its vicinity. 

C 0 L L 0 P S. (Job xv. 27.) 
Thick pieces of flesh. 

COLONY. (Acts xvi. 12.) A 
city or province planted or occu- 



COL 

pied by Roman citizens, as Phi¬ 
lippi. 

COLOSSB. (Col. i. 2.) A city 
of Phrygia in Asia Minor, on the 
river Lycus, (now the Gorduk.) 
About a year after Paul’s epistle 
was written to the church at this 
place, it was destroyed by an 
earthquake. The former site of 
Colosse is now occupied by the 
castle and village of Chonos. 

COLOSSIANS, EPISTLE TO, 
was written by Paul, while he was 
a prisoner at Rome, about a. d. 
61-62. It is probable that Epa- 
phras, who is spoken of as the 
minister of Christ in that place, 
(Col. i. 7,) came to Rome to con¬ 
sult Paul respecting some errone¬ 
ous opinions that had been preach¬ 
ed among the Colossians, (Col. ii. 
8-23;) and Paul addressed this 
epistle to them for their instruc¬ 
tion and admonition. The design 
and force of this epistle is seen by 
comparing it carefully with the 
epistle to the Ephesians, which 
was written nearly at the same 
time. It is not improbable that 
Paul himself established the 
church at Colosse. (Acts xvi. 6 ,• 
xviii. 23.) 

COLOURS. (Gen. xxxvii. 3.) 
The art of colouring cloth seems 
to have attained to great perfec¬ 
tion among the Jews. The fullers 
had a remarkable skill in impart¬ 
ing a splendid white and this was 
considered the richest dress. 
(Esth. vlii. 15; Mark ix. 3; Rev. 
iii. 4, 5.) The royal cpparel was 
usually of a blue or purple colour, 
and historians: say it was a per¬ 
fect combination of the gayety of 
bright red with a sober, softening 
shade of olive. The material with 
which the richest kind of this co¬ 
lour was given, is obtained from 
% shell-fish, and was, (it is said,) so 


COM 

scarce as to be considered more 
precicus than gold. (Luke xvi. 
19.) The term purple was some¬ 
times applied to any bright red 
colour, (comp. Matt, xxvii. 28, 
with Mark xv. 17;) and, indeed, 
it was probably the name of 
whole class of dyes. Pliny gives 
us to understand that there were 
two kinds of shell-fish which pro¬ 
duced this dye, and that both 
were abundant on the Phenician 
and Mediterranean coast, but the 
excellence of the tint varied ex¬ 
ceedingly. The colouring matter 
was found in a small vein, and 
the rest of the fish was useless. 
The most beautiful purple was 
dyed at Tyre. 

Scarlet or crimson was also used 
for the royal apparel. 

Lydia is said to have been a 
seller of purple, (Acts xvi. 14;) 
which may mean either that she 
kept the dye for sale, or cloth of 
that colour. 

COMFORTER. (John xiv. 16.) 
This word is used only by John. 
In four out of the five passages in 
which it occurs, it is applied to 
the Holy Ghost, and is peculiarly 
significant of our want of his 
office, viz. to impart hope and con¬ 
solation to the true disciples of 
Christ, by exciting in their minds 
holy desires and aspirations, and 
causing them to trust continually, 
and without wavering, in his 
grace and love. In the remain¬ 
ing passage, (1 John ii. 1,) it. is 
translated advocate, and applied 
to our Saviour. 

COMMANDMENTS. (See 
Law.' 

COMMUNION. (1 Cor. x. 16.) 
Intimate fellowship and commu¬ 
nication ; such as is expressed in 
John xv. 1-7, and xvii. 10, 21-26; 
Rom. xii. 4, 5; 2 Cor. xiii. 14; I 



CON 

John i. 3. As the ordinance of 
the Lord’s supper furnishes both 
the opportunity and the motive 
(John xiii. 34; xv. 12) to this mu¬ 
tual love and confidence, it is 
called, by way of distinction, the 
communion. 

gONCISTON. (Phil. iii. 2.) 
The Egyptians, Edomites, and 
others practised a partial or im¬ 
perfect circumcision. It was a 
mere cutting, and not to be re¬ 
garded as a seal of the covenant, 
ar as, in any sense, a compliance 
with the law. The apostle deno¬ 
minates persons who do this the 
tonciaion ,—which implies in it¬ 
self, and from its connection, that 
they degraded themselves, and 
were to be shunned as false and 
corrupt. 

CONCUBINE. (2Sam. xvi. 22.) 
By the Jewish law, a lawful wife, 
of a secondary or inferior rank; 
and, consequently, neither regard¬ 
ed nor treated as the matron or 
mistress of the house. Concubines 
were not betrothed or wedded 
with the usual solemnities and 
ceremonies which attended mar¬ 
riage. They had no share in the 
family government, and the chil¬ 
dren of the wife were preferred to 
the child of the concubine, in the 
distribution of the inheritance. 
Whore polygamy was tolerated,— 
as it was among the Jews,—the 
permission of concubinago would 
not seem so much at war with the 
interests and preservation of so¬ 
ciety, as we know it to be. The 
gospel restores the sacred institu¬ 
tion of marriage to its original 
character, (Gen. ii. 24; Matt. xix. 
5 ; 1 Cor. vii. 2,) and concubinage 
is ranked with fornication and 
adultery. (See Biblical Anti¬ 
quities, vol. i. chap. vi. $ 1.) 
CONDEMNATION. (John iii. 
176 


CON 

19.) This term, in its ordinary 
acceptation, describes the state of 
a man who is not only adjudged 
to be guilty, but has had passed 
on him the sentence of the law. 
In modern prisons, there is often 
found a ward or apartment, ap¬ 
propriated to such prisoners as 
have received their sentence, and 
are awaiting its execution ; hence 
called the condemned cell or toard. 
The gospel regards all mankind 
as offenders against God’s law. 
Their guilt is unquestionable, and 
the sentence is permanent and 
universally the same. The soid 
that sinneth, it shall die. (Ezek. 
xviii. 20.) There may be pardon 
or reprieve, under human law, in 
consequence of the imperfection 
of all human governments and 
laws; but every thing in the con¬ 
demnation of the sinner is perfect¬ 
ly just and right; and injustice 
would be done, if he were not 
punished just according to law. 
If his guilt can be removed , or 
cancelled, or taken from him, it 
must be by a process which no 
finite mind could anticipate or 
conceive. This process the gos¬ 
pel makes known to us ; and well 
is it called good tidings of great 
joy. (Comp. John iii. 19, and v. 
24; Rom. v. 16, 18, and viii. 1.) 
The effect of faith in Christ on the 
believer himself, is to place him 
in a state of justification before 
God. Nothing of this kind can 
possibly occur under human go¬ 
vernments,nor can it be illustrated 
by any analogy. It is the “ great 
mystery of godliness.” The be¬ 
liever feels it, and rejoices and 
triumphs in it. To him, of course, 
Christ is precious. (1 Pet. i. 19; 
ii. 4, 7.) Ii, is because of the ab¬ 
sence of all i tsemblance or ana¬ 
logy between the divine dispen- 



cow 

lation, in this case* and human 
laws and proceedings, that we 
find the wor tin justify, justified and 
justification, opposed to the terms 
Condemn, condemned and con¬ 
demnation. (Ex. xxiii. 7; Deut. 
xxv. 1; 1 Kings viii. 31, 32 ; Prov. 
xvii. 13; Matt. xii. 37; Rom. ii. 
13 ; iii. 4; v. 17, 18; viii. 30, 33, 
84.) 

CONDUIT, (Isa. xxxvi. 2,) or 
aqueduct, of the tipper pool in the 
highway of the fuller’s field. 
(Comp. 2 Kings xx. 20; Neh. iii. 
16; Isa. vii. 3, and xxii. 9, 11.) 
Wo know that the fountain of 
Silonh, or Gihon, which rises at 
the foot of mount Moriah, formed 
two pools, called the upper pool, 
(Isa. vii. 3,) or king’s pool, (Neh. 
ii. 14,) and the lower pool. (Isa. 
xxii. 9.) One of these pools is 
mentioned in John ix. 7. The 
Aqueduct, which connected the 
spper pool with the fountain, or 
with the lower pool, or with the 
city, is called the conduit of the 
upper pool; and, to make Rabsha- 
keh’s position still more certain, it 
is added, that he stood in the high¬ 
way or street that led to the ful¬ 
ler’s field. This was doubtless an 
enclosure in the vicinity of the 
soft water of the Gihon, appropri¬ 
ated to the drying and bleaching 
of clothes. (See Siloam.) 

CONEY. (Deut. xiv. 7.) Pro¬ 
bably the animal now known as 
the ushkoko. Instead of holes, 
those animals seem to delight in 
the clefts of the rock They are 
gregarious ; and frequently seve¬ 
ral dozens of them sit upon the 
great stones at the mouths of 
caves, and warm themselves in 
the sun, or come out and enjoy the 
freshness of the evening. They 
do not stand upright upon their 
feet, but seem to steal along as in 

M 


CON 

fear, theL belly being close to the 
ground; advancing a few steps at 
a time, and then pausing. They 



Coney. 

have something very mild, feeblo 
and timid in their deportment; 
are gentle, and easily tamed. 

The celebrated traveller Bruce 
says: “ The coney is above all 
other animals so much attached 
to the rocks, that I never once 
saw him on the ground, or from 
among large stones in the mouth 
of caves, where is his constant 
residence. He lives in families 
or flocks. He is found in Judea, 
Palestine and Arabia, and, con¬ 
sequently, must have been fa mi. 
liar to Solomon. David describee 
him very pertinently, and joins 
him to other animals perfectly 
known : ‘ the hills are a refuge for 
wild goats, and the rocks for the 
saphan.’ And Solomon says, 
‘ that they are exceeding wise/ 
that they are ‘but a feeble folk, 
yet make their houses in the 
rocks.’ Now this, I think, very 
obviously fixes the coney to 
177 







CON 

tne animal; for this weakness 
seems to allude to bis feet, and 
how inadequate these are to dig 
noles in the rook, where yet, how¬ 
ever, he lodges. From their ten¬ 
derness, these are very liable to 
be excoriated or hurt; notwith¬ 
standing which, they build houses 
in the rocks, more inaccessible 
than those of the rabbit, and in 
which they enjoy greater safety; 
not by the exertion of strength,— 
for they have it not,—but by .their 
own sagacity and judgment.” 

CONIAH. (See Jehoiachin.) 

CONSCIENCE (Acts xxiv. 16) 
is that within us which judges of 
the moral character of our ac¬ 
tions, and approves or censures, 
condemns or justifies us accord¬ 
ingly. (Rom. ii. 15.) This uni¬ 
versal tribunal is established in 
the breast of every man. It may 
be weakened, perverted, stupefied, 
defiled, and hardened, in various 
ways; and its decisions are more 
or less clear, just, and imperative, 
according to the degree of im¬ 
provement in the understanding 
and heart, and especially accord¬ 
ing to the degree in which its 
purity and sensitiveness have been 
preserved and cultivated. (John 
viii. 9; Acts xxiii. 1; xxiv. 16; 
Rom. ix. 1, and 1 Tim. i. 5.) 

' CONSECRATE, CONSECRA¬ 
TION. (Ex. sxxii. 29; Lev. vii. 
37.) The tribe of Levi was con¬ 
secrated to the priesthood with the 
most solemn and imposing cere¬ 
monies. (See Biblical Antiqui¬ 
ties, vol. ii. ch. iv. $ 1.) Vessels, 
(Josh. vi. 19,) profits, (Mic. iv. 
13,) fields, (Lev. xxvii. 28,) cattle, 
(2 Chron. xxix. 33,) individuals, 
(Nura. vi. 9-13; 1 Sam. i. 11, 28,) 
and nations (Ex. xix 6) were an¬ 
ciently consecrated or set apart 
to sacred purposes. (See Priest.) 

178 


COP 

CONVERSION, (Acts xv. 3,) 
or turning from one state, pursuit, 
inclination, or direction, to an¬ 
other. In the gospel use of the 
term and apart from technical 
theology, it denotes that chang6 
in the dispositions, thoughts, de¬ 
sires, and objects of affection, 
which takes place in the heart of 
the sinner, when the Holy Spirit 
convinces him of his sinfulness, 
and leads him, by His sacred in¬ 
fluences, to hate sin, and to for¬ 
sake every evil and false way, 
and, at the same time, persuades 
him to yield to the claims which 
God his Saviour justly and gra¬ 
ciously makes upon his heart and 
life. The same thing is signified 
by the term new birth, or regene¬ 
ration. The Scriptures describe 
mankind as alienated from God: 
as having the understanding 
darkened and blinded, and as be¬ 
ing dead in trespasses and sins. 
Hence the corresponding force 
and pertinency of the terms by 
which the change is described; 
such as created, renewed, (Eph. iv. 
23, 24,) restored to sight, (Eph. i. 
18; Rev. iii. 18,) and raised from 
the dead. (John v. 21, 24, and 
Eph. ii. 1.) 

COOS. (Acts xxi. 1.) The name 
of a small island and city of 
Greece, twenty-five miles long 
and ten broad. It lies near the 
southwest point of Asia Minor, 
and about forty miles northwest 
of Rhodes. It was formerly noted 
for its fertility, and for its wines 
and silk-worms, as well as for be¬ 
ing the birthplace of two eminent 
men, Apelles and Hippocrates. It 
is now called Stanchio, and is still 
famous for lemons and maples. 

COPING. (1 Kings vii. 9.) 
The top course or finish of a wall. 
It is usually of flat or semi-circu- 




COP 

lar bricks or hewn stone, project¬ 
ing beyond the face of the wall, 
and forming an ornament simi¬ 
lar in effect to the capital of a co¬ 
lumn. 

COPPER. (Ezra viii. 27.) A 
well-known metal, but not now 
(as it was once) precious as gold. 
The word translated copper in this 
assago is elsewhere rendered 
raas; and coppersmith (2 Tim. 
iv. 14) signifies a worker in brass. 
Perhaps the same name was given 
to both substances. (See Brass.) 

COR. (See Measures.) 

CORAL (Ezek. xxvii. 16) was 
an article of Tyrian merchandise, 
and is well known as a marine 
production, found in almost every 
variety of shape and size, and 
sometimes increasing to such an 
extent as to form the basis of is¬ 
lands, or to stretch out in dan¬ 
gerous reefs for many miles. It 
is capable of being worked up into 
beads, and other ornaments; for 
which use the red species is the 
most valuable. Job mentions it 
in connection with pearls. (Job 
xxviii. 18.) 

CORBAN (Mark vii. 11) signi¬ 
fies a gift or thing consecrated to 
God or his service. It seems the 
Jews permitted such an abuse to 
be made of this ceremony of con¬ 
secration, that a child was suf¬ 
fered to deny the request of his 
parents, or withhold assistance 
from them in their distress, mere¬ 
ly on the pretence that what they 
asked or needed was consecrated 
to God. It would seem they 
sometimes exempted their whole 
substance from any contribution 
tc the support of their parents ; 
and said, concerning any thing 
and every thing that could assist 
them, it is corban, or devoted to 
God. 


COR 

CORDS. (See Ropes.) 

CORIANDER SEED. (Ex. 
xvi. 31.) The coriander piant is 
a native of China and the south 
of Europe, but naturalized in 
England and the United States. 
The seeds are globular, and, when 



Coriander Seed. 

dry, are pleasant to the taste and 
smell, and are often sold by con¬ 
fectioners incrusted with sugar. 
We are told that the particles of 
manna were shaped like corian 

(J er g00(J # 

CORINTH. (Acts xviii. 1.) A 
renowned and voluptuous city of 
Greece, about twenty-five miles 
west of Athens, in which Paul 
resided a year and a half, and 
where he founded the church to 
which he afterwards addressed 
two of his epistles. (See Life of 
Paul, chap, xi.) Situated on the 
isthmus that separates the Egean 
from the Ionian sea, and possess¬ 
ing singular advantages for com¬ 
merce, as it was a mart for the 
exchange of Asiatic and Italian 
goods, it became celebrated for 
its wealth and magnificence, as 
well as the learning and ingenuity 
of its inhabitants. Profane his¬ 
torians speak of it as the light 
179 




COR 

ai» 1 ornament of all Greece. It 
was not less remarkable, however, 
for its corruption and licentious¬ 
ness. Indeed, so proverbially 
profligate did the city become, 
that the very name of Corinthian, 
applied to a female, was infa¬ 
mous. 

This was its corrupt state when 
Paul arrived there, not far from 
A. D. 52, as a Christian mission¬ 
ary. (See Map. p. 512.) 

A traveller, who visited Corinth 
in 1821, says it had hardly any 
occupants except soldiers; and 
that, though a few ruins remain 
to attest the ancient magnificence 
of the city, they are rapidly dis¬ 
appearing. The fragments of ca¬ 
pitals and columns are employed 
to build the houses of the Turks; 
and the wrought side of the rich¬ 
est specimens of architecture are 
found turned inwards! The story 
that Corinthian brass originated 
here, from the accidental fusion 
of different metals, when tht city 
was taken and destroyed by fire, 
is fabulous. The composition so 
called was known long before that 
event 

CORINTHIANS, epistles to. 
These were both written by Paul. 
The first was probably written at 
Ephesus, (comp. 1 Cor. xvi. 19; 
Acts xviii. 18, 26; 1C )r. xvi. 8, 9 ; 
Acts xix. 20, 26,) in the beginning 
of A. D. 57, or about four years 
after the church was organized. 
During that interval, it would 
seem that some false teacher had 
appeared among them, and had 
succeeded in exciting strong pre¬ 
judices against the apostle. To 
vindicate his own ministerial cha¬ 
racter and office from the asper¬ 
sions and calumnies that were 
heaped upon him by his opposers, 
Vo answer some inquiries they had 
180 


COR 

put to him, (1 Cor. vii. 1,) and to 
furnish them with rules of con¬ 
duct adapted to their peculiar 
circumstances, temptations and 
faults, (1 Cor. i. 10—31,) seem to 
have been the main design of this 
first letter. It contains also the 
most perfect and triumphant ar¬ 
gument for the doctrine of the 
resurrection. 

The second epistle, written pro¬ 
bably from Macedonia, less than 
a year after the first, seems de¬ 
signed to continue the good influ¬ 
ence which the former letter had 
exerted, and to furnish grounds 
of comfort and confidence to the 
steadfast believers. 

CORMORANT (Lev. xi. 17) 
was of the unclean class of birds ; 
and its presence is used in the 
prophetic writings as an emblem 
of ruin and desolation, (Isa. xxxiv. 
11; Zeph. ii. 14,) though the ori¬ 
ginal word in these passages is 
elsewhere translated pelican. 

CORN. (Mark iv. 28.) This 
word, in the United States, is 
generally applied to maize, or In¬ 
dian corn, but the Scriptures use 
it as the general name for all sorts 
of grain. A corn of wheat is a 
kernel of wheat. The figurative 
use of the word corn, usually in 
connection with wine and oil, is 
very frequent; as grain, and wine, 
and olives were the leading pro¬ 
ductions of the country. (Deut. 
xi. 14; xviii. 4; xxviii. 51; 2 
Chron. xxxii. 28; IIos. ii. 22; Joel 
ii. 19.) 

It is probable that grain was 
commonly used in its crude state 
in the early ages of the world. It 
was sometimes done in later times, 
(Matt. xii. 1;) and even now it is 
no uncommon thing, in passing a 
field of wheat, to pluck an ear, 
and after rubbing the husk or 




COR 

beard off, by rolling it between 
the hands, to eat the grain, which, 
even in that state, is very palat¬ 
able. The Jewish law permitted 
standing corn to bo plucked by 
any one passing through it, (Deut. 
xxiii. 25;) and this custom, or 
right, is still respected in some 
parts of the East. (See Mills.) 

CORNELIUS. (Acts x. 1-3.) 
A Roman officer residing at Ce- 
sarea. He was a Gentile by birth, 
and, though the highest character 
is given of him as a religious 
man, he was regarded by the Jews 
as an unclean person. (Acts x. 
28, 29 ; xi. 3.) His prayers, being 
offered in the faith of a promised 
Messiah, were heard; and God 
was pleased to send Peter to make 
known to him the plan of salva¬ 
tion through a crucified and risen 
Redeemer. Thus the door of fai*h 
was opened to the Gentiles ; Coi 
nelius and his family became con¬ 
verts to the Christian religion, 
and were baptized in the name 
of the Lord Jesus. 

CORNER. (2 Chron. xxviii. 
24.) The corner of the house-top 
(Prov. xxi. 9) is a narrow place 
exposed to sun and rain, contrast¬ 
ed with the wide room or house 
below. The phrase “corners of 
Moab,” or any other -ountry, 
(Num. xxiv. 17; Jer. xlviii. 45,) 
means its capital, cities, <fcc., or 
the strength and substance of the 
country. Corner of a bed , (Amos 
iii. 12,) the corner of a room, was 
on the elevated part, (used by 
night for a bed, or couch,) and 
contained the most honourable 
seat (See Bed.) In the passage 
last cited it figuratively denotes 
the most proud and luxurious of 
the Israelites in Samaria. In 
Zech. x. 4, the word corner is used 
to denote either the corner-stone 
16 


COO 

or the most conspicuous part of a 
building, arid evidently refers to 
Christ, (Matt. xxi. 42,) where he 
is mentioned as the head (or chief) 
of the corner, though the Jews, in 
erecting the temple of their faith, 
rejected him as unfit for so im¬ 
portant a place. If God is true, 
they must find their error sooner 
or later; for other foundation can 
no man lay than that is laid, whick 
is Jesus Christ. (lCor.iii.il. See 
also Isa. xxviii. 16.) The word 
corners is figuratively used to de¬ 
note the whole length and breadth 
of a. country, (Ezok. vii. 2,) or the 
world. (Isa. xi. 12; Rev. vii. 1.) 

Corner-stone. (Job xxxviii. 
6.) Christ is called a corner-stone, 
(1.) In reference to his being the 
foundation of the Christian faith, 
(Eph. ii. 20;) (2.) In reference to 
the importance and conspicuous¬ 
ness of the place he occupies, (1 
Pet. ii. 6 ;) and, (3.) As a project¬ 
ing corner-stone is likely to be 
stumbled against, so it is not sur¬ 
prising that the doctrine of Christ 
and him crucified would prove an 
offence and a stone of stumbling 
to unbelievers, as it ever has been. 
(Comp. Isa. viii. 14; Matt. xxi. 
44; Rom. ix. 32, 83 ; 1 Co , \ i. 23; 
1 Pot. ii. 8.) 

CORNET. (1 Chron. xv. 28.) 
An instrument of music about 
eighteen inches long, shaped like 
the flute ; used by the priests, and 
giving a loud, smooth sound. 

CORRUPTION, mount op. 
(See Olives, mount of.) 

COTTAGE. (Isa. xxiv. 20.) 
The same with tent. 

COUCH. (See Bed.) 

COUNCIL (Matt. x. 17) de¬ 
notes a judicial tribunal, and ge¬ 
nerally the Sanhedrim. It is 
supposed by some to be the same 
tribunal which was instituted un* 
181 




cou 

der Moses. (Num. xi. 16.) This 
is the opinion of the Jews. It is 
evident that this tribunal exist;! 
in the time of our Saviour, as it is 
expressly named. (Mark xiii. 9 ; 
xiv. 55; xv. 1.) It was before 
this tribunal that our divine Sa¬ 
viour was arraigned. The infe¬ 
rior tribunals were very numer¬ 
ous, and variously constituted. 
(See Omar, p. 181.) 

COUNSELLOR. (Luke xxiii. 
50.) An officer connected with 
the royal camp of the Jews sup¬ 
posed to be referred to in 1 Kings 
xii. 6- 12. 

COURSE. (See Abia.) 

COURT. (See Temple, 
Dwellings.) 

COVENANT (Gen. ix. 12) 
usually means an agreement or 
mutual obligation, contracted de¬ 
liberately, and with solemnity. 
The scriptural sense is peculiar. 
God’s covenant with men signi¬ 
fies his solemn promise or engage¬ 
ment. (Gen. xvii. 14 ; Ex. xxxiv. 
10; Deut. iv. 13; Isa. lix. 21.) It 
also denotes the established order 
and constitution of nature, (Jer. 
xxxiii. 20 ;) and, again, a precept. 
(Jer. xxxiv. 13.) It is remarked, 
that where the parties are equal,— 
so that either may accept or reject 
the proposal of the other,—the 
word used denotes a proposition ; 
but where the party proposing is 
greatly exalted above the other, 
the term used signifies appoint¬ 
ment, or institution; whereby the 
proposer pledges himself, but the 
other party is neither entitled to 
the privileges nor benefits of the 
obligator, until he accepts. 

The Hebrew word for making a 
covenant signifies cutting off, be¬ 
cause covenants were often made 
by cutting off or slaying sacrifices. 
(Gen. xv. 9-19; Jer. xxxiv. 18.) 

182 


COV 

The term the covenants (Bona, 
ix. 4) refers to the various pro¬ 
mises made to Abraham. (Seo 
Abraham.) 

The chief and most important 
use of the word, however, is in 
relation to the two great dispen¬ 
sations under which men have 
lived, and which are distinguished 
as the old and new dispensation, 
or covenant. (Heb. viii. 8.) The 
former was made with the children 
of Israel, and rested much in the 
outward ceremonies and observ¬ 
ances which the law by Moses en¬ 
joined, (meats and drinks, and 
divers washings and carnal ordi¬ 
nances ;) by strict obedience to 
which, with full faith in the pro¬ 
mises and declarations of Jeho¬ 
vah, they became interested ii? 
the blessings of that new and bet¬ 
ter covenant which was thereafter 
to be revealed, (Gal. iii.) and 
which, by way of distinction, is 
called the new or second cove¬ 
nant. (Heb. viii. 7, 13. Comp. 
Ex. xx.-xxiv. with Heb. viii.) 

The sign of the covenant was 
its seal or memorial. Thus the 
rainbow was a sign or memorial 
of God’s covenant with Noah, re¬ 
specting a second deluge. So of 
the Sabbath, (Ex. xxxi. 16, 17,) 
and circumcision. (Gen. xvii. 11.) 

The new covenant, of which 
Christ is the Mediator, was con¬ 
firmed or sealed by his own 
blood, and secures to every true 
believer the blessings of salvation 
and eternal life. 

Covenant of salt. (Num. 
xviii. 19; 2 Chron. xiii. 5.) This 
term is supposed to denote a co¬ 
venant, in the sealing or ratifica¬ 
tion of which salt was used. (Lev. 
ii. 13. See Salt.) 

COVET, (Ex. xx. 17,) COVET¬ 
OUSNESS. (Ex. xviii. 21 • Luke 




CRE 


COW 

xii. 15.) To covet is to desire 
strongly. (1 Cor. xii. 31.) When 
such a desire is felt for that which 
we cannot lawfully possess, it is 
sinful, and becomes covetousness, 
which is idolatry, (Col. iii. 2;) for 
it is placing the heart and affec¬ 
tions on the creature rather than 
on the Creator. Covetousness has 
relation commonly to riches, and, 
in the scriptural sense, includes 
the desire of accumulating, what¬ 
ever may be the means. (Prov. 
xxviii. 16 ; Eccl. v. 10 ; Luke xii. 
15-34; 1 Tim. vi. 9, 10.) 

COW. (Isa. xii. 21.) In this 
remarkable prophecy, the event 
foretold is, that the face of the 
land of Judah should be so com¬ 
pletely changed, and the inhabit¬ 
ants so greatly reduced in num¬ 
ber, that, with only a single young 
cow, and two sheep, a family 
should be supplied with an abun¬ 
dance of milk and butter; and 
vineyards, which before com¬ 
manded a high rent, should bo 
overgrown with briars and thorns. 

By the Levitical law, (Lev. 
xxii. 28.) a cow and her calf were 
not to be killed on the same day. 
A similar precept is found in Ex. 
xxiii. 19; and another in Deut. 
xxii. 6, 7. Whether they were 
dosigned to prevent inhumanity, 
or referred to some heathen cus¬ 
tom, is uncertain. The cow is 
esteemed holy by the Hindoos. 

CRACKNELS. (1 Kings xiv. 
3.) A kind of thin, hard bread, 
not unlike the crackers or sea- 
biscuit of modern days, prepared, 
as some say, with aromatic seed. 

CRANE. (Jer. viii. 7.) A large 
bird of passage, measuring three 
or foui feet in height, and living 
on worms and insects, or (if these 
cannot be had) on grain. Its 
cry is hoarse and melancholy; 


hence the allusion, Isa. xxxviii. 
14. The regular return of this 
and other birds from their annual 
migrations, discovered a regard 
to their instinctive knowledge 
which, in the passage of Jeremiah, 
is used to reprove the ignorance 
and waywardness of God’s peo¬ 
ple, in not regarding the judg¬ 
ments of his hand. (For illustra¬ 
tive cut, see Bible Natural His¬ 
tory, art. Crane.) 

CREATE, (Ps. li. 10,) CREA- ' 
TOR, (Eccl. xii. 1,) CREATION. 
(Mark x. 6.) The word creation 
sometimes denotes all living 
things, (Rom. viii. 22,) and at 
others the great era or event of 
the creation. (2 Pet. iii. 4.) To 
create is to cause any thing to 
exist that never existed in any 
form or manner before. (Gen. i. 

1; Col. i. 16.) It is to viake, with¬ 
out materials to make of. Thus, 
God said, Let there he light, and 
there was light. (Gen. i. 3.) 

And with respect to the nature 
and duration of those six days, so 
particularly defined in the record, 
which it pleased the Creator, for 
an obviously wise and beneficent 
end, to occupy in this incompre¬ 
hensible work of creation, we can 
have no reasonable doubt that 
they were such days as are now, 
and ever have been, occasioned 
by one revolution of the earth on 
its axis; because a perfect crea¬ 
tion may be as easily the work of 
one day, or of one moment, as of 
thousands of years; and because 
that record, on the evidence of 
which our confidence rests, on 
the subject of the creation, has 
distinctly defined each of those 
days by its evening and its morn¬ 
ing ; which terms, so often repeat¬ 
ed, can be in no way applicable 
to anj indefinite periods. 



CRE 

CRETE, (Acts xxvii. 7,) (CRE- 
TIANS, Tit. i. 12,) now called 
Candia, Kirid, or Kriti, is an 
island of the Mediterranean, one 
hundred and seventy miles long 
and fifty broad; population 250,- 
000, in about equal numbers of 
Greeks and Turks. Constantino¬ 
ple lies five or six hundred miles 
northeast of it, and Syria six or 
seven hundred miles east. It was 
formerly a rich and powerful 
kingdom, and is still remarkable 
for its delightful climate and fer¬ 
tile soil. Oil, corn, fruit-trees and 
vines are among its principal pro¬ 
ductions. The city of Candia, 
which is also the fort and capital 
of the island, lies on the northern 
coast. A Christian mission has 
been established there. 

Crete was settled, as it is gene¬ 
rally supposed, by Philistines 
from Egypt, part of whom after¬ 
wards passed over to Palestine, 
and are called Oaphtorim, (Gen. 
x. 14,) Chercthim8, (Ezek. xxv. 
16,) and Cherethites. (1 Sam. xxx. 
14; Zeph. ii. 5.) Some suppose 
that Crete itself is the Caphtor of 
the Scriptures. (Jer. xlvii. 4.) 

Salmone (Acts xxvii. 7) was a 
cape on the eastern extremity of 
the island; the Fair Havens (Acts 
xxvii. 8) was the name of a har¬ 
bour, roads, or anchorage, near 
Lasea, on the southern shore. 
The apostle, sailing from the last 
named place to Phenice, (Acts 
xxvii. 12,) on the western coast, 
was driven under an island called 
Clauda, (Acts xxvii. 16,) (now 
Gozzo. See Map to art. Paul.) 

Probably Paul visited this island 
after his first imprisonment at 
Rome, and established a Christian 
church there, which he left under 
the oversight of Titus. (Tit. i. 5.) 

The Cretans were once noted 

184 


CRO 

for vicious habits. This charac¬ 
ter was given them by many pro* 
fane historians; and among them 
was one of their own nation, who 
was also a prophet or poet, (which 
terms were synonymous among 
the Romans,) and who says they 
were liars, evil beasts , that is, bru¬ 
tal and ferocious as wild beasts, 
and 8loio bellies , or addicted to 
voluptuousness and gluttony, a? 
in Phil. iii. 19. (See Life op 
Paul, chap, xviii., and map pre¬ 
fixed to that volume.) 

CRIMSON. (Jer. iv. 30.) A 
beautiful variety or shade of red, 
Stuffs for the drapery of Solomon’s 
temple were embroidered in this 
colour. (2 Chron. ii. 14; iii. 14.) 
Crimson is a deeper dye than 
scarlet; and hence the force of 
the figure in Isa. i. 18, where tho 
most free and perfect forgiveness 
is offered to guilt of the deepest 
dye. 

CRISPUS (Acts xviii. 8) was 
an officer of the Jewish synagogue 
at Corinth. He and hi« family 
were converted under Paul’s 
preaching, and he received the 
ordinance of baptism at the apos¬ 
tle’s hands. (1 Cor. i. 14.) 

CROSS, CRUCIFY. (Matt, 
xxiii. 34; xxvii. 32.) Crucifixion 
is a mode of execution of great 
antiquity, and still prevails among 
the Hindoos and Chinese. It was 
regarded by the Romans as the 
basest and most ignominious 
death, deserved only by traitors. 
(Lutte xxiii. 2.) It was an ac¬ 
cursed death. (Deut. xxi. 23; Gal. 
iii. 13.) Hence the force of the 
expressions, 1 Cor. i. 23 ; Phil. ii. 
8; Heb. xii. 2. As soon as the 
sentence was pronounced, “ Them 
sha.lt be crucified,” the person was 
stripped entirely naked, (or leav¬ 
ing at most a narrow strip around 



CRO 

the loins,) and fastened to a post 
aboat as high as the waist, and 
was then terribly scourged with 
rods or whips made of leather 
strips, (Isa. ltii. 5,) armed with 
small bits of lead or bone; and 
often so severely as to occasion 
death. After the scourging, the 
person was compelled to bear his 
own cross to the place of execu¬ 
tion. This was usually an ele¬ 
vated place without the city, and 
near the highway. 

The most obvious, and, there¬ 
fore, probably, the earliest form 
of the cross, was that of a trans¬ 
verse beam on the top of a per¬ 
pendicular one, like our T. An¬ 
other obvious form was two posts 
crossing each other, like our X. A 
writer of the third century gives 
the figure of the cross thus: 



the title being in the space at the 
top. The catacombs of Rome 
furnish patterns of crosses, one of 
which represents the Greek capi¬ 
tal letter X, corresponding to our 
compound CII, crossed by the 
Greek letter R, corresponding in 
shape to our P, thus : 



The common form of the cross 
was the following:— 

16 * 


CRO 



The various modes of inflicting 
this excruciating and ignominious 
punishment are seen in the follow¬ 
ing figures. (See page 186.) 

The cross was fixed into the 
earth, and was so high (say ten 
to fifteen feet) that the feet of the 
sufferer were usually about four 
feet from the ground. The trans¬ 
verse piece was usually seven or 
eight feet in length. In or near 
the middle of the upright post 
there was a projection, to which 
he was raised by cords; and, be¬ 
ing previously divested of his 
clothing, he was first bound to the 
cross-beam, and then nailed by 
his hands, with strong iron spikes, 
to its extremities. There is con¬ 
clusive evidence, from profane 
history, that the hands and feet 
were pierced in this way, and that 
it was peculiar to the punishment 
of crucifixion; but whether the 
feet were nailed separately, or 
whether a single nail transfixed 
them both, is doubtful. In order 
to lessen the pain, it was custom¬ 
ary to give the sufferer wine me¬ 
dicated with myrrh, &c. Our Re- 
185 













CRO 


CRO 



deemer rejected this draught, 
(Mark xv. 23,) choosing, proba¬ 
bly, to suffer to the full extent the 
pains of that painful death. Vine¬ 
gar, too, was a refreshing and 
sustaining drink of the Italian 
soldiery; and this also was offered 
to him. (Matt, xxvii. 48.) The 
criminal was fastened to the cross 
by four soldiers appointed for the 
purpose, who were allowed the 
apparel of the sufferer as the per¬ 
quisite of their office. (Matt, 
xxvii. 35.) Hence the passage, 
Ps. xxii. 18, was prophetic of the 
mode of death to be endured by 
Christ. 

Over the cross was commonly 
placed a writing or superscription , 
indicating the offence for which 
the individual was put to death. 
It was called by the Romans titu- 
lus, or the title. (John xix. 19, 20.) 

Among the Romans, the pri¬ 
soner remained upon the cross 
often till his body fell to the earth 
by its own weight: but in the pro¬ 
vince of Judea, the Jews were 
permitted, in obedience to the 
precept of their law, (Deut. xxi. 
22, 23,) to terminate the sufferings 
vf the malefactor before sundown. 

180 


This wa3 effected in various ways. 
sometimes by setting fire to the 
foot of the cross; and, at others, 
by breaking the limbs with a ham¬ 
mer, or piercing the body with a 
lance. (John xix. 31-37.) It is 
to be observed, that the agonies 
of this death were so extreme that 
it was regarded as the utmost tor¬ 
ment. Cicero himself says: “The 
executioner, the covering of the 
head, the very name of the cross, 
should be removed afar, not only 
from the body, but from the 
thoughts, the eyes, the ears, of 
Roman citizens: for of all these 
things, not only the actual occur¬ 
rence and endurance, but the very 
contingency and expectation, nay, 
the mention itself, is unworthy of 
a Roman citizen and a free man.” 
Even the judges denominated it 
“ the utmost torment,—the extremist 
punishment 

The extension of theJimbs, just 
after so severe a scourging, and 
the impossibility of making the 
slightest change or motion with¬ 
out occasioning suffering rather 
than relieving it; the piercing 
of the hands and feet, in the parts 
m<st susceptible of acute and 











CRO - 

agonizing pain; the exposure of 
the wounded and lacerated flesh 
to the action of the sun and air 
hour after hour; the loss of blood, 
and the sense of indignity and 
contempt, which, in our Saviour’s 
case, was the most bitter, mali¬ 
cious, and unsparing that can be 
conceived : all conspired to make 
it, to the very last degree, a death 
of pain. Often the strength of the 
malefactor lingered for three 
days, and even longer. Hence the 
surprise of Pilate, (Mark xv. 44.) 

The fighre of a cross has often 
been represented on the banners 
of contending armies, thus : 


Sacred and tender ns are all 
Christian associations with the 
cross, probably no symbolic figure 
has ever been employed more ex- 
tensi\*ly or successfully for super¬ 
stitious and unholy purposes. If 
half the homage had been paid 
to the divine Redeemei himself 
which has been paid to the im¬ 
ages of his cross, or half the zeal 
displayed in advancing his spi¬ 
ritual kingdom which has been 


CRO 

snown in enforcing conformity to 
the outward observance of forms 
prescribed by human authority, 
his dominion would have extend¬ 
ed, before this time, from sea to 
sea and from shore to shore. 

The cross is often used figura. 
tively for those reproaches, self- 
denials, and sacrifices which the 
true followers of Christ must bo 
expected to endure, if they faith¬ 
fully maintain their profession. 
(Matt. xvi. 24.) 

CROWN. (2 Kings xi. 12.) 
Anciently the crown or diadem 
was only a head band, (Ezek. xvi. 
12,) or a riband or fillet, made of 
silk or linen, surrounding 
the head, and probably con¬ 
nected behind. (Ex. xxviii. 
36, 37; xxix. 6.) We find it 
represented on ancient me¬ 
dals. Newly-married persons 
of both sexes wore crowns. 
(Comp. Sol. Song iii. 11, with 
Ezek. xvi. 12.) It was usu¬ 
ally a badge of royalty or 
princely distinction. It was 
sometimes of pure gold, and 
was worn by kings, (2 Chron. 
xxiii. 11; Matt, xxvii. 29,) 
and sometimes in battle. (2 
Sam. i. 10; xii. 30.) The 
weight, in the last passage, 
denotes the value, and not 
the gravity of the crown. Af¬ 
terwards the shape and size 
were changed, and costly orna¬ 
ments appended to it. (2 Sam. 
xii. 30.) It was worn by queens. 
(Esth. ii. 17.) It was customary 
for a king to wear as many 
crowns as he had kingdoms. 
(Rev. xix. 12.) The word is figu¬ 
ratively used by the sacred writ¬ 
ers to denote honour, (Prov. xii. 
4,) prosperity, (Lam. v. 16,) eter¬ 
nal life and blessedness. (1 Pet 
v. 4.) The inscription on the 

1?7 

























CRU 

erown of the high-priest (Ex. 
xxxix. 30) was significant of his 
sacred office and functions. Such 
inscriptions have sometimes been 
placed on the crowns of princes 
and heroes, to indicate some 
splendid action or service. In 
Rev. xvii. 5, allusion seems to be 
made to the crown of the Jewish 
high-priest, whose raiment is de¬ 
scribed as having the colours and 
ornaments of the sacred vestments. 
It is said that the word mysterium 
(mystery) was formerly engraven 
on the papal crown, and was erased 
in the time of Julius III. 



Crowns of Victory. 

1. The civic crown. 2. The 
crown given to one who first en¬ 
tered the trenches of the enemy. 
3. Representing battlements, was 
given to him who first scaled the 
walls of a besieged city. 4. The 
crown of maritime victors. 

CRUCIFY. (See Cross.) 

CRUSE. (1 Kings xvii. 12.) 
A small vessel for liquids, used 
by the Jews. 

CRYSTAL. (Ezek.i.22.) The 
Scriptures use this term to denote 
what is now known as rock crys¬ 
tal,—one of the most beautiful of 
precious stones,—perfectly trans¬ 
parent, and resembling the purest 
glass. It is ranked with gold in 
value, (Job xxviii. 17,) and its 
188 


cue 

transparency is alluded to in Rov, 
iv. 6; xxi. 11; xxii. 1. In the 
passage in Ezekiel, first above 
cited, reference may be had to the 
peculiar dazzling effect of light 
reflected from the surface of crys¬ 
tal. The same word, which is 
translated crystal in some pas 
sages, is translated frost, (Gen 
xxxi. 40; Job xxxvii. 10; Jer. 
xxxvi. 30;) and ice, (Job vi. 16 j 
xxxviii. 29; Ps. cxlvii. 17.) 

CUBIT. (See Measures.) 

CUCKOO. (Lev. xi. 16.) There 
is some uncertainty whether the 
bird known to us by this name 
was the unclean bird mentioned 
in this verse. The prevailing opi¬ 
nion is, that it was what we call 
the sea-mexo or gull. 

CUCUMBER. (Num. xi. 5.) 
A garden vegetable well known 
in this country. Cucumbers, me¬ 
lons and onions are now among 
the leading productions of Egypt; 
and the first is found in many va¬ 
rieties, some of which are highly 
valued for their medicinal proper¬ 
ties : and others are much larger 
and more palatable, refreshing 
and wholesome, as a melon, than 
the same fruit is among us. 

These plants grow in the open 
country; and, to protect the fruit 
from thieves and beasts, a mound 
is erected in a central place, over¬ 
looking the plantation, with a 
small hut for shelter of the guard. 
For two or three months, this poor 
watchman fulfils his painful trust, 
through storms and tempests: 
and we find in Isa. i. 8, a striking 
allusion to this custom. Tne pro¬ 
phet likens the city of Jerusalem, 
figuratively tailed the daughter 
of Zion, (see Zion,) standing 
alone, in the midst of desolation, 
and itself soon to yield to its ene¬ 
mies, to a cottage or temporary 








CUM 

shed, in which the person was 
sheltered who guarded a vineyard 
when the grapes were ripening; 
or the same kind of structure put 
up for the same purpose in a field 
of cucumbers. As soon as the 
fruits were gathered, these booths 
or “ lodges” were abandoned. In 
like manner, the great capital 
stood for a momentary purpose, 
but soon, like them, was to be de¬ 
stroyed and removed. This pro¬ 
phecy was fulfilled in the various 
calamities of Jerusalem, especial¬ 
ly when the Jews were taken cap¬ 
tive to Babylon. (2 Chron. xxxvi. 
19.) A similar illustration 
is employed in Job xxvii. 

18. (See Youth’s Friend, 
vol. v., also same work for 
April, 1836, for illustrative 
remarks and cuts. See 
Garden.) 

CUMMIN. (Matt, xxiii. 


• CUP 

23.) An herb abounding in Syria, 
which produces aromatic seeds. 
In Isa. xxv ; ii. 25, 27, reference 
is made to the manner of sowing 
and threshing it. The same me¬ 
thod is observed in Malta at this 
day. It was one of the things of 
less consequence which the Pha¬ 
risees strictly tithed. (See Mint.) 

CUP. (1 Kings vii. 26.) The 
horns of animals were anciently 
used by some nations as drinking 
vessels; but the Jews had cups 
and goblets at a very early period, 
(Gen. xliv. 2,) though they used 
horns for anointing oil. (1 Sam. 




Various forms of ancient Cups and Drinking Vessels 


189 

























CUP • 

*vi. 13.; Some of their cups were 
highly ornamented, (1 Kings vii. 
26,) and in shape were probably 
not unlike those now used for cu¬ 
linary purposes by the Egyptians. 
Cups of this kind, made of gold, 
silver, copper, &c., according to 
the owner’s wealth, are in use in 
Persia at this day. 

The figurative use of this word 
in the Scriptures is frequent. Ge¬ 
nerally, however, it represents the 
blessings or the judgments of hea¬ 
ven, or the allotments of God’s 
providence. (Ps. xxiii. 5; Ixxv. 
8 ; cxvi. 13 ; Isa. li. 17-22. Comp. 
Jer. xxv. 15, and li. 7, with Rev. 
xiv. 10, and xvi. 19.) The suffer¬ 
ings of our Saviour are also repre¬ 
sented by a similar figure. (Matt, 
xx. 22, and xxvi. 39.) 


CUP-BEARER, f See Butler.) 



Cup-Hearer. 

190 


CYS 

CUP OF BLESSING. (See 

Blessing.) 

CURSE. (Gen. xxvii. 12.) In 
the scriptural use it is the oppo¬ 
site of bless. To curse is to im¬ 
precate evil upon any one. (Gen. 
ix. 25; comp. Gen. xxvii. 12 ; Nell, 
xiii. 2 ; Matt. v. 44; John vii. 49 ; 
James iii. 9.) The curses which 
are recorded in the Bible as being 
pronounced by Noah, Moses, 
Joshua and others, are not to be 
regarded as the effects of passion 
or revenge. They were either 
pronounced under the immediate 
influence of God’s Spirit, or are 
to be viewed as only predictions 
of evil, uttered in the form of im¬ 
precation. 

The words curse and cursed are 
the opposite of bless and blessed, 
and are often so contrasted. (Deut. 
xxviii. See Bless.) The curse 
of the ground, and of the serpent, 
(Gen. iii. 14, 17,) is to be regard¬ 
ed as the doom or judgment of 
God upon them. 

The curse of the la w is the sen¬ 
tence of condemnation which it 
pronounces on the transgressor, 
(Gal. iii. 10,) and from which 
Christ redeems us “ by being made 
a curse for us.” (Gal. iii. 13; comp. 
Rom. viii. 1, and Gal. iii. 13, with 
Rom. v. 16, and 2 Cor. iii. 7-9.) 

To curse, in an evil or blasphe¬ 
mous sense, is to affirm or deny 
any thing with thoughtless or 
rash imprecations of divine ven¬ 
geance. (Matt. xxvi. 74.) 

CUSH. (Gen. x. 6-8.) 1. (A 

person.) The oldest son sf Hum, 
and father of Nimrod. 

2. (A place.) It is believed 
there are three distinct countries 
mentioned in the Bible under .his 
name: one of them was probably 
the same with MidiaL. (Comp. 
Ex. ii. 16, 21; Num. xii. 1.) Cuth, 








cus 

or Cutha, (2 Kings xvii. 24, 30,) 
was evidently, from the connec¬ 
tion, a province of Assyria; and 
Cush is the marginal reading for 
Ethiopia, in Gen. ii. 13, Hab. iii. 
7, and elsewhere. (See Ethiopia.) 
CUSHAN. (See Ethiopia.) 
CYMBALS. (1 Chron. xvi. 5.) 
There is an instrument of music 
now common in the East, which 



consists of metallic plates about 
the size of a dollar, two of which 
are held in each hand, one upon 
the thumb, and the other upon 
the middle finger, and, being 
struck together skilfully, make an 
agreeable sound. Some have de¬ 
scribed! the cymbals as two broad 
convex plates of brass, the concus¬ 
sion of which produced a shrill, 
piercing sound, like clattering, ra¬ 
ther than tinkling. (1 Cor. xiii. 1.) 

CYPRESS. (Isa. xliv.14.) A 
tall evergreen, the wood of which 
is heavy, aromatic, and remark¬ 
ably durable. Its foliage io dark 
and gloomy, and its form close 
and pyramidal. Coffins were made 
af it in the East, and the mummy- 
cases of Egypt are found at ihis 
day of the cypress-wood. The 
timber has been known to suffer 
no decay by the lapse of eleven 
hundred years. It was used and 
cultivated for idol timber, though 
gome have thought that a species 
of oak was intended in the passage 
from Isaiah. 

CYPRUS. (Acts iv. 36.) A 


CYK 

large, fertile and salubrious island 
of the Mediterranean. It is of 
a triangular form, one hundred 
and fifty miles long, and sixty ju 
its greatest breadth. Population 
120,000, of whom 40,000 are 
Greeks. Some suppose it to be 
the same with Chittim. (Num. 
xxiv. 24; Dan. xi. 30. See Chit¬ 
tim.) The chief productions of 
Cyprus are, as formerly, wines, 
oil, honey and wool. It is a fa¬ 
mous place in mythological histo¬ 
ry, and was distinguished for the 
licentiousness of its inhabitants. 

Salami8 (Acts xiii. 5) was the 
principal city, and was situated on 
the eastern coast, and Paphos 
(Acts xiii. 6) was another large 
town on the opposite extremity of 
the island, which is now called 
Paphos, or Baffa. “ There is a 
magic beauty about the place,” 
says a late travellor, “ as you view 
it from the sea, with its proud 
minarets, its waving palm-trees, 
and mount Olympus seen afar, 
the morning rays lighting up the 
whole scene.” In Paphos, and 
its vicinity, 25,000 Greeks were 
massacred in the late revolution ; 
and it is said that, upon the whole 
island, not less than seventy-four 
villages, containing 18,000 Chris¬ 
tians, were destroyed by the Turks. 
Several interesting incidents of 
apostolic history occurred on this 
island. (See Life of Paul, 
chap, iv.) 

CYRENE. (Acts xi. 20.) A 
province and city of Libya. Tber8 
was anciently a Phenieian colony 
called Cyrenaica, or “Libya about 
Oyrene.” (Acts ii. 10.) It was in 
the north of Africa, west of Egypt, 
and comprised five cities; one of 
which was Cyrene. (See Lybia.) 
The ancient city of Cyrene is now 
called Oyeune, Cairoan, or Gay* 





CYR 

ran, and lies in the dominion of 
Tripoli. This district of the earth 
has lately occasioned much inte¬ 
rest among the Italian and French 
geographers. 

Great numbers of Jews resided 
here. (Matt. xxvii. 32 ; Mark xv. 
21; Luke xxiii. 26.) Some of the 
Cyrenians were among the earliest 
Christians, (Acts xi. 20 ;) and one 
of them, it is supposed, was a 
preacher of Antioch. (Acts xiii. 
1.) We find also, that among the 
most violent opposers of Christi¬ 
anity, were the Cyrenians who 
had a place of worship at Jerusa¬ 
lem. (Acts vi. 9.) 

CYRENTANS. (See Cyrene.) 

CYRENIUS (Luke ii. 2) be¬ 
came the governor or proconsul 
of Syria, eight or ten years after 
the birth of our Saviour. The 
taxing or enrolment which led 
Joseph and Mary to go up to 
Bethlehem, is said to have been 
“first made when Cyrenius was 
governor of Syria.” Various con¬ 
structions of this passage have 
been proposed, to remove the sup¬ 
posed chronological difficulty. We 
have no doubt of the historical 
truth of the statement, whatever 
perplexity may attend it. If there 
is nothing in profane history to 
corroborate it, neither is there 
any thing to contradict it. It 
may be that Cyrenius was associ¬ 
ated in the government of Syria 
during the progress of the enrol¬ 
ment, and had, in some sense, the 
superintendence of it. It may be 
that the enrolment was made at 
one period, and the levy of taxes 
(of which that enrolment was the 
basis) was not made till a subse- 


OYK 

quent period. We know that sucb 
a tax was imposed, and occa 
sioned great popular discontents. 
(Acts v. 37.) And it may be also, 
that the phraseology employed by 
the sacred writer is susceptible of 
a construction which would re. 
move every difficulty, though 
critics are not agreed in such a 
construction. At any rate, the 
occurrence of such passages is 
strong presumptive evidence of 
the truth of the narrative; for it 
would have been ‘an easy matter 
to avoid all appearance of diffi ¬ 
culty, if the object of the writers 
had been simply to make a book 
that should be believed. 

CYRUS. (Isa. xlv. 1.) A prince, 
statesman and conqueror, of great 
renown, and an instrument or 
agent employed by Jehovah in 
the execution of his designs of 
mercy towards the Jews. (Isa. 
xiii. xiv. xxi. xliv. 28 ; xlv.-xlvii.; 
Jer. xxv. 12; li. 54; Dan. vii. 
viii.) The early life of Cyrus is 
involved in obscurity. It 4 is ge¬ 
nerally agreed that he was the 
son of Cambyses king of Persia. 
His chief biographers (Xenophon 
and Herodotus) present his histo¬ 
ry and exploits in very different 
aspects. His conquests extended 
over all western Asia, but the 
most brilliant of them was that of 
Babylon, which took place b. c. 
536. After this event, he ordered 
a return of-the Jews, who had 
been seventy years in captivity, 
to their own land, and furnished 
them very liberally with the means 
of rebuilding their temple. (See 
Life of Daniel, chap. xiii. xir 
xv. xvii. xviii.) 


192 



DAB 

ABERATH. (Josh. xix. 12 ; 
1 Chron. vi. 72.) A town on 
the borders of Issachar and Zebu- 
Ion. The description of the sacred 
historian leaves it uncertain to 
which tribe it belonged, and per¬ 
haps there was a town of this 
name in each tribe; and, accord¬ 
ing to the most authentic modern 
maps, such was the fact. It was 
situated in the plain of Jezreel, 
at the foot of mount Tabor, and, 
probably, where modern travellers 
have found the village of Dabira , 
or Debora, or Daybury. 

DAGGER. (Judg. iii. 16, 21, 
22.) A short sword, usually made 
with a double edge, and suspend¬ 
ed from the girdle. (See Arms.) 

DAGON. (1 Sam. v. 2.) This 
was the name of a celebrated idol 
of the Philistines, worshipped at 
Gaza, (Judg. xvi. 23,) at Ashdod, 
(1 Sam. v. 1-3,) at Beth-dagon, 
[the house or temple of Dayon ,) in 
the bounds of Judah, (Josh. xv. 
41,) in a town of Asher, (Josh, 
xix. 27,) and elsewhere. There 
are various opinions as to the ap- 



Dagon. 

17 


DAM 

pearance of this idol; but it is 
usually represented with the head, 
hands and face of a man, and the 
body like that of a fish. The 
name was probably derived from 
dag, signifying a largo fish. One 
of the incarnations of the Hin¬ 
doo god Vishnu was of the same 
form. (See Scripture Illus¬ 
trations, vol. ii. pp. 57-59, for 
description.) The fall and de¬ 
struction of this idol, when the 
ark was brought into the same 
apartment with it, is one of the 
most remarkable passages of Jew¬ 
ish history; and we are told that 
the ruins of the temple of Dagon 
at Gaza, which was pulled down 
by Samson, are still visible. 

DALMANUTHA, the parts 
of, (Mark viii. 10,) or THE 
COASTS OF MAGDALA, (Matt 
xv. 39,) as Matthew describes it 
in his account of the same trans¬ 
action, were probably small towns 
on the shore of Tiberias ; and the 
vicinity of either of them would 
embrace the same district of coun¬ 
try. 

DALMATIA. (2 Tim. iv. 10.) 
Originally part of Illyricum, but 
at present a provinco of Austria, 
lying on the northeast of the Adri¬ 
atic shore, or gulf of Venice. Po¬ 
pulation, 300,000. The towns on 
the coast are inhabited chiefly by 
Catholics, who speak Italian. The 
inhabitants of the interior are of 
the Greek church. It is supposed, 
from the passage above cited, that 
the gospel w r as planted here by 
Titus. (See Illyricum.) 

DAMASCUS. (Gen. xv. 2.) 
The capital of ancient Syria, for 
three centuries the residence of 
the Syrian kings, and the oldest 
city which now exists. Its mo¬ 
dern name is JElshams. It is 
situated on the river Baradi, about 
193 






DAM 

two hundred miles south of Anti¬ 
och, and a hundred and twenty 
northeast of Jerusalem. The coun¬ 
try around it, within a circuit of 
twenty or thirty miles, is well wa¬ 
tered, and exceedingly fertile. 
The city itself is about two miles 
in length, and surrounded by a 
wall. The streets are narrow, hut 
well paved ; and it is said that one 
of them, which runs through the 
breadth of the city and suburbs, 
from two to three miles, is still 
called “Straight.” (Acts ix. 11.) 
The adjoining country is so beau¬ 
tiful in scenery, and so rich in 
soil, that the orientals regard it 
as a paradise on earth ; and such 
is its commanding situation, that 
one of the Roman emperors called 
it the Eye of the East. It is said 
that when Mohammed viewed the 
city from a distant elevation, he 
was so much enchanted with the 
prospect, that he would not enter 
it; saying that there was but one 
heaven for man, and he was de¬ 
termined not to have his upon 
earth. 

The first notice we have of Da¬ 
mascus, in the Old Testament 
history, except that it was the 
residence of Eliezer, (Abraham’s 
steward,) is, that the Syrian army, 
which came to succour an ally, 
was defeated by David with a loss 
of twenty-two thousand men; that 
the Syrian nation became tribu¬ 
tary to Israel; and David “ put 
garrisons in Syria of Damascus,” 
or in Syria, of which Damascus 
was the capital. After this we 
find many of the most interesting 
passages of history and prophecy 
connected with Syria and its splen¬ 
did capital. (1 Kings xi. 24; xv. 
18; 2 Kings xiv. 25-28; xvi. 9; 
Isa. ix. 11.) Since a. d. 1517, it 
has been under the Turkish do- 
194 


DAM 

minion, and is the capital of one 
of their pashalics; hence called 
The Pashalic of Damascus. 

The city is situated in a large 
plain, and is surrounded by seve¬ 
ral considerable villages. The 
plain is covered with gardens of 
chestnut, olive and fig-trees, apri¬ 
cots and vines. No Christian is 
allowed, under any circumstances, 
to ride within the city. Even 
the French consul was compelled 
by force to dismount as soon as 
he entered the city. In the room 
of a convent, where one of our 
American missionaries lodged, 
was a picture of the Apostle Paul. 

Without the city are four streams 
of water, which run close to each 
other. On their beautiful shady 
banks were great numbers of 
Turks drinking, smoking and 
playing. On an eminence, at the 
distance of two or three miles, the 
city appears thickly set with 
houses of a dusky white. 

The minarets, of which there 
may be seventy or eighty, with 
here and there a tall cypress ris¬ 
ing above the houses, are the only 
things which break in upon the 
uniformity. This whitish city we 
see in the midst of a large wood, 
about fifty miles in circumference, 
with little variety, except what 
arises from the dark green of the 
chestnuts, and the dark, mourn 
ful appearance of the olives and 
poplars. 

In the skirts of the wood is to 
be seen here and there a little vil¬ 
lage, with a mosque. This wood, 
which actually consists of an im¬ 
mense number of gardens and or¬ 
chards, lies in a great plain, hav¬ 
ing, on the south-by-west, a hill, 
or rather a chain of little hills, 
which skirt the northern part of 
the Hauran. On the northwest. 




PAM 

north and northeast, stretches 
along a part of the eastern range 
of Anti-Libanus. On the south¬ 
east and east we see, at a great 
distance, rising in the horizon, a 
chain of hills, or mountains, which 
divide this Mohammedan paradise 
from the hot regions of the desert. 
These mountains are not seen 
very distinctly, on account of the 
clouds, mist and smoke, which 
seem to cover them. 

According to the best informa¬ 
tion, Damascus contains about 
one hundred and fifty thousand 
souls, about ten thousand of whom 
are Christians. The Christians 
are divided nearly as follows: 
Greeks, 3000; Greek Catholics, 
6000 ; Maronites, 100 ; Syrians, 
Armenians, and Catholic Armeni¬ 
ans, 900. Of Jews, there are about 
400 houses, and 3000 souls. 

Malte Brun informs us that Da¬ 
mascus has a manufacture of 
soaps, and of stuffs made of a 
mixture of cotton and silk. The 
cabinet work of fine wood, adorn¬ 
ed with ivory and mother-of-pearl, 
has excited the admiration of Eu¬ 
ropeans. This city is enlivened 
by the bustle of commerce, and 
the passage of the caravans to 
Mecca. The great street Straight., 
which is two miles long, from east 
to west, presents two rows of 
shops, in which the riches of India 
glitter along with those of Eu¬ 
rope. The private houses of Da¬ 
mascus, simple in external appear¬ 
ance, exhibit in the interior all 
the splendour and elegance of re¬ 
fined luxury. The floors are of 
marble; alabaster and gilding are 
displayed on every side. In every 
great house there are several 
fountains playing in magnificent 
basins. The smallest house has 
three water pipes, one for the 


DAM 

kitchen, another far the garden, 
and a third for washing. The 
same magnificence is displayed 
in the mosques, churches and cof 
fee-houses. The environs of the 
city, watered by the Barrady and 
other streams, present, at all sea¬ 
sons of the year, a pleasing ver¬ 
dure, and contain an extensive 
series of gardens and villas. 

The art of inlaying iron or steel 
with other metals, especially gold 
and silver, to make them elastic 
and yet very hard, was formerly 
so extensively carried on in this 
city, as to give its name to the 
substance. Hence Damascus ra¬ 
zors, swords, Ac. Silks, leather 
dried fruits, and sweetmeats art 
among the chief exports. The 
fabric which is called Damask is, 
by some, supposed to have beer, 
once manufactured chiefly in this 
city, and henc# to have derived 
its name. The guides of travel¬ 
lers show the house, and the very 
room, in which, they say, PauJ 
lodged during the three days of 
his blindness, and where, they 
tell us, he had his wonderful vi¬ 
sion. (2 Cor. xii. 2.) Here, too, 
they point out the grave of Ana¬ 
nias, the spot on the Jerusalem 
road where Paul was converted, 
and the wall by which he escaped ; 
the house of Naaman the Syrian, 
now a hospital for lepers, and the 
tomb of Gehazi, Elisha’s servant. 

The commerce of Damascus is 
still very extensive, and is carried 
on by caravans. The place is re¬ 
garded with interest as the the¬ 
atre of missionary labours. The 
(London) Church Missionary So¬ 
ciety, and the British and Foreign 
Bible Society, have had encou¬ 
raging success in their efforts, in 
Damascus and its vicinity. The 
hope has been entertained, that 
195 



DAM 

the immense confluence of mer¬ 
chants and pilgrims there may be 
made the means of dispersing the 
Scriptures through all the coun¬ 
tries of Asia. 

DAMNATION. (Mark iii. 29.) 
This term, in its common scrip¬ 
tural use, denotes the final and 
endless perdition of the ungodly, 
—a doctrine as clearly taught as 
the resurrection of the dead. (Dan. 
xii. 2; Matt, xxiii. 35; xxv. 41, 
46 ; Mark xvi. 16 ; John v. 28, 29 ; 
2 Pet. ii. 3.) In some passages 
this word is used where condem¬ 
nation or judgment would more 
properly express the sense. The 
same word which is rendered 
damnation in 1 Cor. xi. 29, is ren¬ 
dered judgment in 1 Pet. iv. 17. 
So in Rom. xiv. 23, the word 
damned would be better rendered 
self-condemned. (See Eternal.) 

DAN. 1. A person. (Gen. xxx. 
6.) The fifth son of Jacob. The 
prediction uttered by Jacob re¬ 
specting Dan, (Gen. xlix. 16,17,) 
is variously interpreted. It is 
probable that the elevation of his 
tribe to an equal rank with the 
others, notwithstanding he was 
born of a concubine, was foretold 
In v. 16; and tbe residue of the 
prediction may allude to the sub¬ 
tle and crafty disposition of his 
descendants. Indeed, we know 
that Samson (who was among the 
most noted of them) was remark¬ 
ably successful in stratagem, 
(Judg. xiv. xv.;) and, perhaps, 
the same trait was characteristic 
of their tribe. (Judg. xviii. 26, 
27. See Adder.) 

2. Tribe of, (Ex. xxxi. 6,) had 
Its portion between the posses¬ 
sions of Judah and Ephraim, on 
one side, and between Benjamin 
and the sea shore in the other. 
They were never in piict posses- 
196 


DAN 

sion of their province, (comp. 
Josh. xix. 43 ; Judg. i. 34, 35, and 
xviii. 1; 1 Sam. v. 10 ; 2 Kings i. 
2,) and were much annoyed by 
the native inhabitants. Their 
tract was pleasant and fertile, 
though abounding with winding 
vales and bluff hills, but it was by 
far the smallest portion, (Josh, 
xix. 47; Judg. xviii. 1;) and hence 
they sought some place for the 
planting of a colony. To this end, 
thoy sent five of their most enter¬ 
prising men to explore the coun¬ 
try ; and they found a place on 
the northern frontier, called Laish, 
(Judg. xviii. 7,) or Leshem, (Josh, 
xix. 47,) which seemed easy of 
acquisition, and in every respect 
suited to their purpose. (Judg. 
xviii. 10.) They accordingly took 
measures at once to obtain it; 
and a very succinct and interest¬ 
ing history of the proceeding is 
given us by the sacred historian. 
The place was captured and de¬ 
stroyed by fire; but the Danites 
rebuilt it, and called it Dae (See 
Beersheba.) 

3. Town of, was built up as 
mentioned in the preceding para¬ 
graph. It lay at the northern - 
extremity of the land of Israel, 
in the tribe of Naphtali, at the 
foot of mount Lebanon, near the 
source of the Jordan, and (as some 
suppose) gave the name to that 
river, (Jor, the spring.) The town 
was captured by the king of As¬ 
syria. (1 Kings xv. 20.) It was 
here that Jeroboam established 
the worship of one of the golden 
calves, (1 Kings xu. 29; Amos 
viii. 14,) though idolatry prevail¬ 
ed there before Jeroboam intro¬ 
duced it. (Judg. xviii. 17-19, 24 
-31.) It seems to have been a 
place of some commercial import¬ 
ance, (Ezek. xxvii. 19,) and, be- 




DAN 

ing a border town, *s frequently 
the subject ^ prophecy. (Jer. iv. 
15 ; viii. 16.; Probably the word 
Dar. (Gen. xiv. 14) was inserted 
for Laish, by Ezra, or some other 
collector of the Jewish Scriptures, 
as Hebron is for Kirjath-Arba; 
for it is certain that neither Dan 
nor Hebron wCTe known to Moses 
by those names. 

DANCE. (Ps. cxlix. 3.) The 
Jewish dances were generally ex¬ 
pressions of religious joy and 
gratitude; sometimes they were 
practised in honour of a conquer.* 
or, (Judg. xi. 34; 1 Sam. xviii. 6, 
7,) and sometimes on occasions of 
domestic joy. (Jer. xxxi. 4, 13; 
Luke xv. 25.) In the religious 
service, the timbrel was employed 
to direct the dance, and it was 
led by some individual, whom the 
rest followed with measured step 
and devotional songs. Thus, Da¬ 
vid is supposed to have led such 
a band. (Ps. cl. 4, 5. See .also 
Ex. xv. 20; Judg. xxi. 20-23.) 
Individuals often expressed feel¬ 
ings of joy in the same way. 
(Luke vi. 23; Acts iii. 8.) 

Dancing was doubtless known 
from a very early period as a mere 
worldly amusement. (Job xxi. 
11-15 ; Mark vi. 22.) It is wor¬ 
thy of remark, however, that the 
mingling of males and females, 
which is so common in modern 
dances, was unknown to the Jews ; 
unless, as it has been well ob¬ 
served, a precedent may be found 
in the scene of idolatrous confu¬ 
sion and madness when the chil- 
aren of Israel bowed themselves 
before the image of a calf. (Ex. 
xxxii. 6, 19.) 

DANIEL. (Ezek. xiv. 14.) The 
name of a distinguished prophet, 
whose history is given us with 
unusual minuteness. He was a 
17* 


DAN 

descendant of the family of David, 
and, while quite a youth, was car¬ 
ried, among other Jewish cap¬ 
tives, to Chaldea. He was there 
instructed in the language and 
arts of the Chaldeans, and, with 
three other Jewish youths, wag 
appointed to be trained specially 
fox .he royal service, and to reside 
in the palace. (Dan. i. 1-4. Set 
Harvey Boys, chap, xi.) He 
was very early distinguished fo/ 
his piety and wisdom, as we are 
informed by a contemporary wri¬ 
ter, (Ezek. xiv. 14, 20; xxviii. 3,) 
and was ultimately raised to a 
very exalted station in the court 
of the king of Babylon. Daniel 
interpreted several remarkable 
dreams which the king had; and 
was himself favoured with repeat¬ 
ed visions, in which were dis¬ 
closed to him some of the most 
important and interesting events; 
some of which are yet to take 
place. (See next paragraph.) It 
is uncertain where Daniel died, 
though it is generally supposed 
that it was in some part of Chal¬ 
dea. (For a full and complete 
history of this prophet, accompa¬ 
nied with a map of all the places 
mentioned in his history, a view 
of Tyre, and of the celebrated 
Hanging Gardens, a picture of 
Belshazzar’s Feast, and other illus¬ 
trations, see Life of Daniel and 
Elisama.) 

Daniel, book of, is the twen¬ 
ty-seventh in the order of th* 
books of the Old Testament. It 
is a mixture of history and pro¬ 
phecy, and contains (especially 
the last six chapters) the most 
extraordinary and comprehensive 
predictions that are to be found 
in the prophetical writings. S«j 
explicit are they respecting tu« 
advent of the Messiah, that the 
197 




daf 

Jews were formerly unwilling to 
admit their genuineness; but this 
cannot be contested. (Matt. xxiv. 
16.) Josephus, the Jewish histo¬ 
rian, regards him as the chief of 
the prophets. (Lib. x. chap. xi. 
§ 7.) They were uttered during 
the captivity of the Jews, and both 
before and after the time of Eze¬ 
kiel. The Life of Daniel, above 
mentioned, contains a succinct 
view of these prophecies. 

There are one or two remark¬ 
able incidental proofs of the genu¬ 
ineness of this book, which ought 
not to be passed over. The first 
twelve chapters of the book, and 
indeed all the narrative part, were 
originally written in Hebrew; but 
ivhen the prophet relates the con¬ 
versation, or uses the language of 
others, (as from chap. ii. 4, to the 
end of chap, vii.) he employs the 
very words of those who spoke, 
whatever tongue they used. This 
shows his unusual accuracy. The 
title, dissolver of doubts, (Dan. v. 
12,) (or untier of knots, as the mar¬ 
ginal reading is,) by which the 
queen described Daniel, is still 
used in the East as a title of ho¬ 
nour. Sir Isaac Newton regards 
Daniel as the most distinct of all 
the prophets, as to the order of time, 
and the least difficult to be under¬ 
stood ; and, therefore, in the things 
relating to the last times, he is to 
be regarded as a key to the rest 
of the prophets. The prophecy 
of Daniel, and the Revelation of 
John, are supposed by some to be 
illustrative of each other. 

DARIUS. (Ezra iv. &.) There 
are several princes of this name 
in ancient history. The one, who 
is distinguished as the Median, 
(Dan. v. 31,) or Mode, (Dan. xi. 
1,) called the son of Ahasuerus, 
(Dan. ix. 1,) or Astyages by ihe 
198 


DAK 

apocryphal writers, was the smv 
cessor of Belshazzar. (Dan. v. 30, 
31.) Another was the last of the 
Persian kings, who adopted this 
name on his accession to the 
throne. Alexander the Great 
conquered him, and ended the 
Persian monarchy; thus fulfilling 
the prophecies of Daniel. (Dan. 
ii. 39, 40; vii. 5, 6; viii. 5, 6, 20, 
22.) A third prince of this name 
was the son of Hystaspes. It was 
under his reign that the Jews re¬ 
turned to Jerusalem, and renewed 
the worK of rebuilding the tem¬ 
ple: The city of Babylon, dissa¬ 
tisfied with some of the edicts of 
Cyrus, revolted; and Darius, af¬ 
ter a siege of nearly two years, in 
which the prophecy of Isa. xlvii. 
7-9, was literally fulfilled, obtain¬ 
ed possession of the city by a 
base stratagem, though historians 
speak of it as an heroic sacrifice. 
Herodotus tells us that Darius or¬ 
dered the hundred gates of brass 
to be taken away. (Jer. Ii. 68.) 

DARKNESS. (Gen. i. 2.) It 
is said of the darkness which con¬ 
stituted one of the plagues of 
Egypt, that* 4 ' it might be felt .” 
(Ex. x. 21.) This might have 
been occasioned by a thick, heavy 
vapour, or other sensible change 
in the atmosphere, which caused 
an entire interception of tne sun’s 
rays. It was evidently miracu¬ 
lous ; and the dread and terror it 
inspired is vividly described. (Ex. 
x. 22, 23.) So of the darkness 
that shrouded the earth when our 
Saviour was put to death, (Luke 
xxiii. 44, 45;) it was manifestly 
miraculous. No natural eclipse 
of the sun could take place at that 
period of the moon; and the hea¬ 
then writers themselves acknow¬ 
ledge that it was a prodigy. 

DART. (See Ahmour.) 




DAT 

DATHAN. (See Kcrah.) 

DAVID (1 Sam. xvi. 13) was 
the son of Jesse, of the tribe of 
Judah. He was born in Bethle¬ 
hem B. c. 1085, and was, both in 
his prophetical and regal charac¬ 
ter, an eminent type of the Mes¬ 
siah. While he was employed as 
a shepherd in his father’s fields, 
God sent Samuel to Bethlehem, 
with instructions to anoint David 
as king of Israel, in the place of 
Saul, who had incurred the divine 
displeasure, and was therefore to 
be deposed. He was then about 
twenty-two years old. He did 
not succeed at once to the throne, 
but first became Saul’s armour- 
bearer. (1 Sam. xvi. 14—23.) 
Then he retired to Bethlehem, but 
soon appeared as the champion of 
the Israelites, against Goliath, a 
famous giant of the Philistines, 
whom he slew. (1 Sam. xvii.) 
This victory greatly advanced his 
reputation, and secured him a 
high place in the court and camp 
of the king. In this situation, he 
formed a friendship with Jona¬ 
than, the king’s son, which is 
memorable for its strength and 
sacredness. (1 Sam. xviii. 1-5.) 
Soon, however, Saul found that 
his own fame was likely to be 
eclipsed by that of the young man 
from Bethlehem ; he became jea¬ 
lous of him, and from that time 
to the end of his own lifo pursued 
him with a most malignant hosti¬ 
lity, (1 Sam. xviii. 10, ] l;) and he 
even gave his daughter Michal in 
marriage to him, with the secret 
hope that she would prove a snare 
to him. 

After a series of military suc¬ 
cesses, in which his wisdom and 
valour were conspicuous, and after 
several narrow escapes from the 
malice of the king, which are mi- 


DAV 

nutely detailed by the sacred hie 
torian, and which David himself 
celebrates in his Psalms, he at 
length received succours from the 
tribes of Judah and Benjamin, at 
least sufficient to protect himself 
in his exile. (1 Chron. xii.) This 
only rendered Saul still more im. 
placable, for he regarded it as an 
open act of rebellion, and perse¬ 
cuted him with increased malig¬ 
nity. Two or three times the king 
was completely at David's mercy, 
but he forbore to take his life. 
(1 Sam. xxiv. xxvi.) 

In process of time, Jonathan 
and his two brothers were killed, 
in a battle with the Philistines, 
on mount Gilboa, (1 Sam. xxxi.; 
2 Sam. i.;) and Saul, finding him¬ 
self defeated, and his army com¬ 
pletely routed, fell upon his own 
sword and died. Then David, by 
divine direction, removed to He¬ 
bron, where the chief men of Ju¬ 
dah met him, and offered him the 
government of their tribe, which 
he accepted, and administered it 
for upwards of seven years; but 
at the end of that period, and 
when every other claim to the 
throne had been extinguished, 
David ascended the throne of Is¬ 
rael, for which he had long before 
been designated. Soon after he 
assumed the government, he ob¬ 
tained possession of Jerusalem, 
reduced the fortress which the 
Jebusites had maintained, and 
established the seat of his govern¬ 
ment there. Under his wise and 
liberal policy, the place was great¬ 
ly enlarged; magnificent edifices 
rose up on every side; fortifica¬ 
tions were erected, and the ark, 
which had been before without a 
fixed abode, was brought into the 
new city with religious ceremo¬ 
nies peculiarly joyful and solemn. 

1«9 




DAV 

Thenceforward, Jerusalem be¬ 
came the capital of the kingdom, 
the residence of the royal family, 
and, more than all, the city of 
God. (Ps. xlviii. 2; Matt. v. 35.) 
To it the tribes repaired from every 
quarter of the land to celebrate 
their annual festivals; and its 
growth in population, wealth and 
splendour was very rapid. 

David now formed the design 
of building a magnificent temple 
for the worship of Jehovah, to 
take the place of the tabernacle, 
which was but a temporary and 
movable structure. He was in¬ 
formed, however, by God’s direc¬ 
tion, that this service would be 
reserved for his son Solomon. 

After several contests with the 
nations that bordered on Israel, 
in which David was uniformly 
victorious, there broke out a war 
with the Ammonites, (see Ammo¬ 
nites,) during the progress of 
which David fell into those most 
aggravated sins,, of murder and 
adultery, which brought disgrace 
and distress onjiis family and go¬ 
vernment, and involved him in 
trouble during the remnant of his 
days. (2 Sam. xii. 9.) His do¬ 
mestic peace was destroyed by the 
sin of Amnon and Tamar. Then 
came the cruel and unnatural re¬ 
bellion of Absalom, which com¬ 
pelled the king to flee from his 
capital, and exile himself, to 
avoid being cut off by a parricidal 
hand. Then the death of Absa¬ 
lom, though it brought relief to 
the kingdom, inflicted a deep 
wound on the father’s heart. The 
insurrection under Sheba, and the 
murder of Arnasa by Joab, follow¬ 
ed in quick succession. And, to 
close the melancholy catalogue, 
was the terrible judgment which 
he brought upon himself and the 
200 


DAY 

nation by numbering the people, 
for som t purpose which was sinful 
in the sight of God, though not 
explained to us. Dai id was now 
seventy years old, and had reign¬ 
ed forty years over the tribe of 
Judah, and thirty-three over the 
whole kingdom of Israel. Just 
before his death, his son Adonijah 
made a bold attempt to usurp the 
throne; but his purpose was de¬ 
feated, and, to secure the kingdom 
against any pretender, David re¬ 
signed the crown to Solomon ; put 
into his hands the plan and model 
of the temple, and the treasure he 
had accumulated for the erection 
of it; summoned the influential 
men of the nation, and delivered 
his farewell address. And then, 
in the year B. c. 1014, exchanged, 
as we have every reason to be¬ 
lieve, a corruptible crown for an 
incorruptible one, and a state of 
severe probation and discipline 
for the glory and blessedness of 
the heavenly world. (For a full 
and lucid history of this eminent 
monarch, with a map adapted ex¬ 
pressly to the sacred narrative; 
interesting illustrations of several 
scenes in his life; an appendix of 
references; a complete analysis 
of his travels; and a table, indi¬ 
cating the date and occasion of 
the most remarkable Psalms,—see 
Life of David.) 

The term David is sometimes 
applied to the Messiah. (Ezek. 
xxxiv. 23, 24; Hos. iii. 5.) 

When David is spoken of 04 
the man after God’s own heart , (1 
Sam. xiii. 14; Acts xiii. 22,) re¬ 
ference is obviously intended to 
his general character and conduct, 
and not to every particular in¬ 
stance of it. As he was human, 
he was imperfect; and, when he 
sinned, God punished him, an^ 




DAY 

that with great severity But ho 
was remarkable for his devotion 
to God’s service, and he kept him¬ 
self from idols. He established 
the government of Israel, and ex¬ 
tended its dominions to the full 
extent of the promise to Abra¬ 
ham, and lefta compact and united 
empire, stretching from Egypt to 
Lebanon, and from the Euphrates 
to the Mediterranean. His Psalms 
place him among the most emi¬ 
nent of prophets and holy men. 
It has been well said, that in sub¬ 
limity and tenderness of expres¬ 
sion, in loftiness and purity of 
religious sentiment, they are with¬ 
out parallel. They embody the 
universal language of religious 
emotion. The songs which cheer¬ 
ed the solitudes of Engedi, or ani¬ 
mated the Hebrews, as they wound 
along the glens or hill-sides of 
Judea, have been repeated for 
ages, in almost every part of the 
habitable world; in the remotest 
islands of the ocean; among the 
forests of America, and the deserts 
of Africa. How many hearts have 
they softened, purified, consoled 
and exalted, by the deep, devo¬ 
tional fervour they have kindled, 
and the views of the divine wis¬ 
dom, holiness and love to which 
they have led! 

Key of David. (See Key.) 

DAY. (Gen. i. 5.) The natural 
day consists of twenty-four hours, 
or one revolution of the earth 
upon its axis. Three hundred 
and sixty-five of such revolu¬ 
tions make a year, or one revolu¬ 
tion of the earth around the sun. 
The artificial day i& the time dur¬ 
ing which the sun is above the 
horizon. Both these uses of the 
term occur, Gen. i. 5. The civil 
day is reckoned differently Dy 
different nation 3 : some from sun- 


DAY 

rise to sunrise; others from sun¬ 
set to sunset; others still from 
noon to noon, or from midnight 
to midnight. (See Creation.) 
The Jewish day was reckoned 
from evening to evening. Theii 
Sabbath, or seventh, began on 
what we call Friday, at sunset, 
and ended on what we call Satur¬ 
day, at sunset. (Ex. xii. 18 ; Lev. 
xxiii. 32.) This mode of reckon¬ 
ing days was not uncommon in 
other Eastern nations. Some have 
conjectured that this computation 
was established after the children 
of Israel left Egypt, in order to 
distinguish them in this, as in all 
other respects, from the surround¬ 
ing nations, whose day com¬ 
menced in honour of their chief 
god, the sun, at the time of his 
rising. If we suppose this was 
the origin of the practice, it was 
not confined to the Jews, but ex¬ 
tended to the Phenicians, Numi- 
dians, and others. The day was 
originally divided into morning, 
noon and night. The word day, 
in John xi. 9, is used in contra¬ 
distinction from night or dark¬ 
ness. The term hour is first in¬ 
troduced into the sacred writings, 
Dan. iii. 6; but it is very doubt¬ 
ful whether any definite term is 
denoted by it. In our Saviour’s 
time, the division of the day into 
twelve hours was known. (John 
xi. 9.) In Europe and America, 
and most civilized countries, the 
day begins at midnignt. (See 
Watch.) The word day is often 
used by the sacred writers to de¬ 
note an indefinite time. (Gen. ii 
4; Isa. xxii. 5; Acts xvii. 31.) 
So also it may be remarked, that 
the term, “three days and three 
ni(jht8,” (Matt. xii. 40,) denotes 
the same space of time as “ three 
day8.” (Matt, xxvii. 63, 64. See 



DAY 

on tho who.e subject of the divi- ! 
sion of time. Biblical Antiqui- I 
ties, vol. i. cnap. viii. $ 4.) 

Daysman. (Job ix. 33.) An 
arbitrator, or person to judge be¬ 
tween contending parties. 

Day-spring. (Job xxxviii. 12 ; 
Luke i. 78.) The first dawning 
of light. (Comp. Isa. lx. 1, 2, and 
Rev. xxii. 16.) 

Day-star, or Morning-star, 
(2 Pet. i. 19.) in the figurative 
language of the apostle, is sup¬ 
posed to mean the light which 
shines on the soul of the believer, 
and cheers him with the expecta¬ 
tion of a perfect day of holiness 
and joy. 

Lord’s-day. (See Sabbath.) 

DEACON. (1 Tim. iii. 1C.) 
This name, as a title of office, was 
first given to seven men of honest 
report, full of the Holy Ghost and 
wisdom, who were appointed over 
the business of serving tables, in 
order that the apostles might be 
at liberty to give themselves con¬ 
tinually to prayer and the ministry 
of the word. They were set apart 
by prayer and the laying on of the 
apostles’ bands. (Acts vi. 1-4.) 
The qualifications and duties of 
deacons are particularly set forth 
in Acts vi. 1-6, and 1 Tim. iii. 8- 
12. The female ministers, or dea¬ 
conesses, were probably employed 
in attending upon those of their 
own sex, in some of the same 
offices and duties which the dea¬ 
cons performed for their brethren. 

DEAD, DEATH. (Gen. xxv. 
il ; Ex. iv. 19.) Death is the de¬ 
struction or extinctit n of life. By 
the transgression o I God’s com¬ 
mandment, our first parents be¬ 
came liable to death. The threat¬ 
ening was, “ in the day that thou 
eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.” 
(Gen ii. 17; Rom. v. 12-14; 1 Cor. 

202 


DEB 

xv. 21, 22 ; Heb. ix. 27.) This ex- 
pression does not mean to define 
the time of actual dissolution, but 
rather to denote an inevitable lia¬ 
bility or exposure to death, which, 
in that day, and by that act, they 
should surely incur. 

The sacred writers speak of a 
death which affects the body only, 
(Gen. xxv. 11;) of another which 
describes the condition of the soul 
under the power of sin, (Eph. ii. 
1 ;) and a third, which denotes the 
everlasting perdition of the wick¬ 
ed. (James v. 20.) In each of 
these senses, our divine Redeemer 
may be regarded as having virtu¬ 
ally destroyed death, and deliver¬ 
ed them who, through fear of death, 
were all their lifetime subject to 
bondage. (Heb. ii. 14, 15.) To 
avail ourselves, however, of the 
benefits of his perfect triumph, we 
must believe, trust, love and obey 
him. (See Bury, Resurrection, 
Christ.) 

DEBIR, or KIRJATH-SE- 
PI1ER, (Judg. i. 11,) or KIR- 
JATH-SANNAH. (Josh. xv. 49.) 
A stronghold of the sons of Anak, 
which was conquered by Joshua, 
(Josh. x. 38,39,) and assigned to 
the tribe of Judah. It was after¬ 
wards re-captured by the Canaan- 
ites, and again subdued by the 
Israelites under Othniel. (Josh, 
xv. 15-17.) It afterwards became 
a city of the Levites. (Josh. xxi. 
15.) There was another town of 
this name among the possessions 
of Gad, east of the Jordan, (Josh, 
xiii. 26,) and a third on the bor¬ 
der of Judah and Benjamin. 
(Comp. Josh. xiii. 26, and xv. 7.) 

DEBORAH. 1. (Judg. iv. 4.) 
A woman of eminent wisdom and 
holiness, (called aprophetess,) and 
a judge of the people of Israel. 
She was the wife of Lapidoth, 



DEC 

(though some think the passage 
should read, a woman of Lapi- 
dothy) and had her judgment-seat 
under a palm-tree, which is hence 
called by her name. (Judg. iv. 
5.) Israel was suffering at that 
time a most oppressive bondage 
under Jabin, a Canaanitish king, 
to which they were doomed in 
consequence of their sin. Debo¬ 
rah, by divine direction, called 
upon Barak, who had probably 
signalized himself in some way, 
and commanded him, as from 
God, to station himself upon 
mount Tabor, with a prescribed 
number of men, and she would 
see to it that Sisera, the com¬ 
mander of the tyrant’s army, 
should be there, and should fall 
into Barak’s hands. Barak en¬ 
gaged to undertake the enter¬ 
prise, if Deborah would accompa¬ 
ny him. To this she consented; 
intimating, however, that if she 
went, the honour of the victory 
would be hers, and not his, and 
that Sisera would be regarded as 
having fallen by the hands of a 
woman. (Judg. ix. 54.) The two 
armies met, and the event was as 
Deborah predicted. Sisera fled, 
though his army was cut off, and 
every man slain. The triumphal 
song, composed or dictated by 
Deborah on that occasion, is re¬ 
garded as a fine specimen of ori¬ 
ental poetry. (See Barak, Jael.) 

2. (Gen. xxxv. 8.) The name 
of Rebekah’s nurse, who died, and 
was buried near Bethel. 

DECAPOLIS. (Matt. iv. 25.) 
Usually described as a province 
or canton of Judea, within the half 
tribe of Manasseh, east of the 
Jordan; but probably the name 
is applied to ten detached cities 
of Persia, that might have been 
uuited in some alliance or confe-j 


DED 

deracy, not extending to rhe re¬ 
sidue of the district within which 
they were situated. Geographers 
generally agree that Scythopolis 
was the chief of these cities, and 
was the only one of them west of 
the Jordan ; that Hippo, (Hippos,) 
Gadara, Dion, (or Dios,) Pelea, 
(or Pella,) Gerasa, (or Gergesa,) 
Philadelphia and Raphana, (or 
Raphanm,) were seven of the re¬ 
maining nine, and the other two 
were either Kanatha and Capito- 
lias, or Damascus and Otopas. 
These cities were inhabited chiefly 
by foreigners (Greeks) in the days 
of our Saviour, and not by Jews. 
Hence the keeping of swine by 
the Gergesenes, (Matt. viii. 30- 
33,) which was forbidden by the 
Jewish law. 

DED AN. 1. (Jer. xxv. 23; 
xlix. 8; Ezek. xxv. 13.) A dis¬ 
trict of Arabia. Petraea, south of 
Idumea, or Edom, settled by the 
descendants of Dedan, son of Jok- 
shan, son of Abraham and Ketu- 
rah. (Gen. xxv. 3.) 

2. A country of Arabia, on the 
Persian gulf, which traded with 
Tyre in ivory and ebony. (Ezek. 
xxv. 13; xxvii. 15-20; xxxviii. 
13.) It was inhabited by the pos¬ 
terity of Dedan, son of Raamah, 
(Gen. x. 7,) son of Cush ; and long 
after the ruin of Tyre, there was 
a city Daden in this region, which 
carried on an extensive trade, 
part of which was in those arti¬ 
cles mentioned by Ezekiel. The 
location of these places is uncer¬ 
tain. The Dedanim, (Isa. xxi. 
13,) or Dodanim, (Gen. x. 4,) were 
probably the people of Dedan. 

DEDICATE, DEDICATION. 
(Num. vii. 84; 2 Sam. viii. 11.) A 
religious ceremony, by which any 
person, place or thing is set apart 
for the service of God, or to some 
203 




DEF 

eacred use. (Ex. xl.; Num. vii.; 
1 Kings viiL ; Ezra vi.; Neh. xii.) 
Cities, walls, gates and private 
houses were thus dedicated. The 
practice of consecration was very 
common among the Jews, and was 
suited to the peculiar dispensation 
under which they lived. The per¬ 
sons, places and things conse¬ 
crated were, however, for the most 
part designed to serve as patterns, 
examples, or shadows of better 
things in reserve; and now that 
the Messiah,—the true temple, 
altar, priest and sacrifice,—(John 
ii. 19-22 ; Heb. ix. 10,) has come ; 
that which was figurative and 
typical is done away; the presence 
of the divine Redeemer in all the 
assemblies of his people, even 
where only two or three are met 
in his name, may be regarded as 
consecrating every place where it 
is enjoyed. (Matt, xviii. 20 ; Acts 
vii. 48; Ileb. iii. 6.) 

Dedication, feast of the. 
(See Feast.) 

DEFILE. (Lev. xi. 44.) Under 
the Jewish law, many blemishes 
of person and conduct were re¬ 
garded as defilements or pollu¬ 
tions, rendering those upon w hom 
they were found unclean, and sub¬ 
jecting them, for the time being, 
to many civil and religious dis¬ 
abilities. (Mark vii. 2.) The 
term is most frequently used by 
the sacred writers in a figurative 
sense. 

DEGREE. (Ps. cxx. title. 
This word is used to signify rank 
or station. (Ps. lxii. 9.) The 

phrase, “ song or psalm of degrees,” 
—which forms the title to Psalms 
cxx. to cxxxiv. inclusive,—has 
been variously interpreted : some 
suppose it has reference to the 
elevated voice in which they were 
sung; others to the time when 
204 


DEM 

I they were sung, viz. at the annual 
; festivals, when the Jews went up 
to Jerusalem, and that, in this 
sense, they were called odes of 
ascension. (See Selumiel, p. 
21.) Others suppose they were 
sung by the Levites as they as¬ 
cended the steps of the temple. 
and others again suppose that it 
denotes the peculiarly climacteric 
style of these Psalms, viz. that the 
thought or expression of one verse 
is resumed and carried forward 
in the next succeeding verse, as 
in Psalm cxxi. 

DEHAVITES. (Ezra iv. 9.) 
Supposed by Herodotus to be a 
Persian tribe, and, as some think, 
the same who are mentioned as 
from Ava. (2 Kings xvii. 24.) 

DELILAH. (Judg. xvi. 4.) A 
licentious woman, of the valley 
of Sorek, in the tribe of Judah, 
and near the borders of the Phi¬ 
listines, with whom Samson asso¬ 
ciated, and who was the instru¬ 
ment of betraying him to his 
enemies. (See Samson.) 

D E M A S. (Col. iv. 14.) A 
zealous disciple and fellow-labour¬ 
er of Paul, (Philern. 24,) who after¬ 
wards apostatized from the faith, 
through inordinate love of the 
world. (2 Tim. iv. 10; 1 John 
ii. 15.) 

DEMETRIUS. 1. (Acts xix. 
24.) A silversmith who resided 
at Ephesus, and manufactured 
silver shrines, or small portable 
temples and images of Diana. 
(See Diana.) 

This was a very lucrative busi¬ 
ness in that city, where the worship 
of Diana was chiefly maintained; 
and hence, when the gospel began 
to make an impression, and the 
people to forsake their vain idols 
for the service of the living God, 
Demetrius saw that he should lose 




DER 

his business, unless he could still 
keep the people in sin. So he 
called a meeting of those who 
worked at that trade, and made a 
speecti to them, charging the 
Apostle Paul with having taught 
that the gods which they made 
were no gods, and with persuading 
the people not to purchase the im¬ 
ages by the manufacture of which 
they obtained their living. And 
besides this, (or rather as a cover 
to their selfish and avaricious mo¬ 
tives,) he showed them that the 
worship of Diana, which they had 
maintained so long, and with so 
much magnificence and probably 
to the great pecuniary advantage 
of the city, would be brought into 
contempt, if the apostle’s doctrine 
should prevail. By this harangue, 
he inflamed the passions of his 
fellow-craftsmen, and they ex¬ 
cited the multitude, until the whole 
city of Ephesus was thrown into 
an uproar, which was finally quell¬ 
ed by the politic and seasonable 
advice of the town-clerk. 

2. (3 John 12.) A disciple of 
high reputation, and, as'some sup¬ 
pose, (though without warrant,) 
the Demetrius of Ephesus, con¬ 
verted to the faith of the gospel. 

DERBE. (Acts xiv. 6.) A 
town of Lycaonia, east of Iconi- 
um, whither Paul and Barnabas 
fled when expelled from Lystra, 
and where they preached the gos¬ 
pel with success. (Acts xiv. 20.) 
Derbe was the native place sf 
, Gaius. (Acts xx. 4.) 

DESERT. (Ex. v. 3.) This 
word is nearly synonymous with 
wilderness. It signifies generally 
a waste or uncultivated territory, 
as pastures and forests. The mo¬ 
dern acceptation of the word al¬ 
ways implies barrenness; not so 
the ancient. (Ps. lxv. 12.) The 
18 


DEV 

different tracts mentitned under 
this name in the Bible, as Shnr, 
Sin, Paran, <fcc., will be found 
particularly noticed in their pro¬ 
per places. (See Evening Re 
creations, vol. iii. pp. 104-110.) 

DESOLATION, abomination 
of. (See Abominable ,) 

DEUTERONOMY, or the se¬ 
cond law, (so called from its re 
peating the law,) is the fifth book 
of the Bible, and (except the last 
chapter) was evidently written by 
Moses. (Deut. i. 5, comp, with 
Deut. xxxiv. 1; 2 Chron. xxv. 4; 
Dan. ix. 13; Mark xii. 19; Acts 
iii. 22.) This book embraces a 
period of about five or six weeks 
of the fortieth year of the jour- 
neyings of the children of Israel; 
and for the benefit of those who 
were born after the giving of the 
law from Sinai, it recites that law, 
with some unessential variations 
of language, and enforces its ob¬ 
servance by many powerful mo¬ 
tives and pathetic exhortations. 
Moses directed that it should be 
read every seven years, and ap¬ 
pointed the time and manner of 
doing it. (Deut. xxxi. 9-13.) It 
is the last of the five books of 
Moses, and was written a little 
before his death; probably a. m. 
2552. The portions of this book 
which are not substantially found 
in other parts of the Pentateuch, 
are treated of in Union Ques¬ 
tions, vol, iv. less. xxvi. to xxx., 
and Teacher’s Assistant to the 
same vol. pp. 205-224. 

DEVIL. (1 Pet. v. 8.) This 
word, which originally means tra- 
ducer, or false accuser, is some¬ 
times applied to very wicked men 
or women, (John viii. 44; Acts 
xiii. 10 ; 2 Tim. iii. 3 ; Tit. ii. 3,) 
but usually it denotes the one most 
subtle and malignant of the evil 
205 




DEV 

spirits, and the great enemy of 
God and man. 

That there are wicked angels 
or spirits, and that there is one 
more eminently evil than all 
others who, in some form, was 
instrumental iu the temptation 
and fall of man, and who, for pur¬ 
poses unknown to us, has now 
power to seduce and destroy men, 
and who goeth about in our world 
as a roaring lion ranges the forest 
in search of prey, seeking in every 
place, and at all times, whom he 
may destroy;—that such a malig¬ 
nant and powerful being exists, 
none can doubt, unless it is those 
whose minds are “ spoiled by phi¬ 
losophy and vain deceit.” That 
there are difficulties attending 
every attempt to define the cha¬ 
racter and relations of this prince 
of evil, none will deny; but the 
difficulties are much greater if we 
attempt to reconcile the expres¬ 
sions of the sacred writers with 
the opinion that they merely per¬ 
sonify the principle of evil. If 
we compare the passages in which 
his name, character or power is 
introduced, we shall find they can 
only apply to a living, active and 
malicious being, who has exalted 
himself against God, and who is 
striving to frustrate all His pur¬ 
poses of mercy towards man. (Job 
i. and ii.; Matt. iv. 1; John viii. 
44; xii. 31; 2 Cor. iv. 4; xi. 14, 
15; Eph. ii. 2, 3; 1 John iii. 8; v. 
18 ; Rev. xx. 2.) And we are also 
taught that this chief apostate has 
under his control angels or minis¬ 
ters that execute his malicious de¬ 
signs, and that both are finally to 
be destroyed with an everlasting 
destruction. (Matt. xxv. 41; Jude 
6; Rev. xx. 10.) It is important 
to guard against those subtle er¬ 
rors which deprive the prominent 
20ft 


DEW 

and esse itial truths of the gospel 
of all their force and character, 
by turning the expressions in 
which they are conveyed to us 
into fables, or mere figures of 
speech. Eastern travellers have 
furnished very curious accounts 
of people who worship the devil 
and of other heathen nations who 
will not have *ho name of the 
devil spoken, because, they say, 
it may seem like taking part iu a 
controversy between God and a 
fallen angel. 

DEW. (2 Sam. i 21.) A densa 
vapour which falls on the earth 
during the night, and which, in 
Judea, was so copious as in a great 
measure to supply the absence of 
showers. It thus became a beau¬ 
tiful emblem of spiritual blessings, 
(Deut. xxxii. 2; IIos. xiv. 5-7,' 
as well as of temporal prosperity. 
(Job xxix. 19.) Travellers inform 
us that the heat and dryness of 
the air are such, that if it were 
not for the dews, the earth would 
be parched, and all its fruits with¬ 
ered ; and they state that the dews 
are so heavy as to soak the earth 
like a heavy shower. The same 
fact may be inferred from Judg. 
vi. 37-40; 2 Sam. xvii. 12; Job 
xxix. 19; Sol. Song v. 2. The 
psalmist (Ps. cxxxiii. 3) mentions 
particularly the dew of Hermon 
as emblematical of the rich and 
abundant blessings of spiritual 
communion. So Hos. xiv. 5-7. 
And Maundrell tells us that their 
tents, when pitched on Tabor and , 
Hermon, “ were as wet with dew 
as if it had rainod on them all 
night;” and others speax of their 
cloaks, in which they wrapped 
themselves while they slept, as 
being completely wet, as if they 
had oeen immersed in the sea. 

Dr. Shaw, in his travels, speak 



DIA 

ing of ArabiaPetraea, says : ‘The 
dews of the night, as we had the 
heavens only for our covering, 
would frequently wet us to the 
skin; but no sooner was the sun 
risen, and the atmosphere a little 
heated, than the mists were quick¬ 
ly dispersed, and the copious mois¬ 
ture which the dews ha$ commu¬ 
nicated to the sands would be en¬ 
tirely evaporated.” (Hos. vi. 4.) 

DIADEM. (See Crown.) 

DIAL (2 Kings xx. 11; Isa. 
xxxviii. 1-9) is an, instrument 
employed by the Hebrews to mea¬ 
sure time, or to determine the 
apparent progress of the sun by 
the shadow which he casts on the 



Dial. 


dial. It is a matter of much spe¬ 
culation, but little importance, 
what was the form, <fcc. of the dial 
mentioned in the passages above 
cited. 

Ilezekiah king of Judah, was 
sick and near to death. Ho pray¬ 
ed, with great earnestness, that 
his life might be prolonged. Isa¬ 
iah was sent to inform him that 
God would relieve his disease, 
and that in three days he should 
be able to ge up to the temple. 


DIA 

The astonished king asked a sig* 
from the Lord, that a thing »o 
incredible should be done to him. 
The prophet gave him his choice 
of two signs, viz. that the shadow 
of the sun, on the dial of Ahaz, 
should go forward or backward 
ten degrees. The king, suppos¬ 
ing that it would be a more won 
derful token of the divine interpo¬ 
sition, (2 Kings xx. 10,) preferred 
that the shadow should go back; 
and, in answer to the prophet’s 
prayers, the sun, or the shadow 
of it upon the dial, was brought 
back or returned ten degrees. It 
is a question of inconsiderable 
importance whether this miracle 
was wrought upon the rays of the 
sun, by which they were deflected 
ifT'an extraordinary manner, so 
as to produce this retrograde mo¬ 
tion of the shadow, while the sun 
itself seemed-to go on its way,— 
as contended by Bishop Lowth and 
others,—or whether the motion 
of the earth, or the position of the 
sun, were so changed as to pro¬ 
duce this result, as held by Arch¬ 
bishop Usher and the great body 
of the Jews. It was this miracle 
to which reference is made in 2 
Chron. xxxii. 31. 

DIAMOND. (Ex. xxviii. 18.) 
The hardest and most valuable of 
gems, and found chiefly in the 
East Indies and Brazil. It is 
mentioned among the jewels of 
the king of Tyre, (Ezek. xxviii. 
13;) and the expression in Jer. 
xvii. 1, denotes the deep and in¬ 
delible record which was mado 
of the sin of Judah. (See Ada¬ 
mant.) 

DIANA. (Acts xix. 28,1 A 
heathen goddess of great celebri¬ 
ty, (ver. 27,) whose worship was 
attended with peculiar splendour 
and magnificence at Ephesus ' 
207 










DIA 

Her temple in that city was so 
vast and beautiful, as to be rank¬ 
ed among the seven wonders of 
thA world. Pliny tells us that it 
was four hundred and twenty- 
five feet long, and two hundred 
and twenty in breadth, and that 
it was adorned with one hundred 
columns, each sixty feet high; 
twenty-seven of which were curi¬ 
ously carved, and the rest polish¬ 
ed. Little silver models of the 
temple, with the image of the 
goddess ens'hrined in them, were 
made for sale, and sold in such 
quantity as to afford profitable 
work for many hands. (Ver. 24, 
25. See Demetrius.) 


Ooddess Diana. 

The images of this heathen god¬ 
dess represent her as being the 
moon in heaven, a huntress on 
earth, and a queen in the infernal 
regions. Hence she bears the 
figure of a woman with one body 
and three heads, or with three 
208 


DIA 

different faces and one neck. The 
debased and brutish heathen re¬ 
garded her power as extending to 
heaven, earth, the sea and hell; 
and kings and nations worshipped 
her as the dispenser of all their 
prosperity! 

Paul made himself offensive tc 
these idolatrous Ephesians by 
preaching the very plain and sen¬ 
sible doctrine, u that they be no 
gods which are made with hands.” 
Hence the silversmiths, who de¬ 
pended on the manufacture of 
images for their living, were 
greatly excited by the fear that 
their craft was in danger; and so 
they moved the people to suppose 
that the temple it¬ 
self, with all its 
magnificence, 
would be destroy¬ 
ed, and the city 
cease to be the re¬ 
sort of worship¬ 
pers. (See Ephe¬ 
sus, Paul.) 

DIBON. (Josh, 
xiii. 17.) A city of 
Moab, a few miles 
north of the Arnon, 
now called Diban. 
It was built up by 
the tribe of Gad, 
(Num. xxxii. 33, 
34,) and hence 
called Dibongad. 
(Num. xxxiii. 45.) 
The same place 
is called Ditnon. 
(Isa. xv. 9.) At 
a later day, it re¬ 
turned again to Moab. (Isa. xv. 
2 ; Jer. xlviii. 18, 22.) In Neh. xi. 
25, a Dibon in Judah is mention 
ed, which may be the same with 
Debir. (Josh. xiii. 26. See De- 
bir.) A place called Diban is 
mentioned by modern travellers 











DID 

as situated about three miles north 
of the Am on, or Madjob. 

DIDYMUS. (See Thomas.) 

DINAH. (Gen. xxx. 21.) Only 
daughter of Jacob and Leah. 
When her father was on his re¬ 
turn from Padan-aram to Canaan, 
he halted at Shalem, a city of 
Shechem. Here she mingled with 
the young women of the neigh¬ 
bourhood, and fell a victim to the 
seductive arts of Shechem, son of 
Hamor, who was prince of the 
ccuntry. He afterwards sought 
to marry her; but her brothers 
refused their consent to the alli¬ 
ance, unless the men of Shechem 
would submit to be circumcised. 
To this condition they agreed ; 
and when, by the effect of the 
operation, they were all disabled 
from defending themselves or 
their city, the sons of Jacob at¬ 
tacked them, slew Shechem and 
his father, completely pillaged the 
place, and made prisoners of the 
women and children. Jacob se¬ 
verely reprimanded them for the 
act; but they were so indignant 
at the abuse their sister had suf¬ 
fered, as to justify their mode of 
revenge. (Gen. xxxiv. 31.) Dinah 
is mentioned with the rest of the 
family who went into Egypt. 
(Gen. xlvi. 8, 15.) 

DINNER. (See Meals.) 

DIONYSIUS. (Acts xvii. 34.) 
A convert to the gospel under the 
preaching of Paul at Athens. 
Why he is called the Areopagite 
we cannot tell, unless he was one 
of the judges of the court of Areo¬ 
pagus. Ecclesiastical historians 
say that he became an eminent 
minister of the gospel, ai.d suffer¬ 
ed martyrdom at Athens, A. d. 95. 

. DIOTREPIIES. (3 John 9.) 
Probably a member, and, perhaps, 
an officer, of the church of Co- 
18* 0 


DIS 

rinth. John’s third epistle is ad¬ 
dressed to Gaius of this church, 
(Rom. xvi. 23 ; 1 Cor. i. 1.4 ;) and 
in the course of it, a severe rebuke 
is given to Diotrephes, who seems 
to have questioned the authority 
of the apostle, and to have exer¬ 
cised a most officious and unwar¬ 
rantable power in the church to 
which he belonged. (See art. 
John, epistles op.) 

DISCERNING OF SPIRITS 
(1 Cor. xii. 10) was one of the mi¬ 
raculous gifts of the Holy Ghost, 
by virtue of which the spirits of 
men were tried whether they were 
of God. (1 John iv. 1.) It was 
a most desirable gift in the for¬ 
mer ages of the church, when 
false prophets and wicked spirits 
abounded on every side. An hum¬ 
ble and teachable temper, under 
the promised guidance of the Holy 
Spirit, is one of the best safe¬ 
guards againsttheir deceptive arts. 

DISCIPLE. (Matt. x. 24.) 
One who receives, or professes to 
receive, instruction from another. 
(Matt. xi. 2; Luke xiv. 26, 27, 
33; John ix. 28.) In the New 
Testament, it denotes the pro¬ 
fessed followers of our Saviour; 
but not always his true followers. 
(Matt. xxvi. 20, 21; John vi. 66.' 

DISEASES. (Deut. xxviii. 60.) 
Diseases come upon us by reason 
of sin ; so that the multiplied forms 
in which sickness and suffering 
appear among men, to wear out 
their frail bodies and hurry them 
to the grave, are so many signs 
of the evil of sin, even in its pre¬ 
sent effects. Reference is made 
to the interposition of. God in 
sending and removing diseases. 
(Ps. xxxix. 9-11; xc. 3-12.) 

The plagues, pestilences, and 
other instrumentalities by which, 
in former ages, a multitude of 
209 



DIS 

lives were destroyed at once, were 
often miraculous; that is, the na¬ 
tural causes and progress of dis¬ 
ease were not employed, or were 
Aot visible. (Ex. xii. 23, 29; 2 
Kings xix. 35; 1 Chron. xxi. 12- 
15; Acts xii. 23.) The plagues 
of Egypt were also of this charac¬ 
ter. From an early period, we 
find the agency of evil spirits em¬ 
ployed to afflict and trouble men; 
as in the case of Saul and Job. 
In the time of our Saviour, they 
seem to have been permitted often 
to take entire possession of the 
human frame; in which case the 
bodily, and often the mental pow¬ 
ers, were to a greater or less ex¬ 
tent suspended, and the wretched 
sufferer exposed to a train of the 
most dreadful dangers and cala¬ 
mities. (Matt. xvii. 15; Mark v. 
11-15; Luke ix. 38-40. See Pos¬ 
sessed.) 

The diet and habits of the early 
Jews were so simple and uniform, 
that diseases were uncommon; 
but at a later period, we have 
reason to believe they became 
common and severe, as the man¬ 
ners and customs of the nation 
grew more corrupt and luxurious ; 
so that we may suppose, in the 
multitudes which resorted to our 
Saviour to be healed of all man¬ 
ner of diseases, there would be 
found a fearful list of painful and 
incurable complaints. 

The diseases of Egypt, and 
other countries of similar climate, 
were ophthalmies, or diseases of 
the eyes; leprosies, inflammations 
of the brain, consumptions, pesti¬ 
lential fevers, Ac. Ac. Palsies 
are often mentioned in the New 
Testament. These diseases are 
particularly noticed in the appro¬ 
priate place. (See Biblical An¬ 
tiquities, vol. i. chap. vii. $ 1.) 

210 


DIS 

DISH. (See Table.) 

DISPENSATION. (1 Cor. ix. 
17.) This word, in its scriptural 
use, generally denotes a plan or 
scheme, or a system of precepts 
and principles prescribed and re¬ 
vealed by God, for his own glory 
and for the advantage and happi¬ 
ness of his creatures. (Eph. i. 
10; iii. 2 ; Col. i. 25.) In the pas¬ 
sage above cited it is supposed to 
mean an authority or commission 
to preach the gospel. The dis¬ 
pensation of the law by Moses, 
and of the gospel by Jesus Christ, 
are examples of the use of the 
word in its former meaning. 

DISPERSED, DISPER¬ 
SIONS. (Isa. xi. 12; Jer. xxv. 
34; John vii. 35.) These terms 
are usually applied to the Jews, 
who, after their captivity, and 
still more emphatically, after the 
final destruction of their holy city, 
were scattered abroad through the 
earth. (James i. 1; 1 Pet. i. 1.) 

DISTAFF. (Prov. xxxi. 19.) 
A staff around which the tow is 
wound for spinning. The He¬ 
brew, which in the above passage 
is rendered “ distaff,” is in 2 Sam. 
iii. 29, translated “ staff.” Spin¬ 
dle is mentioned in connection 
with the distaff, as an instrument 
of employment on the part of the 
virtuous woman. In early ages, 
spinning (hence, it is said, the 
law term spinster for a female who 
has not been married) was a part 
>i the household duties of women, 
even in rich and distinguished 
families. At the present day, the 
Egyptian women spend their lei¬ 
sure hours in working with the 
needle, particularly in embroider¬ 
ing veils, handkerchiefs, Ac. with 
coloured silk and gold, in which 
they carry on a sort of traffic 
through the channel of a female 





DIV 



broker. In ancient Egypt, the 
yarn seems all to have been spun 
with the hand, and the spindle is 
seen in all the pictures represent¬ 
ing the manufacture of cloth, as 
well as both men and women em¬ 
ployed in the manufacture. 

DIVINATION (Deut. xviii. 10) 
is the practice of divining or of 
foretelling future events. In the 
passage cited, it is put in connec¬ 
tion with witchcraft, necromancy, 
and other abominations of the 
heathen; which the Jews were to 
avoid. Divination was a prevail¬ 
ing sin among the Israelites and 
many of the Eastern nations. 
The modes, or means of divining 
were by consulting, or being fa¬ 
miliar with spirits, by the motions 
of the stars, clouds, &c., and by 
lots, rods or wands, dreams, the 
flight of birds, the entrails of ani¬ 
mals, Ac.. &c. 

It is said of Joseph’s cup (Gen. 
xliv. 5) that he divined by it. It 
is not to be inferred, however, 
that he practised divination. He 
had received from ixod the gift 
of interpreting dreams, and he 
exercised it with great humility 


DIV 

and always for God’s glory. It 
may be that Joseph’s officer mis¬ 
took the gifts of his lord, and sup¬ 
posed that he must have the power 
of divination. This is certainly 
the most obvious construction. It 
is said, however, by a learnec 
critic, that the word here render¬ 
ed divineth, elsewhere signifies to 
make an experiment; so that the 
passage may read thus: Is not 
this the cup wherein my lord 
drinketh, and whereby he has 
made a trial of your honesty, lay¬ 
ing it in your w«iy to see whether 
you would take it or not? 

The practice of divination in 
all its forms is reprobated with 
marked severity by the law of 
Moses and by the sacred writers. 
(Lev. xx. 27; Deut. xviii. 9-14; 
Jer. xiv. 14; Ezek. xiii. 8, 9.) It 
is a branch of pagan idolatry and 
superstition; and in whatever 
form it is practised or regarded, 
it is reproachful to Christianity, 
and argues great folly, ignorance 
and sin. (2 Pet. i. 19.) 

DIVORCE. (Jer. iii. 8.) The 
dissolution of the marriage rela¬ 
tion. This was permitted by the 
law of Moses, for reasons of local 
expediency, and under circum 
stances peculiar to their situation 
as a people. It was a mere civil 
regulation, and seems tohave been 
so much abused by the licentious 
that it became common for a man 
to put away his wife for the most 
trivial cause; and many of the 
Jewish doctors contended that this 
was the spirit of the law. To 
tempt our Saviour to say some¬ 
thing offensive, they put the ques¬ 
tion to him whether it was lawful 
to do this; and, in the course of 
the conversation which ensued, ho 
reproves their conduct in this par. 
ticular with great severity, and 
211 


















D )C 

resuains the practice to one class 
of cases. (Matt. xix. 3-9.) 

The hue band was required tc 
give his wife a writing or bill of 
divorcement, in which was set 
forth the date, place and cause of 
her repudiation, and a permission 
was given by it to marry whom 
she pleased. It was provided, 
however, that she might be re¬ 
stored to the relation, at any future 
time, if she did not meanwhile 
marry any other man. 

The woman also seems to have 
had power, at least, in a later pe¬ 
riod of the Jewish state, to put 
away her husband. (Mark x. 12.) 

DOCTOR. (Luke ii. 46.) Doc¬ 
tors or teachers of the law were 
those who made it their business 
or profession to teach the law of 
Moses; and they were in great 
repute among the Jews. Some 
have distinguished the scribes 
from the doctors, by supposing 
that the former wrote their opi¬ 
nions, while the latter taught 
extemporaneously. The doctors 
weie generally of the sect of the 
Pharisees; perhaps always. (Luke 
v. 17.) It is thought that the 
peculiar office of teachers is in¬ 
tended, 1 Cor. xii. 28. (1.) Apos¬ 
tles or public instructors. (2.) 
Prophets or occasional instruct¬ 
ors; and, (3.) Doctors or teachers, 
t. e. private instructors. 

DODANIM. (See Dedan.) 

DOEG. (See Ahimelech.) 

DOG. (Ex. xi. 7.) The dog 
was not only an unclean animal 
by the Jewish law, but was re¬ 
garded with peculiar contempt, 
(Ex. xxii. 31; Deut. xxiii. 18; 1 
Sam. xvii. 43; xxiv. 14; 2 Sam. 
ix. 8; 2 Kings viii. 13; Phil. iii. 
2; Rev. xxii. 15;) and he is so 
regarded at the present day by 
the Turks, who can find no inor** 
%U 


DOG 

abusive and contemptuous lan¬ 
guage to apply to a Christian, 
than to call him a dog. 

Solomon puts a living dog in 
contrast with a dead lion, to show 
that the meanest thing alive is of 
more importance than the noblest 
that is dead. (Eccl. ix. 4.) Ab 
ner’s exclamation, “Am I a dog’s 
head?” (2 Sam. iii. 8,) has a sig¬ 
nification of the same kind. Isa¬ 
iah expresses the necessity of 
repentance and sincerity to make 
a sacrifice acceptable to God, by 
declaring, that without them, “ he 
that sacrifices a lamb, does no¬ 
thing better than if he had cut 
off a dog’s neck.” (Isa. lxvi. 3.) 
The only useful purpose to which 
dogs appear to have been put was 
to guard the flocks, (Job xxx. 1;) 
and even in that passage they are 
spoken of with contempt. Isaiah 
may be understood to allude to 
this manner of employing them in 
his description of the spiritual 
watchmen of Israel. (Isa. lvi. 
10 , 11 .) 

Although dogs were numerous 
in the Jewish cities, they were not 
kept in their houses, but wander¬ 
ed through the streets, picking up 
whatever was thrown out of the 
remains of the table, after the fa¬ 
mily had eaten. So David speaks 
of his wicked enemies. (Ps. lix. 
6, 14, 15.) The Mosaic law di¬ 
rected the people to throw to the 
dogs the flesh that was torn by 
beasts. (Ex. xxii. 31.) 

This manner of living accounts 
for the savageness of the animal 
among that people. They preyed 
upon human flesh, lickedthe blood 
of the slain, and sometimes were 
wild enough to attack men, aa 
bloodhounds do. (1 Kings xiv. 
11; xvi. 4; xxi. 19, 23; xxii. 38; 
2 Kings ix. 10, 36 Ps. xxii. Iff 



DOG 


DOG 



20 ; lxviii. 23 ; Jer. xv. 3.) Their 
habits made them dangerous to 
touch. (Prov. xxvi. 17.) 

The Eastern people were in the 
practice of applying the names of 
animals to men who resemble 
them in their disposition, as we 
call a cunning man a fox, a brave 
man a lion, &c. So our Saviour 
told his disciples, “ Give not that 
which is holy unto the dogs, lest 


they turn upon you, and tearyaa, 
after they have eaten it, (Matt. ,it. 
6 ;) moaning that they should no', 
offer the sacred truths of the gos¬ 
pel to those insolent and abomi¬ 
nable men who would only heap 
abuse on them for it: having re¬ 
ference also to the practice of the 
priests at the altar, who would not 
throw to the dogs any of the moat 
used in sacrifice. He told also 
213 






















































DOO 

tho Syro-Phenician woman, that 
it was not proper to give the chil¬ 
dren’s meat to doge, (Matt. xv. 
26;) that is, the gospel was sent 
first to the Jews, who are called 
the children, and was not yet to 
be given to one of the Gentiles, 
as she was, whom the Jews called 
dogs; that the children must be 
first fed before the meat was 
thrown into the street. Those 
who are shut out of the kingdom 
of heaven are dogs, sorcerers, &c. 
(Rev. xxii. 15,) where the word 
is applied to all kinds of vile per¬ 
sons, as it is to a particular class in 
Deut. xxiii. 18. The comparison 
of Solomon illustrating the return 
of a fool to his folly, cited in 2 Pet. 
ii. 22, is taken from a natural 
fact. Persecutors are called dogs, 
Ps. xxii. 16. 

DOOR. (See Dwellings.) 

DOR. (Judg. i. 27.) This is 
now a small town on the Mediter¬ 
ranean coast, about nine miles 
north of Cesarea. Its present 
name is Tortura. It is close upon 
the beach, and contains about 
five hundred inhabitants. It was 
formerly a royal city, or capital 
of a district of Canaan, (Josh. xii. 
23,) and was assigned to the half¬ 
tribe of Manasseh. 

DORCAS. (See Tabitha.) 
DOTHAN (Gen. xxxvii. 17) 
was situated near Jezreel, about 
twelve miles north of Samaria, at 
a narrow pass in the mountains 
of Gilboa. It is memorable as 
the place where Joseph’s brethren 
sold him, and also where the Sy¬ 
rian troops attempted to seize 
Elisha. (2 Kings vi. 13-23.) 

DOTING (1 Tim. vi. 4) signi¬ 
fies, in this connection, being ex¬ 
cessively fond of, or foolishly and 
vainly bent upon, questions and 
strifes about mere words. 

214 


DOV 

DOUGH. (See Bread.) 
DOVE. (Gen. viii. 9.) A bird 
clean by the Mosaic law, and often 
mentioned by the sacred writers. 



In their wild state, they dwell 
principally in holes in the rocks. 
(Sol. Song ii. 14; Jer. xlviii. 28.) 
They are innocent in their dispo¬ 
sitions, and make no resistance to 
their enemies. (Matt. x. 16.) They 
are very much attached to their 
mates; and when one is absent or 
dies, the other, or survivor, la¬ 
ments its loneliness. (Isa. xxxviii. 
14; lix. 11; Ezek. vii. 16; Nah. 
ii. 7.) 

There are various allusions to 
the mildness, peacefulness and af¬ 
fection of doves. The church is 
called a turtle-dove and a dove, 
or compared to it, Ps. lxxiv. 19 ,• 
Sol. Song i. 15; ii. 14; iv. 1; v. 
2; vi. 9. Where “ doves’ eyes” 
are spoken of in these passages, 
allusion is made to the meekness 
of thoir expression. It is thought 
by eminent critics, that Sol. Song 
v. 12, is wrongly translated; that 
allusion is made to a deep blue- 
coloured pigeon, common in the 
East, and that it is meant to com¬ 
pare the white of the eye to milk, 
and the iris to a blue pigeon ; and 
that the comparison is, “ His eyes 
are like a dark-blue pigeon, stand¬ 
ing in the middle of a pool of 
milk.” It was in the manner of 
a dove that the Holy Spirit de* 








DOV 

tended upon our Saviour at his 
baptism. (Matt. iii. 16; Mark i. 
10; Luke iii. 22; John i. 32.) 
Hosea compares timid Ephraim 
to “a silly dove without heart,” 
(vii. 11;) and says, that when the 
Jews shall be called to their own 
land, they shall “ tremble,” or fly, 
“ as a dove out of the land of As¬ 
syria.” (xi. 11.) David in his dis¬ 
tress wished that he could fly 
from his troubles as the doves do 
to warmer climates on the ap¬ 
proach of winter. (Ps. lv. 6-8.) 
The appearance of the dove is 
spoken of as an emblem of spring, 
Sol. Song ii. 12. 

The dove is mentioned in an 
interesting part of the early his¬ 
tory of the world, as being sent 
out by Noah from the ark to dis¬ 
cover whether the dry land had 
appeared. (Gen. viii. 6-12.) 

The dove was used in sacrifices. 
It was, among other animals, pre¬ 
pared by Abram, when God ma¬ 
nifested his intention to bless him, 
as narrated in Gen. xv. 9. When 
a child was born, the mother was 
required, within a certain time, to 
bring a lamb and a young pigeon, 
or turtle-dove, for offerings; but 
if she was too poor to afford a lamb, 
she might bring two turtle-doves, 
or two young pigeons. (Lev. xii. 
6-8.) Thus we may judge of the 
poverty of Mary, the mother of 
Jesus, when, upon his birth, she 
brought to the temple at Jerusa¬ 
lem the two birds instead of a 
lamb. (Luke ii. 24.) It was to 
supply applicants with animals for 
sacrifice thatcertain persons satin 
the temple with doves to sell, 
whom our Lord forced to leave 
it, because “ the house of prayer” 
was net a fit place for buying and 
selling fMark xi. 15; John ii. 
14-16.' 


DOW 

There is some obscurity in Ps. 
lxviii. 13 ; but the natural import 
of it is most probably the correct 
one. The design of the psalmist 
is to present in contrast, the con¬ 
dition of the Israelites (who were 
addressed) at two periods of their 
history. In the day of their af¬ 
fliction and calamity, they were 
covered, as it were, with shame 
and confusion; but in the day of 
their prosperity, they should re¬ 
semble the cleanest and most 
beautiful of birds. 

The allusion in Isa. lx. 8, may 
be to the immense compact masses 
of these birds that Eastern travel¬ 
lers describe, as they are seen fly¬ 
ing to their houses or places of 
general resort. They sometimes 
resemble a distant heavy cloud, 
and are so dense as to obscure the 
rays of the sun. (See Turtle- 
Dove.) 

Dove’s dung. (2 Kings vi. 25.) 
There are but two modes of inter¬ 
preting this passage; either of 
which is satisfactory. The first 
is, that this particular substance 
was remarkably valuable as a ma 
nure for those vegetables which 
might be soonest raised to supply 
the famishing Samaritans; and 
the other is, that a vegetable re¬ 
sembling the chick-pea, or lentil, 
is intended, which resembles 
dove’s dung in appearance, and is 
still a common article of food at 
Cairo, Damascus, &c., especially 
for Eastern pilgrims, and of which 
the cab would be a suitable mea¬ 
sure. (See Lentils, Measures.) 
The passage evidently expresses 
the extreme severity of the famine. 

DOWRY, (Gen. xxx. 20,) in the 
Eastern acceptation of the word, 
means that which the husband 
pays for his wife, instead of that 
which the wife receives from her 
215 



DRA 

father and brings to hjr husband. 
(Geu. xxix. 18; xxxiv. 12 ; 1 Sam. 
xviii. 25.) So (Ex. xxii. 16, 17; 
Josh. xv. 18) a man was required 
to pay a certain sum as dowry, or 
a nuptial present; and this was 
to be according to the rank she 
sustained, and such as the fathers 
of virgins of the same rank were 
accustomed to receive for their 
daughters. (Hos. iii. 2.) 

DRAGON. (Job xxx. 29.) It 
is quite uncertain what animal, if 
any, is intended by this name. It 
is not improbable that it is a ge¬ 
neric term, denoting some class 
of animals distinguished by some 
common characteristic; and yet, 
from Lam. iv. 3, and Mic. i. 8, we 
should infer that the word is ap¬ 
plied to a particular animal that 
cries and gives suck. The word 
translated dragon, Isa. xxvii. 1, 
is translated whale, Gen. i. 21, and 
Job vii. 12; and serpent, Ex. vii. 
9 ; and dragon, Deut. xxxii. 33, 
and Ps. xci. 13. In Isa. xxxiv. 
13, the word translated dragons 
means some creature of the wil¬ 
derness, whose presence denotes 
desolation. So in Job xxx. 29; 
Ps. xliv. 19; Jer. ix. 11; in all 
which passages, solitude and de¬ 
solation are intended to be illus¬ 
trated. (Mic. i. 8.) The figura¬ 
tive use of this term by the sacred 
writers, as in Ps. lxxiv. 13; Ezek. 
xxix. 3 ; Rev. xii. 3, and xx. 2, is 
sufficiently obvious. 

DRAMS. (See Measures.) 
DRAUGHT. (Matt. xv. 17.) A 
vault or drain for the reception 
of filth. In this sense it is pro¬ 
bably used, 2 Kings x. 27. When 
applied to fishes, it means those 
which are caught by one sweep 
or drawing of the net 

DREAM. (Dan. vii. 1.) From 

very early period, dreams have 
216 


DRE 

been observed with juperstitious 
regard. God was pleased to make 
use of them to reveal his purposes 
or requirements to individuals, 
ana he also gave power to inter¬ 
pret them. (Gen. xx. 3-6 ; xxviii. 
12-14; 1 Sam. xxviii. 6; Dan. ii.; 
Joel ii. 28.) And if any person 
dreamed a dream which was pe¬ 
culiarly striking and significant, 
he was permitted to go to the 
high-priest in a particular way. 
and see if it had any special im¬ 
port. But the observance of or¬ 
dinary dreams, and the consult¬ 
ing of those who pretend to skill 
in their interpretation, is repeat¬ 
edly forbidden. (Deut. xiii. 1-5; 
xviii. 9-14.) 

The words dreams and visions 
are sometimes used indiscrimi¬ 
nately, (Gen. xlvi. 2; Num. xii. 
6; Job xx. 8; xxxiii. 14,15; Dan. 
ii. 28; vii. 1,) though elsewhere 
they would seem to be distin¬ 
guished. (Joel ii. 28.) It has been 
suggested, that, perhaps, where 
any difference is intended between 
prophetic dreams and prophetic 
visions, it may be much the same 
in one sense as between common 
dreams and the wandering of the 
mind in a delirium. Of the lat¬ 
ter description might be the cases 
recorded, 2 Kings vi. 17, and vii. 
6. In respect to Paul’s vision, (2 
Cor. xii. 1, 2, 4,) it seems to be 
doubtful whether his soul were 
not separated from the body, and 
permitted to mingle, for a moment, 
with celestial beings ; for we must 
remember that all our notions of 
space and distance between this 
world and the world of spirits, are 
entirely fallacious. Sometimes 
miraculous revelations of God’s 
will are called visions. (Luke : 
22; 1 Sam. iii. 15. See Vision 
Trance.) 





DRI 

The power of interpreting 
dreams was, of course, a superna¬ 
tural gift, so far as the dreams had 
reference to future events; for 
these are necessarily unknown, 
except to the Supreme Disposer 
of them. Of course Joseph was 
divinely instructed. (Gen. xl. 5, 
8; xli. 16.) Since the fuller re¬ 
velation of God’s will has been 
made to us in the gospel, all con¬ 
fidence in dreams, as indicative 
of future events, is presumptuous 
and delusive; and all pretension 
to the power of interpreting them 
must be regarded as in the high¬ 
est degree impious and absurd. 

DRINK. (Gen. xxi. 19.) The 
use of strong drink, even to ex¬ 
cess, was not uncommon among 
the Israelites. This is inferred 
from the striking figures with 
which the use and effects of it 
have furnished the sacred writers, 
(Ps. cvii. 27 ; Isa. xxiv. 20 ; xlix. 
26; ii. 17-22,) and also from va¬ 
rious express prohibitions and 
penalties. (Prov. xx. 1; Isa. v. 
11; Hab. ii. 15, 16.) 

Strong drink. A variety of 
intoxicating drinks are comprised 
under the term strong drink. (Isa. 
xxviii. 7.) It indicates any in¬ 
toxicating drink, whether brewed 
from grain or made of honey¬ 
combs, dates, or boiled fruits The 
Alexandrine interpreters, who 
were doubtless familiar with the 
beer of Egypt, render this word 
by other terms signifying intoxi¬ 
cating drink. Pliny enumerates 
various vegetables which enter 
into its composition: among the 
rest, figs, pomegranates, apples, 
and particularly uates. This dale- 
wine was in great request among 
the Parthians, Indians and other 
orientals; and is said by Xeno 
phon to have produced severe 
19 


.1KO 

headaches. We may naturally 
infer that the strong drink in¬ 
cludes this liquor of dates, as well 
as other artificial beverages. 

The Pharisees, it is said, strain¬ 
ed their drink for fear of swallow¬ 
ing some unclean animal. Hence 
it is believed that in the expres¬ 
sion, Matt xxiii. 24, at should be 
rendered out. However proper 
this construction may be, the ori¬ 
ginal word requires neither a dif¬ 
ferent rendering nor a reference 
to a doubtful custom, to render its 
meaning sufficiently obvious. (See 
Wine, Vinegar.) 

DRINK-OFFERING. (See 
Offering.) 

DROMEDARY. (Isa. lx. 6.) A 
species of the camel remarkable 
for swiftness of motion, (Jer. ii. 
23,) which is from sixty to ninety 
miles or more in a day. He dif¬ 
fers from the ordinary camel in 
that he is smaller, cannot bear the 
same degree of heat, and has but 
one hump or protuberance on the 
back. He is controlled by a bri¬ 
dle fastened in a ring which passes 
through the nose. (2 Kings xix. 
28.) (See Engraving on page 
218.) 

DROUGHT. (Ps. xxxii 4.) 
From the end of April to Septem¬ 
ber the land of Judea was very 
dry. It was “the drought of sum¬ 
mer.” The grass was sometimes 
completely withered, (Ps. cii. 4,) 
and the parched earth broken into 
chasms. The heavens seemed like 
brass, and the earth like iron, 
(Deut. xxviii. 23,) and all the land 
and the creatures upon it suffered; 
and nothing but the copious dews 
of the night preserved the life of 
any living thing. (Hag. i. 11.) 
The heat was at times excessive. 
Di. Clarke tells us, that when ho 
was travelling near Caua, in Gall. 

217 



DRU 


DUM 



Dromedary. 


lee, in July, the thermometer, in 
a gloomy recess under ground, 
perfectly shaded, stood at one 
hundred degrees of Fahrenheit at 
noon. 

It is maintained by some critics 
that the word drought , in Deut. 
viii. 15, is applied to a serpent 
whose bite was poisonous and at¬ 
tended with insatiable a*d ago¬ 
nizing thirst. But the ordinary 
meaning of the word is certainly 
appropriate to the subject and 
connection. 

DRUNKENNESS. (See 
Dkink, Wine.) 

DRUSILLA. (Acts xxiv. 24.) 
Third daughter of the Herod who 
Is mentioned, Acts xii. 1-4, 20- 
23. She married Felix the Ro¬ 
man governor, while she had an¬ 
other husband living; and was 
present at the hearing of the 
218 


Apostle Paul before her husband 

at Cesarea. 

DUKE (Gen. xxxvi. 15) meanii 
only a chief or leader, and is in 
no sense a title of nobility. 

DULCIMER. (Dan. iii.5,10.) 
The instrument denoted by this 
word was a pipe or flute of reed, 
like what the Italians call zam- 
pogna. The Rabbins describe it 
as two pipes connected with a 
leather sack or skin. The dulci¬ 
mer of the present day is entirely 
unlike it, both in form and in the 
mode of using it. 

Some have supposed that tho 
word means a strain or chorus, ra¬ 
ther than an instrument of music. 

DUMAH. (Isa. xxi. 11.) There 
was a city of Judah of this name 
(Josh. xv. 52,) but the Dumab 
which is the subject of this pro¬ 
phecy was probably a country set- 









DUN 

tied by the descendants of Dumah 
Ishmael’s sixth son. (Gen. xxv. 
14.) It if said that they inhabit 
the borders of the desert of Syria, 
one hundred and fifty or two hun¬ 
dred miles from Damascus, and a 
district of country's there still, 
bearing the name of Duma the 
stony f or the Syrian Duma. 

DUNG. (Ezek. iv. 12.) In 
many countries of the East wood 
is so scarce and dear as to be sold 
by weight. Hence (as travellers 
inform us) animal excrements are 
used as fuel. Le Bruyn says it 
is a very common material for 
heating ovens, even among peo¬ 
ple of comfortable circumstances. 
Niebuhr says, that in Arabia, the 
excrements of asses and camels 
are collected in the streets by 
children, and mixed with cut 
Straw. It is then put in the sun 
to dry, and is thus fitted for use 
as fuel. The effluvia arising from 
the use of it is very 
offensive, and pene¬ 
trates the food. 

Dove’s dung. 

(See Dove.) 

DURA. (Dan. 
iii. 1.) An extensive 
plain in the pro¬ 
vince of Babylon, 
where Nebuchad¬ 
nezzar caused the 
golden image to be 
erected. 

DUST. (Job ii. 

12.) To shake off 
the dust of one’s feet 
against another, 

(Matt. x. 14; Mark 
vi. 11 ; Acts xiii. 

51,) was expressive 
ot entire renunciation. The cus¬ 
tom is supposed to have been 
common among the Jews, when 
they had set a foot on heathen 


DWE 

ground, to shake off the dust, so 
as to carry nothing unclean or 
polluting into their own land. 

Rain op dust. (Deut. xxviii. 
24.) In Judea, or its immediate 
vicinity, are plains or deserts of 
fine sand, which, when agitated 
by a violent wind, makes most 
terrific and desolating storms. 
Eastern travellers describe them 
particularly, and think them much 
more dreadful than storms at sea. 
This fact affords us a striking 
illustration of the nature and hor¬ 
rors of the plague, mentioned Ex. 
viii. 16. 

DWELLINGS. (Lev. vii. 26.) 
The most common dwellings in 
the earlier ages of the world were 
tents. The simple habits of life 
which were then more prevalent, 
and the climate of the first-settled 
portions of the globe, made these 
the most convenient and comfort¬ 
able dwellings; and tents of vari¬ 


ous sizes and shapes were formed 
by setting poles in the ground, 
and stretching over them a cover 
ing of cloth or skin, which was 

2 iy 












DWE 


DWE 


fastened to stakes by means of 
cords. (Isa. liv. 2.) 

One mode of tent building is 
seen in the preceding cut. Some¬ 
times they were divided into 
apartments by means of curtains, 
and the ground was covered with 
mats or carpets. The door was 
formed of a fold of cloth, which 
was dropped or raised. The fire 
was kindled in an excavation in 
the middle of the tent ground, 
and the cooking utensils, which 
were very few and simple, were 
easily moved from place to place. 
(Isa. xxxviii. 12.) Sometimes 
tents were expensively adorned 
and furnished ; and they are very 
common dwellings at this day 
among many nations. The form 
of modern tents in the East is said 
to resemble the hull of a ship 
turned upside down. 

When the habits of mankind 


changed, and their pursuits fixed 
them to one spot, their dwellings 
were built with a view to perma¬ 
nency, and we may suppose that 
the science of building was well 
understood at a very early period. 
The skill required to build the 
ark, independently of inspired di¬ 
rections, must have been consi¬ 
derable. The attempt to build 
the tcwer of Babel would not have 
been made by those who had onlj 
a mere elementary knowledge of 
architectural principles. 

That large and costly housen 
were often built in Judea we bav* 
scriptural evidence, (Jer. xxii. 1* j 
Amos iii. 15; Hag. i. 4,) though 
doubtless those which were occu¬ 
pied by the mass of the people 
were rude and inconvenient when 
compared to the middling or even 
the very ordinary class of our 
houses. 



The above cut represents the 
ground plan of an Eastern house : 
A A A A is the house, built in the 
form of a cloister, surrounding 
the area or open court. The en¬ 
trance is by a d.>or which was 
220 


commonly locked, and attended 
by some one who acted as porter. 
(Acts xii. 13.) This door opens 
into a porch, which is furnished 
with the conveniences of sitting, 
and through which we pass,-both 




































































D.WE 

to the flight of stairs which leads 
ap to the chambers and also to 
the open quadrangular court. 

We will first examine the court 
and its uses. It is called the 
middle of the house, or “midst,” 
{Luke v. 19,) and is designed to 
admit light and air to the apart¬ 
ments around it. It is covered 
with a pavement more or less 
eostly, which receives and sheds 
rain, and is often supplied with 
fountains or wells of water. (2 
Sam. xvii. 18.) In Damascus, 
every house has a court of this 
kind, and the wealthier citizens 
Bpare no expense in making them 
places of delightful resort in the 
hot season. (For description and 
cut, see Hadassah, pp. 13, 16.) 
A colonnade a a a a (such as is 
often seen in modern houses) sur¬ 
rounds the court, and supports a 
gallery or piazza above. In this 
court, large compa¬ 
nies assembledonfes- K 
tive and other occa- 
sions, (Esth.i.5 ;)and 
it is then furnished 
with carpets, mats, 
and settees or sofas, 
and an awning or 
roof of some suitable 
material is stretched 
over the whole area. 

It was probably such 
a roof which was un¬ 
covered for the ac¬ 
commodation of the 
paralytic. (Mark ii. 

4.) And it is also al¬ 
luded to in the beau¬ 
tiful figure of the @1 
psalmist. (Ps. civ. 2.) 

As to the case of the W 
paralytic, it may be ilffi 
proper to observe that 
our Saviour was pro¬ 
bably in the court or 'c 

19 * 


DWE 

area surrounded by a dense crowd, 
through which it was impossible 
to pass, with the diseased man. 
They therefore ascended to the 
roof, and after removing the veil 
or covering which was stretched 
over the court, they let him down 
over or by the way of the roof, 
into the midst, before Christ 
Around the court, over the doors 
and windows of the house, each 
apartment has a door opening into 
the court or gallery, and the com¬ 
munication with each is only on 
the outside; so that to go from 
room to rcom it is necessary to 
come out into the court or gallery. 
These galleries are guarded by a 
balustrade or lattice-work in front, 
to prevent accidents. 

The rooms of the ground-floor 
often include a whole side of the 
court, and are entered by spacious 
doors from the piazza. The rooms 


























































DWE 

on the farther side ol the court, 
Doth above and below, t,re assign¬ 
ed to the females of the family, 
and upon them is bestowed the 
greatest expense. Hence, as some 
suppose, these rooms are some¬ 
times called 'palaces. (1 King xvi. 
18; 2 Kings xv. 25; Isa. xxxii. 
14.) The “house of the women” 
(Esth. ii. 3) was probably pecu¬ 
liar to the royal residence, and 
might be like that referred to, 1 
Kings vii. 8-12. It is supposed 
that in the houses of Judea, as in 
those of Aleppo at the present 
day, the ground floor was appro¬ 
priated principally to domestic 
uses, such as storing provisions, 
oil, baggage, lodgings for ser¬ 
vants, &c. &c. 

If we ascend to the second story 
by the stairs before mentioned, we 
find the chambers are large and 
airy, and often finished and fur¬ 
nished with much expense and 
elegance, with mats, curtains and 
divans. (Mark xiv. 15.) This 
room or story is higher and larger 
than those below, projecting over 
the lower part of the building, so 
that the window of the apartment, 
if there is one, considerably over¬ 
hangs the street. Secluded, spa¬ 
cious and commodious, as such a 
room must have been, Paul would 
be likely to preach his farewell 
sermon there. And in a large 
company, it is common to have 
two circles or ranks, the outer 
circle being next to the wall, and 
elevated on cushions, so as to be 
on a level with the lower part of 
the window-casement. In this 
situation, we may suppose Euty- 
chus fell asleep, and w r as thence 
precipitated to the street. 

To most of the Eastern houses 
a structure is attached called 
oleah. It is sometimes built over 
222 


I) WE 



the porch or gateway, and has 
two or three apartments; and, in 
other instances, it consists only of 
one or two rooms, and often rises 
one story above the main house. 
The oleah is used to entertain 
strangers; also, for wardrobes and 
magazines, or for places of retire¬ 
ment, repose and meditation, 
(Matt. vi. 6.) There is an entrance 
to it from the street, without going 
into the house; but there i? also 
a communication with the gallery 
of the hou?.e, when it is needed. 
It is observed that the terrace of 
the oleah afforded a much more 
retired place for devotional exer¬ 
cises than the roof of the main 
house, which was liable to be oc¬ 
cupied at all times and for various 
purposes by the whole family. 
The little chamber for Elisha, (2 
Kings iv. 10,) the sninmet cham~ 
her of Eglon, from which Ehud 
escaped by a private stairway, 
(Judg. iii. 20—23,) the chamber 
over the gate , (2 Sam. xviii. 33,) 
the upper chamber, (2 Kings xxiii. 
12,) the inner chamber, (1 Kings 
xx. 30,—see Chamber,) may de 
signate the oleah. 'For descrip* 

































DWK 

don and illustrative cut, see Omar. 
pp. 17-19, and Hebrew Customs, 
PP- 33, 34.) 

The upper room, (Acts i. 13,) 
called the upper chamber , (Acts 
xx. 8,) is supposed by Jewett to 
have resembled the upper room 
in modern houses of the East. He 
minutely describes a house in 
which he resided. The first or 
ground floor was appropriated en¬ 
tirely to storing oil ancLother arti¬ 
cles; the second floor was occupied 
by the family for common daily 
use, and the third floor or loft was 
fitted up for social meetings, <fcc. 
(Acts i. 13; ix. 37; xx. 8.) 

Hut the roof is one of the most 
important parts of an • Eastern 
house. We ascend to it by a tight 
of steps, as already meriioned, 
which are entirely unconnected 
with the interior of the house. 
(Matt. xxiv. 17.) It is made 
nearly flat, allowing only sufficient 
elevation to carry off the water, 
and is surrounded by a parapet, 
battlement or balustrade, lest one 
should heedlessly or unwittingly 
fall from it. This was a matter 
of divine command. (Dent. xxii. 
8.) A wall on the roof designates 
the limits of contiguous houses, 
but it is so low that a whole range 
of buildings, and even a street, 
may be passed over without com¬ 
ing down. The roof is covered 
with a kinl of cement, which 
hardens by exposure to the wea¬ 
ther, and forms a clean, smooth 
and very agreeable floor or ter¬ 
race. Sometimes clay or earth 
of some kind, sufficient for vege¬ 
tation, was used, and hence the 
frequent allusion to grass upon 
the housetops, (2 Kings xix. 26; 
Ps. cxxix. 6 ;) and sometimes tiles 
or broad bricks were used. The 
roof was a place of repose (Neh. 


I) WE 

viii. 16) and of resort. (2 Sanr.. 
xi. 2; Isa. xv. 3; xxii. 1; Jer 
xlviii. 38; Luke xii. 3.) It was 
also used for drying linen and 
flax. (Josh. ii. 6.) Sometimes a 
tent was spread to protect the 
sleeper from the cold and damp 
of the night. (2 Sam. xvi. 22.) It 
was a place of conference (l Sam. 

ix. 25) and worship. (2 Kings 
xxiii. 12; Jer. xix. 13; Zeph i. 5; 
Acts x. 9.) 

The windows of Eastern houses, 
as already intimated, open into 
the court. Hence the appearance 
of Eastern cities, in passing 
through the streets, is very gloomy 
and inhospitable. Sometimes lat¬ 
ticed windows or balconies are 
open upon the street, but they 
were used only on some public 
day. (2 Kings ix. 30. See He¬ 
brew Customs, pp. 33-35, before 
mentioned. See Window.) 

The doors of Eastern houses 
are not hung with hinges. The 
jamb, or inner side-piece of the 
door, projects, in the form of a 
circular shaft, at the top and bot¬ 
tom. The upper projection is re¬ 
ceived into a socket in the lintel 
or head-piece, and the lower pro¬ 
jection falls into a socket in the 
threshold or sill. 

Chimneys were probably un¬ 
known, though the word occurs, 
Hos. xiii. 3. What we call chim¬ 
neys were not invented till tho 
fourteenth century. The smoke 
of ancient houses escaped through 
apertures in the wall. 

The hearth (Jer. xxxvi. 22) wag 
a fireplace or portable furnace, 
such as is still used in Eastern 
countries. 

The materials for building were 
abundant. Stone and brick, and 
the best species of timoer, for tho 
strong and heavy as well as the 

223 



DWE 

tight and ornamental work, were 
easily ODtained. Hewn stone was 
often used, (Amos v. 11,) and mar¬ 
ble of the richest vein and polish. 
(1 Chron. xxix. 2 ; Esth. i. 6.) Ce¬ 
dar was used for wainscots and 
eeilings, (Jer. xxii. 14 ; Hag. i. 4,) 
which were of carved panel-work, 
with mouldings of gold, silver or 
ivory. Perhaps the profusion of 
ivory in them may account for the 
expressions, 1 Kings xxii. 39; Ps. 
xlv. 8; Amos iii. 15. 

Many Eastern houses are built 
with mud walls, reeds and rushes, 
and sometimes only stakes plas¬ 
tered with clay. Hence they were 
very insecure, (Matt. vi. 19, 20,) 
and afforded a place for serpents 
and vermin. (Amos v. 19.) Such 
a house, built even on a rock 
above the reach of the periodical 
torrents of rain, is strikingly em¬ 
blematical of weakness, fragility 
and decay, (Job iv. 19 ;) but when 
placed on the sand, and exposed 
on every side to the rain, and 
wind, and floods, the folly of the 
builder is almost incredible. (Matt, 
vii. 26, 27.) 

In addition to what we have 
before said in treating of the oleah, 
it may be remarked that the win¬ 
ter and summer houses or parlours 
(Amos iii. 15) were constructed 
with particular reference to the 
reason. The summer houses were 
built partly under ground, and 
paved with marble. The foun¬ 
tains which gush out in their 
courts, and the various contriv¬ 
ances to exclude heat and secure 
a current of fresh air, render them 
exceedingly refreshing amid the 
torrid heats of summer. The win- 


DWE 

ter houses might have had accom¬ 
modations corresponding to the 

season. 

We are told that it was custom 
ary among the Hebrews to dedi¬ 
cate the house when it was finished 
and ready to be inhabited. The 
event was celebrated with joy, and 
the divine blessing and protection 
implored. (Deut. xx. 5.) 

The doors of Eastern houses are 
made low, especially when the^ 
are in an exposed situation: and 
one must stoop or even creep to 
enter them. This is done to keep 
out wild beasts or enemies, or, as 
some say, to prevent the wander¬ 
ing Arabs from riding into thdm. 
(See Selumiel, pp. 41-44.) 

The Eastern mode of building 
is brought to our view in the case 
of the destruction of the temple 
of Dagon by Samson. It is pro¬ 
bable that the place where Sam¬ 
son made sport for many thousand 
spectators (Judg. xvi. 27) was a 
court or area consecrated to the 
worship of Dagon ; that this was 
surrounded by a range of galle¬ 
ries (Ezek. xli. 15, 16) or clois¬ 
ters, which were supported chiefly 
by one or two columns in front, or 
at the centre. The palace of the 
dey of Algiers has such a struc¬ 
ture. It is an advanced or pro¬ 
jecting cloister over against the 
gate of the palace, (Esth. v. 1,) 
where the officers of state assem¬ 
ble and transact public business, 
and where public entertainments 
were given. The removal of one 
or two contiguous pillars would 
involve the building, and all that 
were upon it, in one common de¬ 
struction. 



























EAG 

I j^AGLE. (Deut. xxxii. 11.) A 
-2 well-known and ferocious bird 
of prey, unclean by the Levitical 
law, (Lev. xi. 13; Deut. xiv. 12,) 
whose peculiar properties are often 
alluded to by the sacred writers. 
The habits of the eagle are de¬ 
scribed in Num. xxiv. 21; Job ix. 
26; xxxix. 27-30; Prov. xxiii. 5; 
xxx. 17, 19; Jer. xlix. 16; Ezek. 
xvii. 3; Obad. 4; Hab. i. 8; ii. 9 ; 
Matt. xxiv. 28; Luke xvii. 37. 

In these last passages, the Jew¬ 
ish nation is compared to a de¬ 
caying body, exposed in the open 
field, and inviting the Roman 
army, whose standard 
was an eagle, to come 
together and devour 
it. The eagle was also 
on the Persian stand¬ 
ard. The tenderness 
of the eaglo towards 
its young is character¬ 
istic, and is beauti¬ 
fully and accurately 
described, Ex. xix. 4 ; 

Deut. xxxii. 11. The 
rapidity of the eaglets 
flight is alluded to in 
Deut. xxviii. 49; 2 
ii&m. i. 23; Jer. iv. 13; 
xlviii. 40; Lam. iv. 

19; its destructive power in Isa. 
xlvi. 11; Hos. viii. 1; and its great 
age, and the popular opinion that 
it renews its plumage in advanced 
life, is intimated in Ps. ciii. 5, and 
Isa. xl. 31. 

The ravenous bird (Isa. xlvi. 11) 
might better be rendered eagle; 
and it is a fact, according to Xe¬ 
nophon, that Cyrus, who is alluded 
to under the figure of an eagle, 
had an image of that bird for the 
standard of his army. 

A late traveller, in describing 
the scenery from the ravine of the 
ancient Leontes, says:—“ The 


EAG 

rocks rise perpendicularly to th« 
height of 1000 or 1200 feet. I 
stood transfixed with awe at the 
sight of them. Down below you 
hear nothing but the hollow roar 
of the closely-pent waters, vibrat¬ 
ing and resounding with an over¬ 
powering din. The froth, as it 
dashes up, keeps the base of the 
rocks constantly damp, and the 
vegetation is luxuriant to a de¬ 
gree I have seldom met with in 
my travels. The snow-white foam 
is often concealed by the over¬ 
hanging trees, whose branches 
meet and intertwine. Large eagle? 


wero describing curves above our 
heads; sometimes they sailed 
slowly over the whole length of 
the ravine, as if wondering at the 
bold intruders on their domain; 
sometimes they came flying with 
food for their young ones, dicing 
first to hollow rocks beneath their 
nest, to reascend with such ma¬ 
jesty as the eagle alone possesses. 
It was then I understood that 
word which the Lord spoke to 
Job, ‘Doth the eagle mount up 
at thy command, and make her 
nest on high ? She dwelleth and 
abideth on the rock, upon the 
22 /* 



Eagle. 










EAR 

crag of the rock, and the strong 
place. From thence she seeketh 
the prey, and her eyes behold 
afar off,’ Man has no dwelling 
here. The wild beasts alone fre¬ 
quent these caves. Therefore was 
I the more anxious to see this re¬ 
gion, from whence ‘the springs 
are sent into the valleys, whicn 
run among the hills/ ” 

EARING, (Gen. xlv. 6,) EAR- 
ING-TIME. (Ex. xxxiv. 21.) 
Earing is an old English word for 
ploughing. The same word is used, 
Ps. cxxix. 3, and is translated 
ploughed. What we call arable 
land is sometimes written eatable 
land. (Deut. xxi. 4; 1 Sam. viii. 
12; Isa. xxx. 24.) 

EAR-RINGS. (Gen. xxiv. 22.) 
This word occurs, Ex. xxxii. 2, 3 ; 
and in Isa. iii. 21, we have the 
word nose-jewels; and some ver¬ 
sions have an ornament for the 
nose in the above passage from 
Genesis. The weight of the orna¬ 
ment mentioned in this passage 
might appear almost incredible, 
if we were not informed by tra¬ 
vellers that the women of the East, 
even in modern days, wear orna¬ 
ments of equal and even greater 
weight. Poor people use glass or 
horn instead of gold or silver. 

EARNEST. (2 Cor. i. 22.) 
Sometning going before, or given 
in advance as a pledge or assur¬ 
ance of more in reserve: thus, 
earnest, or earnest-money, is a sum 
paid in advance as a pledge of full 
payment at a future time. In a 
spiritual sense, it denotes those 
gifts and graces which the Chris¬ 
tian receives as a pledge or earn¬ 
est of perfect holiness and happi¬ 
ness in the future world. A pledge 
is taken back when the promise 
which it guaranteed is fulfilled; 
but whatever is given as earnest, 
220 


EAR 

being a part in advance of the 
whole, is, of course, retained. 

EARTH. (Ps. xxiv. 1.) Be¬ 
sides the ordinary acceptation of 
the word, as in the passage cited, 
it is used by the sacred writers U 
denote only a particular country. 
Thus the phrase, (Ezrai. 2,) “ all 
the kingdoms of the earth,” means 
in that connection only Chaldea 
and Assyria; and it is often re¬ 
stricted to Judea only. 

Lower parts of the earth (Isa. 
xliv. 23) may signify literally the 
valleys, or, figuratively, the grave. 
(Ps. lxiii. 9 ; Eph. iv. 9.) 

EARTHQUAKE. (1 Kingsxix. 
11.) It is supposed that Korah 
and his companions were destroy¬ 
ed by the rending asunder of the 
ground where they stood, and thus 
engulfing them in the cavity; an 
event not unfrequently attend¬ 
ing an earthquake. The earth¬ 
quake mentioned, Amos i. 1; Zech. 
xiv. 5, is also mentioned by Jose¬ 
phus, who adds that it divided a 
mountain near Jerusalem, and was 
so violent as to separate one part 
some distance from the other. 
The earthquake was among the 
fearful signs which attended the 
crucifixion of our Saviour. Tra¬ 
vellers tell us that the rocks on 
Calvary are rent asunder, and 
evidently by some such convul¬ 
sion as an earthquake, and very 
early tradition says it was by the 
earthquake which happened at 
the time of the crucifixion. That 
the scene was terrible may well bo 
inferred from Matt, xxvii. 51-54. 

Earthquakes are mentioned 
among the calamities which should 
precede the destruction of Jerusa¬ 
lem, (Matt. xxiv. 7,) and Josephus 
and other historians affirm the 
literal fulfilment of the prediction. 
Earthquakes, in prophetical lan- 



EAS 

guage, denote revolutions and 
commotions in states and empires. 

EAST. (Gen. xxviii. 14.) The 
Hebrews used this word to de¬ 
scribe all the countries or pro¬ 
vinces lying around and beyond 
the rivers Tigris and Euphrates, 
or east or northeast of Judea. The 
word is also used, Gen. xi. 2, “from 
the east,” and denotes the country 
east or southeast of mount Ararat. 
In travelling from the foot of that 
mountain to the plain of Shinar, 
the descendants of Noah would 
pass southerly on the eastern side 
of the mountains of Media until 
they came opposite to Shinar, or 
to a point northeast of Babylon, 
from which, by a direct western 
course, they would pass into As¬ 
syria and the plain of Shinar. 
This is said to be the usual cara¬ 
van route. 

East sea (Ezek. xlvii. 18; Joel 
ii. 20) is the same with the jD ead 
nea. (See Salt sea.) 

East wind. (See Wind.) 

EASTER. (Acts xii. 4.) In 
every other passage of oflr trans¬ 
lation, this word is rendered pass- 
over, and, of course, denotes the 
same season or festival. (See 
Feast.) 

EAT, EATING. (Isa. lxvi. 17; 
Acts xi. 3.) The Hebrews were 
scrupulous about eating and drink¬ 
ing with the Egyptians, as the 
Egyptians also were about eating 
and drinking with the Hebrews. 

Gen. xliii. 32.) So also the He¬ 
brews declined to eat with the 
Samaritans, (John iv. 9 ;) and the 
refusal to eat with one implied an 
entire separation. (Matt. ix. 11; 
1 Cor. v. 11.) 

The manner of eating among 
the Jews is still common in East¬ 
ern nations; the guests reclined 
oq couches or mattrasses, resting 


EAT 

on the left elbow, and using, chief 
ly, the right hand. This peculiar 
position makes the interesting 
scene described, Luke vii. 36-50, 
perfectly natural, and also show* 
how one of the guests could ro- 
pose his head on another’s bosom. 
(John xiii. 23.) Women were 
never present at Jewish meals aa 
guests. 

The present mode of eating 
among Eastern nations illustrates 
some interesting passages of the 
New Testament. In Syria the 
guests use their fingers; a knife, 
spoon and plate being used only 
by foreigners, and that as a spe¬ 
cial privilege. The bread, which 
is very thin, is dipped in the ve- 
getable soup, and if there is a 
very dainty morsel on the table, 
the master of the house takes itiu 
his fingers and presents it to the 
mouth of his guest. From Matt, 
xxvi. 23, we may presume that 
Judas was near enough to oui 
Lord to use the same dish, and 
from the additional circumstances 
in John xiii. 26, 27, we may infer 
that he was near enough to receive 
the sop from our Lord’s band, ac¬ 
cording to the custom above de¬ 
scribed. (See Feast.) 

To eat a meal together is re¬ 
garded in the East as a pledge of 
mutual confidence and friendship; 
hence the force of the expression, 
Ps. xli. 9. (See Omar, pp. 30, 45, 
and Hebrew Customs, pp. 36—46.) 

The expression, John vi. 53-58, 
is evidently metaphorical. This 
appears from the context, and 
from the design of the discourse, 
which was introduced by an allu¬ 
sion to the eating of manna. Our 
Saviour often speaks of himself as 
the bread, (John vi. 41,) the bread 
of life, (John vi. 35,) and living 
bread , (John vi. 51,) and it was 
227 



EBA 

m perfect accordance with this 
figurative language to speak of 
those who received him, and ex¬ 
ercised faith upon him, as eating 
his flesh and drinking his blood. 
Parallel phrases may be found, 
Jer. xv. 16; Ezek. iii. 1; John iv. 
14 : the force of the last passage 
is apparent from John vi. 35. 

E BAL, MOUNT, (Deut. xi. 29,) 
and MOUNT GERIZIM, were 
situated in the tribe of Ephraim. 
They were but a short distance 
apart, and in the valley between, 
was the old city of Shechem, now 
Nablous. The altitude of these 
mountains does not exceed seven 
or eight hundred feet, but they 
are remarkable forthe solemn ra¬ 
tification of God’s covenant with 
the Jews, which took place upon 
them, the prescribed manner of 
which we have in Deut. xxvii. 12 
-26; xxviii. 2-6S. A modern tra¬ 
veller speaks of the lofty, craggy 
and barren aspect of these two 
mountains, which seem to face 
each other with an air of defiance. 

According to the injunction of 
Moses, the Hebrews, after they 
obtained possession of Canaan, 
built an altar, and celebrated a 
feast on mount Ebal. (Deut. 
xxvii. 4; Josh. viii. 30-35.) The 
Samaritans contended that this 
should have been done on mount 
Gerizim, and not on mount Ebal, 
and they afterwards built a tem¬ 
ple on Gerizim, the ruins of which 
are still visible, and regarded it 
as the Jews regarded their tem¬ 
ple at Jerusalem. The remark of 
the Samaritan woman at Shechem 
to our Lord is in allusion to this 
difference of opinion. (See Omar, 
pp. 110-115. See also Shechem 
and Samaritans.) 

EBED-MELECH. (Jer. 
xxxviii. 7.) An Ethiopian ser- 
228 


ECO 

vant of Zedekiah king of Judah, 
who was instrumental in saving 
the prophet Jeremiah from death 
by famine, and who, for his kind¬ 
ness in this behalf, was promised 
deliverance when the city should 
fall into the enemy’s hands. (Jer. 
xxxix. 15-18. See Life of Je ¬ 
remiah, chap, x.) 

EBENEZER. (1 Sam. iv. 1.) 
This name is used in the passage 
cited, and also in 1 Sam. v. 1; but 
the application of it to a particu¬ 
lar place was a subsequent event. 
While the Israelites were wor¬ 
shipping God at Mizpeh, they re¬ 
ceived intelligence that the Phi¬ 
listines were approaching them 
with a formidable army. In this 
emergency they betook themselves 
to sacrifice and prayer, and the 
God of armies interposed in a most 
signal manner for their deliver¬ 
ance. (1 Sam. vii. 5-12.) In 
commemoration of this event, Sa¬ 
muel erected a monument near 
the field of battle, and called it 
Ebenezer, or the stone of help, say¬ 
ing, “Hitherto hath Jehovah help¬ 
ed us.” Hence it is often said, 
“ Here we will set up our Ebene¬ 
zer,” or here we will establish a 
memorial of the mercy and faith¬ 
fulness of God. 

EBER (Gen. x. 21) was the 
great-grandson of Shem, and the 
ancestor of Abraham, in the se¬ 
venth generation. (See Hebrews.) 

EBONY. (Ezek. xxvii. 15.) A 
well-known wood, which is pro¬ 
duced in India and some district*! 
of Africa. It is susceptible of a 
fine polish, and is used for musical 
instruments and ornamental work. 

ECCLESIASTES, or (as the 
name signifies) the Preacher, is 
the twenty-first in the order of 
the books of the Old Testament 
ana was written by Solomon to- 



EDA 

wards the close of his splendid 
and eventful career as monarch 
of Israel. The design of the au¬ 
thor evidently is, (1.) To demon¬ 
strate the folly and madness of 
making this world, its pleasures 
or its pursuits the objects of af¬ 
fection or hope; and, (2.) To show 
the character, influence and ad¬ 
vantages of true wisdom or reli¬ 
gion. Much of the obscurity of 
some passages in this book may 
be ascribed to the circumstance 
that the author was refuting max¬ 
ims and reproving practices com¬ 
mon to the errorists and libertines 
of his day, the particular charac¬ 
ter of which is now unknown. 

E D A R, tower of. (See 
Tower.) 

EDEN. (Gen. ii. 8.) That part 
of the earth in which was situated 
the garden planted by the Al¬ 
mighty for the residence of our 
first parents, and where they 
dwelt at the time of their apos¬ 
tasy. The word is also applied 
generally to denote any place re¬ 
markable for beauty and fertility. 
(2 Kings xix. 12; Isa. xxxvii. 12.) 
The attempt to establish the lo¬ 
cality of the garden of Eden is, of 
course, attended with great diffi¬ 
culty. An eminent geologist says, 
we can trace over all those re¬ 
gions through which the Tigris 
and Euphrates flow, the same 
monuments of the flood which are 
eo remarkable in every other quar¬ 
ter of the world, in the form of 
boundless deserts of sand mixed 
with saltand shells; and,of course, 
we might as well look for the rich 
and beautiful dwelling-place of 
our first parents in the prairies 
of America or the sands of Africa, 
as expect to discover any trace of 
them on the banks of the En- j 
phrates. 


EDO 

It is supposed by many to be 
safe, hcwever, to fix upon Arme¬ 
nia as embracing the site of this 
interesting spot. As to the pre¬ 
cise location, it is suggested that 
God may have chosen to oblite¬ 
rate every vestige of this fair por¬ 
tion of his works, unfitted for any 
thing but the residence of inno¬ 
cence, and to blot at once from the 
face of the earth, like the guilty 
cities of the plain, both the site 
and the memorial of man’s trans¬ 
gression,—an awful event which 
would add tenfold horror to their 
punishment. (See Evening Re¬ 
creations, vol. i. pp. 8-16.) 

Eden, house of. (Amos i. 5.) 
This term, in its connection, indi¬ 
cates a place of some importance. 
Modern travellers find a place 
near Damascus bearing a name 
of the same import, (house of'plea¬ 
sure,) which they suppose to be 
the same mentioned by the pro¬ 
phet. 

EDOM, (Judg. xi. 17,) called 
Idumea (Isa. xxxiv. 5) by the 
Greeks and Romans, was the name 
of a district of country inhabited 
by the Horites, (Gen. xxxvi. 21,) 
or Horims , (Deut. ii. 12,) lying 
south of the Dead sea, and bor¬ 
dering on Moab. Edom, or mount 
Seir, was originally a small strip 
of elevated land between the de¬ 
sert of Zin on the west, and Ara¬ 
bia Petrea on the east. The cli¬ 
mate was delightful, and it was 
remarkable for the richness of its 
soil and the almost impregnable 
fortress it contained. (Gen.xxvii. 
39; Jer. xlix. 16.) It derives its 
name from Esau, (called also 
Edom, Gen. xxxvi. 43,) whose 
descendants are supposed to have 
settled there. The same province 
is now called Sherath, and ex¬ 
tends across the whole southern 
229 


20 




EDR 

border of Canaan, from the Dead 
sea to the eastern gulf of the Red 
sea, including mount Seir. Of 
the eastern division of their terri¬ 
tory, Bozrab, or Bezer, was the 
capital, and Petra (or Sela) of 
the southern. Teman, a grand¬ 
son of Esau, (Gen. xxxvi. 11.) re¬ 
sided here, and gave his own name 
to part of the province. (Job ii. 
11; Jer. xlix. 7, 20.) The Edom¬ 
ites were governed by kings (Gen. 
xxxvi. 31) until they were con¬ 
quered by David, (2 Sam. viii. 14,) 
thus fulfilling the prophecy. (Gen. 
xxvii. 29.) Hadad, a lineal de¬ 
scendant of one of the Idumean 
kings, regained the control of the 
eastern province. The inhabit¬ 
ants of south Edom afterwards 
revolted from Jehoram, (2 Chron. 
xxi. 10,) and sustained some se¬ 
vere reverses, (2 Kings xiv. 7 ; 2 
Chron. xxv. 11;) and were finally 
conquered by Nebuchadnezzar. 

There is no country on the face 
of the globe, the present state of 
which more fully attests the truth 
of prophecy than Idumea. The 
predictions are singularly specific, 
(especially Isa. xxxiv. 5,10-17; 
Jer. xlix. 13-18; Ezek. xxxv. 7; 
Mai. i. 3, 4;) and their literal and 
exact accomplishment is fully sus¬ 
tained by the testimony even of 
the enemies of the Bible. Mo¬ 
dern travellers unite in their de¬ 
claration that it is one broad plain 
)f barrenness and desolation, and 
that its present state could not be 
more graphically described than 
it is in the words of the prophetic 
writers. (See The Bible is True, 
chap, vii.) 

EDREI. (Josh. xiii. 31.) One 
of the capital cities of Bashan, 
the ruins of which still remain un¬ 
der the name of Draa, about se¬ 
venty-five miles north of Bozrah. 

23 G 


EGY 

Og king of Bashan was defeated 
at this place by the Israelites, and 
his kingdom assigned to the half¬ 
tribe of Manasseh. Another town 
of this name was in the tribe of 
Naphtali. (Josh. xix. 37.) 

EGG. (Deut. xxii. 6.) This 
passage humanely prohibits the 
taking away of a brooding bird 
from a nest, and is similar in its 
nature to the provision respecting 
other animals and their young. 
(Lev. xxii. 28; comp. Isa. x. 14. 
See Partridge, Scorpion.) 

EGLON. 1. A person, (Judg. 
iii. 14,) and king of the Moabites, 
who held the Israelites in bond¬ 
age eighteen years. He formed 
an alliance with the Ammonites 
and Amalekites, and took posses¬ 
sion of Jericho, where he resided, 
and where he was afterwards as¬ 
sassinated by Ehud. (See Ehud.) 

2. A place. (Josh. x. 3; xv. 39.) 

EGYPT. (Ex. i. 1.) One of 
the most ancient and interesting 
countries on the face of the earth. 
It is bounded south by Ethiopia, 
north by the Mediterranean sea, 
and east by the Red sea. Its 
northern and southern limits are 
given in Ezek. xxix. 10; xxx. 6. 
It presents itself to the eye of the 
traveller as an immense valley, 
extending nearly six hundred 
miles in length, and hemmed in 
on the east and west by a ridge 
of hills and a vast expanse of de¬ 
sert. It has an alluvial basin, 
owing its existence, fertility and 
beauty to the river Nile, which 
flows through it. Hence Egypt 
was anciently called the gift of the 
Nile. As to the origin of the 
name, there is much difference of 
opinion. In the Old Testament, 
the Hebrew word translated Egypt 
is Mizraim, which was the name 
of one of the sons of Ham, (Gen. 



EGY 

t. 6,) who night have been the 
founder of the nation. It is some¬ 
times called Ham, (Ps. lxxviii. 
51; cv. 23, 27; cvi. 22,) and also 
Hithab. (Ps. lxxxvii. 4; lxxxix. 
10; Isa. li. 9.) The Arabs now 
call it Mizr. 

It was in Egypt that Joseph 
was raised from the condition of 
a slave to the highest rank in the 
king’s retinue. In the providence 
of God, bis father and brothers 
came thither to live, and in the 
space of four hundred and thirty 
years increased from seventy-five 
souls to between one and two mil¬ 
lions. Their deliverance from op¬ 
pression under Pharaoh is, per¬ 
haps, the most striking passage of 
Jewish history. (See Hebrews.) 

As a subject of prophecy, Egypt 
is one of the most interesting of 
ancient nations. (Isa. xviii. xix.; 
Jer. xlii.-xlvi.; Ezek. xxix.- 
xxxii.) The predictions concern¬ 
ing it are remarkable for their 
precision and fulness; and their 
exact fulfilment in every essen¬ 
tial point is attested by incontro¬ 
vertible evidence. 

At the time when some of the 
most extraordinary of these pre¬ 
dictions were uttered, (Ezek. xxx. 
21-26,) Egypt was flourishing in 
arts and arms. Her splendid cities 
rose up on every side, and the 
stately monuments of her genius 
and industry were without a pa¬ 
rallel. But when the divine coun¬ 
sel was fulfilled, the sceptre of the 
Pharaohs fell, and Egypt became 
a tributary kingdom, without a 
prince of its own, subject to a fo¬ 
reign yoke, and has often been 
governed by slaves. 

The present population of Egypt 
is estimated at two millions and a 
half. Before the Persian con¬ 
quest, (which took place B. c. 350,) 


EGY 

the authority of the Pharaohs ex 
tended over seven and a half mil- 
lions. The inhabitants consist 
of Copts, Arabs, Greeks, Jews and 
Syrians; of whom the Copts are 
the most numerous, and are usu¬ 
ally regarded as the descendants 
of the true Egyptians; but the 
country has been so often invaded, 
overrun and colonized, that it n 
probable the original stock is ex¬ 
terminated. Great and rapid 
changes have taken place in this 
interesting country within the last 
sixty years. The campaign of 
the French army in 1800, which 
was undertaken with a view to 
subdue Egypt, and so secure to 
the French an important share of 
*he East India trade, though it 
resulted unsuccessfully, was at¬ 
tended with important conse¬ 
quences to the interests of science 
and learning. A new era in tbs 
history of this country commenced 
then. The liberal policy of the 
successive viceroys, though per¬ 
fect despots, has done much to 
elevate their dominions to a rank 
with civilized nations, in arts, 
commerce and industry. The 
works of internal improvement 
which they have undertaken, the 
extensive manufactories they have 
established, and the encourage¬ 
ment they have given to literary 
institutions, promise to change the 
political if not the moral aspect of 
Egypt. (See Evening Recrea¬ 
tions, vol. iii. 28-115.) 

Egypt, river op, (Gen. xv. 
18,) called by way of pre-emi¬ 
nence the River, (Gen. xli. 1; Ex. 
vii. 17,) and sometimes Sihor, 
(Isa. xxiii. 3,) or Shihor, (1 Chron. 
xiii. 5,) was the Nile, a remark¬ 
able river, which flows twelve 
hundred miles without meeting a 
tributary stream. Its overflow 
231 



EHU 

Ings inundate the adjoining coun¬ 
try, (Amos viii. 8 ; ix. 5,) and give 
it its extraordinary fertility. (See 
preceding article.) Hence a fail¬ 
ure of this periodical overflowing 
must occasion the utmost distress. 
(Isa. xix. 5, 6.) 

It is not improbable, however, 
that another and smaller river 
was called the river of Egypt, and 
that it emptied into the Mediter¬ 
ranean at some place south of 
Gaza. (Num. xxxiv. 5; Josh. xv. 
47.) Such a river is mentioned 
by modern travellers, about thirty 
yards wide, called Wadi Gaza, the 
same with the brook Besor. Its 
being the border of Judea, on the 
Egyptian side, might give it the 
name river of Egypt. The pre¬ 
cise import of the phrase must be 
determined in each case by its 
connection. (See Besop..) 

EHUD. (Judg. iii. 15.) A son 
of Gera, of the tribe of Benjamin, 
who delivered the Israelites from 
the oppression which they suffer¬ 
ed under Eglon king of Moab. 
The Israelites sent Ehud to pay 
some tax or tribute to Eglon, as 
a token of their allegiance. Un¬ 
der the pretence that he had some 
secret message to the king, he ob¬ 
tained a private audience ; and 
while they were together in the 
king’s apartment, Ehud drew a 
dagger which he had made ex¬ 
pressly for the purpose, and gave 
him a mortal wound. The custom 
of delivering confidential mes¬ 
sages in secret appears to have 
been so common, that the attend¬ 
ants of Eglon left his presence as 
soon as Ehud’s wish was known. 
Such is the custom in Eastern 
courts at this day, as travellers 
assure us; as soon as a confiden¬ 
tial message is announced, the 
audience chamber is cleared of all 
232 


EL A 

but the messenger. Ehud fled 
towards mount Ephraim, and 
summoning the oppressed Israel¬ 
ites to his help, they secured the 
fords of the Jordan, so that the 
Moabites, by whom their land 
was garrisoned, might not escape. 
As soon as he had collected a suf¬ 
ficient force, he fell upon the Mo. 
abites, and cut them off in every 
direction. 

EKRON. (Josh. xv. 45.) A 
city of the Philistines, lying north¬ 
west of Gath and north of Ash- 
dod, assigned by Joshua origi¬ 
nally to the tribe of Judah, (Judg. 
i. 18,) but afterwards said to be¬ 
long to the tribe of Dan. (Josh, 
xix. 43.) Neither tribe seems to 
have been in actual possession of 
the place. (Judg. i. 34, 35 ; 1 Sam. 
v. 10 ; vi. 17 ; 2 Kings i. 2; Jer. 
xxv. 20 ; Amos i. 8 ; Zeph. ii. 4; 
Zech. ix. 5, 7. See Selumiel, p. 
28. See Philistia.) The site of 
Ekron is supposed to have been 
ascertained by modern travellers. 

ELAH. 1. A person. (1 Kings 
xvi. 6.) Son and successor of 
Baasha king of Israel. As he 
was revelling at a friend’s house, 
he was assassinated by Zimri, one 
of the officers of his army. (See 
Omri.) He reigned only two 
years. 

2. A place. Valley of, (1 
Sam. xvii. 19,) lies southwest of 
Jerusalem, three miles from Beth¬ 
lehem, on the road to Jaffa. The 
Israelites were encamped in this 
valley when David fought and 
subdued Goliath. (See Selu¬ 
miel, p. 31, and Life of David, 
pp. 26, 27.) 

ELAM. 1. A person. (Gen. 
x. 22.) Eldest son of Shem, and 
the ancestor of the Elamites and 
Persians. 

2. A country, (Gen. xiv. 9,) 














The Overflowing of the River Nile. 









































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































ELA 

settled by the family of Elam, 
and Jying east of Shinar and north 
of the Persian gulf, and a part of 
the ancient Persian empire. Che- 
dorlaomer was one of its earliest 
kings. (Gen. xiv. 1.) Shushan 
was the capital of the province. 
(Dan. viii. 2.) When the country 
of Elam is mentioned by the sa¬ 
cred writers, Susiana or Shusistan 
is meant. The Elamites were a 
warlike people, and distinguished 
for their skill as bowmen, (Isa. 
xxii. 6; Jer. xlix. 35,) and were 
regarded as a formidable enemy. 
(Ezek. xxxii. 24.) Some of this 
nation were present in Jerusalem, 
at the miraculous effusion of God’s 
Spirit on the day of Pentecost. 
(See Shushan.) 

The “ bringing again the capti¬ 
vity of Elam” (Jer. xlix. 39) is 
generally supposed to refer to the 
restoration of the kingdom of Per¬ 
sia by Cyrus, who subdued the 
Babylonians, as they had previ¬ 
ously subdued the Persians. 

E L A T II, (Deut. ii. 8,) or 
ELOTH. (2 Chron. viii. 17.) A 
seaport of Idumea, of great cele¬ 
brity, lying on the shore of the 
eastern or Elanitic gulf of the 
Bed sea. It was a place of much 
importance in Solomon’s time. (1 
Kings ix. 26-28.) It was proba¬ 
bly a part of David’s conquest, 
(1 Chron. xviii. 13,) and was re¬ 
captured by the Edomites in the 
reign of Jehoram, (2 Kings viii. 
20,) was taken from them again 
by Uzziah king of Judah, (2 Kings 
xiv. 22,) was afterwards taken by 
the king of Damascus, (2 Kings 
xvi. 6,) who was in his turn de¬ 
prived of it by the king of Assy¬ 
ria. (2 Kings xvi. 7-fr.) Elath 
adjoined Ezion-Geber, and Akaba 
now occupies the site of one or 
both of those ancient towns. 

20 * 


ELD 

ELDAD (Num. xi. 26) and ME- 
DAD were of the seventy elders 
of Israel appointed by Moses to 
assist him in the government of 
the people. When the elders were 
assembled around the tabernacle 
to seek wisdom from God on a 
particular occasion, Eldad an<# 
Medad were absent. The Spirit 
of God was, however, poured out 
on them there, while they con¬ 
tinued with the camp, as well as 
on their colleagues who surround¬ 
ed the tabernacle, and they began 
to prophesy. Their proceeding 
was represented to Moses, and he 
was asked to prohibit them, but 
he declined, and, so far from 
wishing them to be silenced, ut¬ 
tered a prayer that all the people 
might receive the same Spirit 
which was upon Eldad and Medad. 

ELDERS. (Ex. iii. 16.) A com¬ 
prehensive title, the peculiar force 
of which must be determined by 
the connection, Ac. While in 
Egypt, the elders of Israel (Ex. 
iv. 29-31) were probably either the 
heads of tribes, or the oldest and 
most judicious of the people. And 
though their authority was in its 
nature paternal, they were re¬ 
garded to a certain extent as the 
representatives of the nation. In 
the Hebrew commonwealth every 
city had its elders. (Deut. xix. 
12; xxi. 2-9; Josh. xx. 24 ; Judg. 
viii. 14; xi. 5, 6 ; Ruth iv. 2, 4, 9; 
Ezra x. 14.) 

There was a body of elders, 
however, selected and appointed 
for special duties, (Num. xi. 16, 
17, 24, 25 ;) and they seem to have 
been taken from the general class 
of elders. The expression is, 
“Gather me seventy men of the el¬ 
ders of Israel , whom thou knoweai 
to be elder8 of t \e people , and offi¬ 
cers over them.” 

233 



ELD 

The seventy men who were with 
Moses at mount Sinai were alsc 
Beventy of the elders of Israel. 
(Ex. xxiv. 1, 9.) At a subsequent 
period of Jewish history, we find 
a tribunal of seventy elders known 
as the sanhedrim, which the rab- 
bies maintain was a continuance of 
the original appointment of elders 
by Moses. It is generally agreed, 
however, that the sanhedrim was 
a distinct organization, unknown 
till the time of the Maccabees. 

The term elders is used in the 
New Testament generally, if not 
always, to denotd a class of offi¬ 
cers in the Jewish or Christian 
church. Concerning the duties 
which appertained to their office, 
there are conflicting opinions. 

It is supposed by some that in 
Acts xi. 30, the word elders means 
simply the aged men. 

The word rendered elders , Acts 
xx. 17, is rendered overseers, Acts 
xx. 28, and bishojys in Phil. i. 1. 
However difficult it may be to as¬ 
certain its original import, there 
can be no doubt that one class of 
the elders so frequently spoken 
of in the New Testament by the 
evangelists and others, constituted 
a judicial tribunal. When they 
are associated with the apostles, 
(as in Acts xv. 6,) officers or 
members of the Christian church 
are intended; and when they are 
associated with the civil author¬ 
ity, (as in Acts xxiv. 1,) officers 
of the Jewish church are intend¬ 
ed. That the corruption and con¬ 
tempt which attached to the lat¬ 
ter in their judicial character was 
very general in our Saviour’s 
time, appears from Matt. xxvi. 
59; xxvii. 3, 41; and that the 
former had extensive ecclesiasti¬ 
cal power, appears from Acts 
xvi 4. 

234 


ELE 

Estate of the elders (Act# 
xxii. 5) means the whole body, 
bench or order of the elders. 

ELEALEII. (Num. xxxii. 3, 
37.) A city of the Amorites, as¬ 
signed to the tribe of Reuben. It 
is denounced in the prophecies 
among the cities of Moab. (Isa. 
xv. 4; Jer. xlviii. 34.) And tc 
this day the ruins of a town are 
seen one or two miles northeast 
of Heshbon, that still retain the 
name of Eleale or El-Aal. 

ELEAZAR. 1. (Num. xx. 28.) 
The third son of Aaron, (Ex. vi. 
23,) and his successor in the office 
of high-priest, which he held for 
upwards of twenty years, and his 
family after him, till the time of 
Eli. Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar 
and Ithamar, together with their 
father Aaron, were consecrated to 
the sacerdotal office. The first 
tw r o were struck dead for a parti¬ 
cular sin. (See Abihu.) 

Eleazar, being the eldest sur¬ 
viving son, succeeded his father, 
and was himself succeeded by his 
eldest son Phinehas, according to 
the covenant. (Num. xxv. 12, 
13.) The office continued in Ele- 
azer’s line through seven succes¬ 
sions, and then passed into the 
line of Ithamar, in the person of 
Eli, who was both high- priest and 
judge. In Ithamar’s line it con¬ 
tinued until the reign of Saul, who 
caused Ahimelech to be slain, and 
probably transferred the priest¬ 
hood tc Zadok, who was cf the 
line of Phinehas; for in David’s 
time we find the priesthood sus¬ 
tained jointly by Zadok and Abia- 
thar, who was of Ithamar’s fami¬ 
ly. (2 Sam. xx. 25.) It is sup¬ 
posed that Zadok was advanced 
by Saul; and David, not wishing 
to depose him, but feeling bound 
to advance Abiathar, whose fa- 




ELE 

mily Lad sacrificed so many lives 
for his sake, he conferred the 
office on them jointly. (2 Sam. 
viii. 17.) The apparent contra¬ 
diction in this last-cited passage, 
by which the relation of Ahime- 
lech and Abiathn.r is reversed, is 
explained by supposing that Abi- 
athar had a son Ahimelech, and 
that this son officiated in his fa¬ 
ther’s stead, and hence is spoken 
of as executing the priest’s office 
with Abiathar. Afterwards, Abi- 
athar was deposed, (1 Kings ii. 
27,) and Zadok sustained the office 
alone; and the succession con¬ 
tinued in his line thenceforward 
until the captivity. 

Abiathar received the title of 
high-priest after his deposition, 
(1 Kings iv. 4,) but it was nothing 
more than nominal; it could only 
have been a secondary rank, such 
as Zephaniah held. (Jer. lii. 24.) 
Why the sacerdotal succession 
was transferred from Eleazar to 
Ithamar, we are not informed; 
but we are told why it reverted to 
the family of Eleazar. (1 Sam. ii. 
27, Ac.) 

2. (1 Chron. xi. 12.) A warrior 
of distinguished courage, two of 
whose exploits are recorded in 
1 Chron. xi. 11-18, and 2 Sam. 
xxiii. 9. 

3. (1 Sam. vii. 1.) The son of 
Abinadab, to whose care the ark 
was committed when it was sent 
back by the Philistines. 

EL-ELOHE-ISRAEL. (Gen. 
xxxiii. 20.) The word El is from 
a Hebrew word signifying strength, 
power, or an object of adoration. 
It is most frequently used of God, 
but is applied both to Jehovah 
and to heathen gods. It enters 
into the composition of a variety 
of words, to which it gives a high¬ 
ly significant meaning, as El-be- 


ELE 

tbel, Eluzai, Daniel, Jabneel, Otn. 
niel, Penuel, Ac. (See Ei oi.) 

El-bethel. (Gen. xxxv. 7.) 
The God of Bethel. The name 
with Bethel. (See Bethel.) 

ELECT, (1 Pet. i. 2,) ELEC¬ 
TION. (Rom. ix. 11.) Both in 
the Old and New Testament a 
class of persons is spoken of as 
the elect, mine elect, (Isa. lxv. 9;) 
the elect, (Matt. xxiv. 22;) his elect, 
(Mark xiii. 27;) his own elect, 
(Luke xviii. 7;) God’s elect, (Rom. 

viii. 33; Tit. i. 1;) the elect of God, 
(Col. iii. 12.) So also in the New 
Testament a corresponding phrase 
often occurs, Elected together with 
you, (1 Pet. v. 13;) the purpose of 
God according to election, (Rom. 

ix. 11;) election of grace, (Rom. xi. 
5;) election of God, (1 Thess. i. 4:) 
calling and election. (2 Pet. i. 10.) 
These terms, in their various con¬ 
nections, involve a very important 
and interesting doctrine, concern¬ 
ing which Christians are much 
divided in opinion. It is evidently 
a matter of mere revelation, and 
many of the reasonings and infer¬ 
ences of men are therefore likely 
to be very vain and erroneous. 
The counsel of the Lord, that shall 
stand. (Prov. xix. 21.) And we 
may be fully assured, that in his 
counsel there is nothing inconsist¬ 
ent with the infinitely perfect at¬ 
tributes of his character. 

Elect lady. (2 John 1.) Whe¬ 
ther this title is applied by John 
to some eminent Christian woman, 
or whether it was a figurative 
expression, denoting a Christian 
church, is uncertain. The expres¬ 
sions in ver. 4, 5, 8, and 13, would 
favour the latter supposition. 

ELEMENTS, (Gal. iv. 3, 9,) 
elsewhere rendered rudiments, 
(Col. ii. ^8, 20,) or the first princi¬ 
ples of an art or science, is a term 
235 



ELI 

applied to the ceremonial ordi¬ 
nances of the Mosaic law, which 
were worldly, weak and beggarly, 
inasmuch as they consisted very 
much in outward or worldly ob¬ 
servances, (Heb. ix. 1,) and were 
of temporary and partial service, 
when compared with the disclo¬ 
sures of grace and mercy which 
they were designed to shadow 
forth. In the case of the Colos- 
sians, probably these rudiments 
of the world embraced the doc¬ 
trines of some vain and deceitful 
philosophy. 

ELL (ISam. ii. 11.) A de¬ 
scendant of Ithamar, the fourth 
son of Aaron, and successor of 
Abdon, as high-priest and judge 
of Israel. In consequence of his 
negligence or injudicious manage¬ 
ment of his two sons Hoplmi and 
Phinehas, he suffered severe chas¬ 
tisement. Samuel was directed 
to disclose to Eli the judgments 
that would come upon his family, 
(1 Sam. iii. 13,14,) chiefly because 
of his neglect of paternal duty. 
The old man received the intelli¬ 
gence with remarkable submis¬ 
sion ; but it was not until twenty- 
seven years after, that God ful¬ 
filled his threatenings. Then his 
two sons were both slain in the 
same battle with the Philistines, 
into whose hands the ark of God 
fell. The aged priest, then in his 
ninety-eighth year, was so over¬ 
whelmed when these calamities 
were made known to him, that he 
fell backward from his seat, and 
broke his neck. He had govern¬ 
ed the Hebrews in all their con¬ 
cerns, civil and religious, for the 
long period of forty years. (1 Sam. 
iv. 18. See Eloi.) 

ELIAB. (1 Sam. xvii. 28.) The 
eldest son of Jesse, (1 Sam. xvii. 
13 ,) and a man of angry and en- 
236 


ELI 

vious temper, as appears from his 
treatment of his brother David. 

ELIAKIM. 1. (2 Kings xviih 
18.) An officer in the court of 
Hezekiah king of Judah, and one 
of the commissioners appointed tc 
treat with the king of Assyria, 
who had laid siege to Jerusalem. 
We have a minute and deeply in¬ 
teresting account of the whole 
scene, 2 Kings xviii. and xix. 

2. (2 Kings xxiii. 34.) Son and 
successor of Josiah king of Judah. 
His name was changed to Jehoi- 
akim. (See Jehoiakim.) . 

ELIAS. (See Elijah.) 

E LI A SHI B. (Neh.xiii.4.) 
An officer of the temple. To ob¬ 
lige Tobiah, a relative, he took 
the stores out of one of the courts 
of the temple, and fitted it up for 
Tobiah’s lodgings. As soon as 
Nehemiah knew of it, he caused all 
Tobiah’s furniture to be cast out, 
the apartments to be thoroughly 
cleansed, and the stores to be re¬ 
turned. 

ELTEZER. (Gen. xv. 2.) A 
name of frequent occurrence in the 
Old Testament. The most dis¬ 
tinguished person who bore it was 
Abraham’s steward and confiden¬ 
tial servant. (Gen. xxiv. 2.) 

ELIHU. (Job xxxii. 2.) A 
friend of Job, and a kind of arbi¬ 
trator in the controversy between 
him and three of his acquaintances 
who had come to sympathize with 
him in his calamities. Elihu re¬ 
garded both parties as in the 
wrong: Job, for justifying himself 
rather than God j and his three 
friends, for their unfair or unsa¬ 
tisfactory mode of answering the 
afflicted patriarch. Elihu was the 
youngest of them all. He is called 
the Buzite, from Buz, the place of 
his nativity, probably a city of 
Idumea, as were also Dedan ani 



ELI 

Teraan. (Jer. xxv. 23; xlix. 7, 8; 
Ezek. xxv. 13.) Tlie ground taken 
by the threefriends of Job, respect¬ 
ing the cause of his calamities, 
was, that his professions of piety 
were hypocritical; and these were 
God’s judgments upon him for his 
sins. Elihu shows that this in¬ 
ference of theirs was rash and 
unauthorized. He censures many 
of the feelings and expressions 
into which Job had been betray¬ 
ed by the taunts and reproaches 
of his visiters; and then puts him 
in remembrance of the infinite at¬ 
tributes of the Divine Being, as a 
ground of submission and confi¬ 
dence. The soothing, yet faith¬ 
ful and honest, discourse of Elihu 
is finely contrasted with the sharp 
and severe language of the other 
three; and especially are his wis¬ 
dom, piety and benevolence ad¬ 
mirable, when we consider his 
youth and the character and stand- 
s 2 g of those whom he addressed. 
(See Job.) 

ELIJAH, (1 Kings xvii. 1,) or 
ELIAS, (Matt. xvii. 3,) was a na¬ 
tive of Gilead, and is called the 
Tiahbite, probably from the name 
of the town or district in which 
he lived. He is first introduced 
to our notice as a messenger from 
God to Ahab, the wicked king of 
Israel. He was sent to utter a 
prophecy of a three years’ drought 
in the land of Israel. He was 
miraculously, fed, (1 Kings xvii. 
6-16; xix. 5-8,) and was favoured 
with the most remarkable displays 
of divine power in his behalf, and 
in answer to his prayers. (1 Kings 
xvii. 17-22; xviii. 15-46; xix. 2- 
21; 2 Kings i. 3-17; ii. 1-11.) 
Tw o of these incidents are used in 
the New Testament to illustrate 
important doctrines (Luke iv, 
25, 26 ; James v. 17 18.) 


ELI 

As a reprover of wicked men 
in high places, Elijah discovered 
great intrepidity, (1 Kings xxi. 
17-24; 2 Kings i. 2-16,) though 
on one occasion he seems to have 
been betrayed into some impa¬ 
tience. (1 Kings xix. 3, 4.) 

After executing the prophetic 
office ten years, Elijah was trans¬ 
lated to heaven in a miraculous 
manner, in presence of Elisha and 
fifty other persons. The advent 
of John the Baptist is prophesied 
under the name of Elijah. (Mai. 
iv. 5. Comp. Matt. xi. 14; xvii. 
10 ; Mark ix. 11; Luke i. 17. For 
a full history of this prophet, with 
illustrative maps and cuts, see 
Life of Elijah. See also Bible 
Pictures, and Widow and her 
Son.) 

ELIMELECH. (Ruth i. 2.) A 
Bethlehemite, and the husband of 
Naomi, Ruth’s mother-in-law. 

ELIPHAZ. (Jobii. 11.) One 
of the three friends of Job who 
came to sympathize with him in 
his calamities. He is called the 
Temanite, probably because he 
was a native of Teman, a country 
of Idumea, settled by one of the 
descendants of Esau. (Gen. xxxvi. 
10, 11; comp. Jer. xlix. 7, 20; 
Ezek. xxv. 13; Amos i. 11, 12; 
Obad. 8, 9.) 

ELISABETH. (Luke i. 5.) 
The wife of Zacharias, and greatly 
distinguished as the mother of 
John the Baptist. She was a de¬ 
scendant of Aaron; and of her and 
her husband this exalted charac¬ 
ter is given by the evangelist— 
They were both righteous before 
God, walking in all the command¬ 
ments and ordinances of the Lord 
blameless. (See Zacharias.) 

E L I S II A, (1 Kings xix. 16,) 
the disciple and successor of Eli¬ 
jah, was the son of Shaphat, an*/ 
23 * 




ELI 

a native of Abel-Meholah. Elijah 
was* commanded to anoint him; 
which service ne performed at 
Abel-Meholah, where he found 
Elisha ploughing. He threw his 
mantle over him as they stood in 
the field ; thus signifying the ser¬ 
vice to which he was called. Elisha 
promptly obeyed the call, and 
leaving his oxen in the field, took 
leave of his father and mother, 
and followed Elijah. Many mi¬ 
racles were wrought by Elisha. 
(2 Kings ii. 19-22 ; iv. 1, 8-37; v. 
vi. 1-7. See Naaman.) He re¬ 
ceived frequent and signal tokens 
of the divine favour, (2 Kings ii. 
23, 24; vi. 8-23,) and uttered se¬ 
veral remarkable predictions. (2 
Kings iii. 16-27; vii. viii. 7-15.) 
He exercised the prophetic office 
upwards of sixty years with great 
fidelity and success. (For a full 
biography of this eminent pro¬ 
phet, with maps and cuts, illus¬ 
trating his travels and the pro¬ 
minent incidents of his life, see 
Life of Elisha.) 

ELISHAH. (Gen. x. 4.) A son 
of Javan, who is supposed to have 
settled upon some islands of the 
sea. (Ezek. xxvii. 7.) Perhaps 
Elis is the Peloponnesus. 

ELLASAR, (Gen. xiv. 1,) sup¬ 
posed to be the same with Thela- 
sar, (2 Kings xix. 12,) and Telas- 
tar , (Isa. xxxvii. 12,) was proba¬ 
bly a country of Arabia, and per¬ 
haps the province which was 
afterwards enlarged into Assyria 
or El-Asur. 

ELM. (Hos.if. 13.) The ori¬ 
ginal is elsewhere translated oak. 
(See Oak.) 

ELOI. (Mark xv. 3.) One of 
the names of the Most High, but 
is applied to other objects of ado¬ 
ration. It is the allah of the Ara¬ 
bians. (See El.) The exolama- 
288 


EMB 

tion of Our Saviour is in the Syro- 
Chaldaic tongue, and is taken 
from Ps. xxii. 1. The peculiar 
application of the passage may be 
learned from comparing Isa. liii. 
4, 5 ; Zech. xiii. 7 ; Luke xxii. 53; 
2 Cor. v. 21; Gal. iii. 13. 

ELUL. (See Month.) 

ELYMAS. (See Barjesus.) 

EMBALM. (Gen. 1. 2.) Th# 
practice of embalming prevailed 
at a very early period. The He¬ 
brews learned it from the Egyp¬ 
tians, by whom it was understood 
very perfectly, and it is said that 
the inundation of the Nile, which 
kept the flat country under water 
for nearly two months every year, 
probably obliged them to resort 
to some such method of preserv¬ 
ing their dead Others tell us it 
was to preser’ e the body for the 
dwelling-placv of the soul, after it 
had completed its various trans¬ 
migrations. The embalmers or 
physicians were regarded as sa¬ 
cred officers. The deceased per¬ 
son was opened, (both head and 
body,) the inward vessels and or¬ 
gans entirely removed, and the 
cavities filled with drugs and 
spices,—such as myrrh and cas¬ 
sia,—wherebythe humours should 
be imbibed and absorbed, and the 
form preserved from decay. It 
was then swathed in linen band¬ 
ages, with a profusion of aroma¬ 
tics. The price of embalming a 
single body was sometimes up- 
waids of $1000, and from that 
down to $200 or $300. Some¬ 
times the process lasted from 
thirty to seventy days, and after¬ 
wards the body was placed in a 
coffin of sycamore-wood or stone, 
and then placed upright against 
the walls of the house, where it 
often remained for years. Final- 
| ly, ,he bodies were placed in sub 



EME 


END 



still, that they were a very large 
and venomous species of the spi¬ 
der. It was customary with the 
heathens to offer to their gods 
figures of wax or metal, repre¬ 
senting the parts which had been 
cured of disease. Whence they 
infer, in connection with 1 Sam. 
vi. 5,.that the priests and diviners 
of the Philistines recommended a 
similar course. 

EM IMS. (Deut. ii. 10.) A 
1 numerous and warlike people, of 
gigantic size, who dwelt on the 
eastern borders of Canaan, and 
who were supplanted bythe Moab¬ 
ites. 

EMMANUEL. (See Imma¬ 
nuel.) 


Mummies. 

terraneous vaults in the ground, 
or in the rock, where they were 
often found, after the lapse of two 
or three thousand years, in a state 
of perfect preservation. 

We have no evidence that em¬ 
balming was practised by the He¬ 
brews, except in the cases of Jacob 
and Joseph, and then it was for 
the purpose of preserving their 
remains till they could be carried 
into the land of promise. (See 
Bury.) 

EMERALD. (Ex. xxviii. 18.) 
A very valuable gem, of a pure 
green colour, to which it owes its 
chief value; as the deepest colours 
are the most valuable. The eme¬ 
rald was anciently obtained from 
Egypt. It is found in Peru and 
the East Indies, and was an arti¬ 
cle of Tyrian merchandise. (Ezek. 
xxvi\ 16; xxviii. 13.) 

EMERODS. (1 Sam. v. 6, 9.) 
The name of a painful disease sent 
upon the Philistines. Some think 
it resembled the modern disease 
of the piles; and others, that it 
was like the dysentery; ar d ethers 


EMMAUS. (Luke xxiv. 13.) 
A village seven or eight miles 
northwest of Jerusalem. It was 
on the way to this village that 
our Lord held a most interesting 
conversation with two of his dis¬ 
ciples. The supposed ruins of the 
place are still visible, though too 
imperfect to excite much int-ec»& 

EMULATION. (Rom. xi. 14 ; 
Gal. v. 20.) The opposite mean¬ 
ing of this word, in the passages 
above cited, is obvious. In the 
last case, it is the same with what 
is elsewhere called envy and en- 
vyings, (Acts xiii. 45; 2 Cor. xii. 
20;) and in the former passage it 
signifies that holy strife or effort 
to equal or excel others, which is 
excited or provoked by an exhi¬ 
bition of good example. 

ENCHANTMENTS. (See In¬ 
chanters.) 

ENDOR. (Ps.lxxxiii. 10.) A 
town of Manasseh, within the ter¬ 
ritory of Issachar, south of mount 
Tabor, where lived the woman 
whom Saul consulted as having a 
familiar spirit. A cave is stiP 
pointed out to travellers a few 


239 






















END 

miles eoutK of Nazareth, as the 
one she inhabited. (1 Sam. xxviii. 
7-25.) It would seem from the 
passage in Psalms, above cited, 
that it was near this place that 
Barak defeated Sisera. (Judg. iv.) 

ENDOW. (See Dowry.) 

ENGEDI, (2 Chron. xx. 2,) or 
HAZAZON-TAMAR. A town 
about thirty miles southeast of 
Jerusalem, and directly west of 
the southern extremity of the 
Dead sea. It was celebrated for 
its palm-trees and vineyards, (Sol. 
Song i. 14,*) and modern travel¬ 
lers speak of the district as afford¬ 
ing the richest wines. It was also 
celebrated for its caves and almost 
inaccessible fastnesses. (1 Sam. 
xxiii. 29.) 

Wilderness op. (1 Sam. xxiv. 
1.) Part of ths wilderness of 
Judah. 

ENGINES. (See War.) 

ENGRAVE. (Ex. xxviii. 11.) 
Engraved seals are spoken of at a 
very early period of the world. 
The names of the children of Is¬ 
rael were directed to be engraved 
on two stones; and the words 
“Holiness to the Lord” were 
also to be engraved on the high- 
priest’s breastplate; both to be 
like the engravings of a signet. 
(Ex. xxviii. 11, 36.) The signet 
is mentioned before Joseph was 
Bold into Egypt. Job also speaks 
of engraving with an iron pen 
upon a rock. (Jobxix. 24.) The 
ten commandments were engrav¬ 
ed, (Ex. xxxii. Id;) and graven 
images were undoubtedly among 
the earliest objects of idolatrous 
worship. (Ex. xx. 4; xxxii. 4.) 
Allusion is also made to the en¬ 
graver’s art in Ezek. xxiii. 14. The 
engraved lines were probably fill¬ 
ed in with colouring matter. (See 
also Acts xvii. 29. See Seal.) 

240 


ENR 

ENOCH, (Heb. xi. 5,) the son 
of Jared and father of Methuse¬ 
lah, was born A. M. 622. He is 
called the seventh from Adamy 
(Jude 14,) to distinguish him from 
Enoch the son of Cain, who was 
only the third from Adam. We 
are told that he walked with God; 
an expressive figure to denote the 
closest communion with the divine 
being, and entire conformity to 
his will. And concerning his de¬ 
parture from the world, we are 
told that he was not, for God took 
him ,—a phrase which imports .a 
mere change of residence, without 
suffering the ordinary dissolution 
of the body. In this case, as well 
as in Elijah’s, the body was clothed 
with immortality, or endued with 
the immortal principle by the im¬ 
mediate power of God. (1 Cor. 
xv. 50.) 

We have the character of Enoch 
drawn by two apostles. (Heb. xi. 
5, 13; Jude 14, 15.) This last 
passage has been the subject of 
some controversy; but the truth 
is apparent that Jude received a 
knowledge of the prophecy of the 
.ancient patriarch, either through 
tradition or directly from God. It 
has been remarked that each of 
three grand dispensations of reli¬ 
gion had its instance of transla¬ 
tion into heaven : the patriarchal, 
in the person of Enoch ; the Jew¬ 
ish, in the person of Elijah ; and 
the Christian, in the person of 
Christ, the author and spirit 
of all. 

ENON. (John iii. 23.) A town 
on the west side of the Jordan, 
eight or ten miles siuth of Beth- 
shean, abounding in water, and 
distinguished as a place where 
John baptized. 

ENROGEL, (Josh. xv. 7,) or 
the Fountain of Bog el, or the Ful- 



ENS 

lev’s Fountain, or Mary’s Foun¬ 
tain, was a reservoir cf water at 
the foot of mount Zion, and, as 
some suppose, the same with the 
fountain of Siloam, whence the 
pool of that name is supplied. 
Several important events of sacred 
history are associated with this 
place. (Josh, xviii. 16 ; 2 Sam. 
xvii. 17; 1 Kings i. 9.) 

ENSIGN. (See Banners.) 
EPAPIIRAS. (Col. i. 7.) A 
distinguished disciple of Colosse, 
and a faithful minister of the gos¬ 
pel. His character is described 
by the Apostle Paul, (Col. i. 7, 8; 
iv. 12,) whose fellow prisoner he 
was at Rome. (Philem. 23.) 

EPAPHRODITUS. (Phil. ii. 
25.) An eminent disciple who re¬ 
sided at Philippi, and was com- 
uissioned by the church in that 
lity to visit the Apostle Paul dur¬ 
ing his imprisonment at Rome, to 
vhich circumstance, and the pro¬ 
mring cause of it, the apostle al- 
5ides with strong commendation. 

EPIIAH. (See Measures.) 

EPHAH. 1. A place. (Isa. 
lx. 6.) 

2. A person. (Gen. xxv. 4.) 
Ephah was a grandson of Abra¬ 
ham, and his posterity settled in 
Arabia, and were designated by 
the name of their general ances¬ 
tor, as in the passage above cited 
from Isaiah. 

EPHESIANS. (Acts xix. 28.) 
The citizens of Ephesus. 

Epistle to, was written by Paul 
to the Christians at Ephesus. The 
church in that renowned city was 
established and built up under 
Paul’s ministry (Acts xviii. 19, 
21; xix.) about the year 54 or 55, 
and this letter was written by the 
apostle about a. i>. 60 or 61, while 
he was in prison at Rome, and 
forwarded by Tychicus, a belovt d 
21 


Ern 

brother an I faithful minister 
(Eph. vi. 21.) The matter and 
style of this epistle are considered 
by the most eminent critics as pe¬ 
culiarly elevated and animating. 

EPHESUS. (Acts xix. 35.) A 
celebrated city of Asia Minor situ¬ 
ated on the river Cayster, near its 
mouth, about fifty miles south 
•of Smyrna. It was the ornament 
and metropolis of proconsular 
Asia, and celebrated for a magni¬ 
ficent temple of Diana. This tem¬ 
ple was four hundred and twenty- 
five feet in length, two hundred 
and twenty in breadth, and was 
supported by one hundred co¬ 
lumns, each sixty feet in length. 
The building of it occupied two 
hundred years. 

When Paul came to the city, 
A. d. 54, he commenced preaching 
in the Jewish synagogue. The 
blessing of God attended his mi¬ 
nistry. Several converts to the 
faith of the gospel were baptized, 
and had imparted to them the 
miraculous gifts of tongues and 
prophecy. He afterwards com¬ 
menced preaching in a public 
building, used for a school; and 
for two years, da}' by day, he rea¬ 
soned publicly with the perverse 
and unbelieving Ephesians. By 
this means, and by a series of won¬ 
derful miracles which he wrought 
by the power of God, his doc¬ 
trines became universally known 
through the city and country. 
Such was the effect of his preach¬ 
ing, that many of the sorcerers, 
and other persons who practised 
the superstitious arts of legerde¬ 
main and necromancy, collected 
together their books on these sub¬ 
jects, amounting to several thou¬ 
sand dollars in value, and burned 
them. An exhibition like this, 
of the power of divine truth 
Q 241 





EPfl 

might be expected to excite the 
opposition of wicked men, and 
especially those whose selfish in¬ 
terests were likely to suffer by the 
prevalence of true religion. A 
great commotion was accordingly 
excited by a class of men whose 
living depended on the worship 
of Diana; and Paul came near 
falling into their hands. (See 
Demetrius.) 

Ephesus was visited by Apollos, 
(Acts xviii. 24,) and it was in 
Ephesus that Paul received the 
kind offices of Onesiphorus. 

The church at Ephesus is se¬ 
verely rebuked and threatened 
(Rev. ii. 1—11) by the great head 
of the church, for its coldness and 
backsliding; and how fully the 
threat has been executed, appears 
from the following account given 
us by a recent wanderer among 
its ruins. A miserable Turkish 
village, called Aijasoluc, occupies 
nearly the site of the ancient city. 

“ After breakfasting,” says a 
traveller, “ we passed over to the 
foot of mount Prion, (on the side of 
which the renowned city was built,) 
and at every step we encountered 
some scattered fragment of anti¬ 
quity. What was formerly the 
harbour is now a marsh, from 
whence the sea has long since re¬ 
treated. On the hill some traces 
of the former walls, and a solitary 
watch-tower, mark the extent of 
the city. Something is seen that 
is supposed to be the ruins of the 
theatre into which Demetrius and 
the excited multitude rushed. Of 
the temple of Diana, not a stone 
remains. A more thorough change 
jan scarcely be conceived than 
that which has passed over Ephe¬ 
sus. Once the seat of active coni- 
ineroe, the very sea has shrunk 
from its solitary shores. Its 
242 


EPB 

streets once populous with the de¬ 
votees of Diana, are now plough¬ 
ed over by the Ottoman serf, or 
browsed upon by the sheep of the 
peasants. It was early the strong¬ 
hold of Christianity ; now not a 
single Christian dwells within it.” 

Mr. Fisk, an American mission¬ 
ary, who visited the ruins some 
years ago, describes the desolation 
in similar terms, and then adds: 
“While wandering among the 
ruins, it was impossible not to 
think, with deep interest, of the 
events which have transpired on 
this spot. Here has been dis¬ 
played, from time to time, all the 
skill of the architect, the musi¬ 
cian, the tragedian and the ora¬ 
tor. Here some of the most splen¬ 
did works of man have been seen 
in all their glory, and here the 
event has shown their transi¬ 
tory nature. How interesting 
would it be to stand among these 
walls, and have before the mind 
a full view of the history of Ephe¬ 
sus from its first foundation till 
now! We might observe the ido¬ 
latrous and impure rites, and the 
cruel and bloody sports of pagans, 
succeeded by the preaching, the 
prayers, the holy and peaceable 
lives of the first Christians,—these 
Christians martyred, but their re¬ 
ligion still triumphing,—pagan* 
rites and pagan sports abolished, 
and the simple worship of Christ 
instituted in their room. We 
might see the city conquered and 
reconquered, destroyed and re¬ 
built, till finally Christianity, arts, 
learning and prosperity,all vanish 
before the pestiferous breath of 
‘ the only people whose sole occu¬ 
pation has been to destroy.’ 

“The plain of Ephesus is non 
very unhealthy, owing to the fogs 
and mists which almost continu- 




EPH 

ally rest upon it. The land, how¬ 
ever, is rich, and the surrounding 
country is both fertile and healthy. 
The adjacent hills would furnish 
many delightful situations for vil¬ 
lages, if the difficulties were re¬ 
moved which are thrown in the 
way by a despotic government, 
oppressive agas and wandering 
banditti.” (See Demetrius, Di¬ 
ana, Paul.) 

EPHOD. (Ex. xxviii. 6.) One 
of the articles of the priest’s offi¬ 
cial dress. It was made of plain 
linen, (1 Sam. ii. 18; 2 Sam. vi. 
14,) except the epbod of the high- 
priest, which was embroidered 
with various colours. It consisted 
of two parts, one covering the 
back and the other the breast, 
and both united upon the two 
shoulders. It is sometimes de¬ 
scribed as having been thrown 
over the shoulders, and, hanging 
down before, crossed upon the 
breast, and was then carried round 
the waist to serve as a girdle for 
the robe. On each shoulder was 
a large precious stone or button, 
upon which were engraved the 
names of the twelve tribes; and 
upon the place where it crossed 
the breast was the breastplate. 
(See Breastplate.) The better 
opinion is, that the girdle was 
woven with the ephod, or “upon 
it,” (Ex. xxviii. 8,) and that com¬ 
ing out from it on each side, it 
was brought around under the 
arms like a sash, and tied upon 
the breast, and so secured both 
the ephod and the robe. The 
ephod, or something resembling 
it and called by the same name, 
was worn by others besides the 
priests. (1 Chron. xv. 27, and 
passages before cited.) 

EPHRAIM. 1. A person. 
(Hen. xli. 52.) The second son 


EPK~ 

of Joseph. Though younger than 
Manasseh, he was the object of 
peculiar favour; and the predic¬ 
tion of their grandfather Jacob 
was literally fulfilled. (Comp. 
Gen. xlviii. 8-20 ; Num. ii. 18, 21.) 

2. Tribe of, occupied one of 
the most eligible sections of the 
land of promise. The Mediterra¬ 
nean was on the wost and the 
river Jordan on the east, a portion 
of Manasseh on the north and 
parts of Dan and Benjamin on the 
south. The city of Shiloh was 
within the bounds- of Ephraim; 
and after the revolt of the ten 
tribes, the capital of their king 
dom was always within the bounds 
of Ephraim : and hence the whole 
kingdom is sometimes called 
Ephraim. (Jer. xxxi. 9, 18, 20.) 

3. City of. (2 Sam. xiii. 23.) A 
considerable town situated about 
eight miles north of Jerusalem, 
on the way to Jericho, and within 
the bounds of the tribe of Benja¬ 
min. It was to this place that 
our Saviour retired after the rais¬ 
ing of Lazarus, (John xi. 54 ;) and 
it is not improbable the same place 
is intended in 2 Chron. xiii. 19. 

4. Forest or wood of. (2 Sam. 
xviii. 6.) The territory originally 
assigned to the children of Joseph 
(Ephraim and Manasseh) was 
woodland, (Josh. xvii. 10-18; Ps. 
cxxxii. 6,) and probably a portion 
of it remaining uncleared was call¬ 
ed the wood or forest of Ephraim. 
(1 Sam. xiv. 25, 26; 2 Kings ii. 24.) 
Another place of the same name 
was situated east of the Jordan, 
near Jabesh-Gilead, and was me¬ 
morable for the battle between 
David and the rebel army under 
Absalom. (2 Sam. xviii. 6.) 

5. Mount, (Josh. xx. 7,) was 
south of the plain of Esdraelon. 
The Dame was given to a range 

243 




EPH 

of highlands running through the 
possessions of Ephraim. The soil 
was fertile, except that part of the 
ridge which lay towards the Jor¬ 
dan. This was rocky and diffi¬ 
cult of ascent. 

EPII RAT AII. (Ps. cxxxii. 6.) 
Another name for Ephraim. (1 
Sam. i. 1; I Kings xi. 26.) The 
Ephrathites of Bethlehem-Judah 
are mentioned, Ruth i. 2, and w r e 
are elsewhere told that Ephrath 
is the same with Bethlehem. (Gen. 
xxxv. 16 ; 19. See Bethlehem.) 

Bothlenem-Ephratah was so 
called to distinguish it from an¬ 
other Bethlehem in the tribe of 
Zebulon. (Josh. xix. 15.) 

EPHRATH, (IChron. ii. 19,)* 
or EPHRATAH, (ver. 50,) was 
the second wife of Caleb. 

EPICUREANS. (Acts xvii. 18.) 
This was a sect of Gentile philo¬ 
sophers founded by Epicurus, who 
was born in the vicinity of Athens 
about three hundred and forty-five 
years before the birth of Christ. 
They were in high repute at 
Athens in Paul’s days, and among 
their doctrines were these,—that 
the world came into being, and 
will be dissolved by chance, or by 
the effect of mechanical causes, 
moved by chance; that all events 
happen by chance, or are occa¬ 
sioned by mechanical causes ; that 
the soul dies with the body; that 
there is no future retribution, and 
that man’s chief happiness lies in 
pleasure or bodily ease. How ut¬ 
terly at variance with all these 
false and absurd positions, was 
ino doctrine of “Jesus and the 
resurrection,” we need not show; 
nor can we wonder that with all 
the natural lusts and depraved 
passions on their side, they should 
stubbornly refuse to yield to the 
pure and humbling doctrines and 
24J 


EPI 

precepts of the gospel which the 
apostle pressed upon their con- 

opi nnpnc 

EPISTLES. (2 Pet. iii. 16.) A 
term applied to the inspired mes¬ 
sages or letters of advice, address¬ 
ed by the apostles or first preach- 
ers of Christianity to churches or 
individuals; and which, though 
primarily designed for the rebuke, 
instruction, guidance and encou¬ 
ragement of those to whom they 
were addressed, furnish the like 
means of grace, and the like rule 
of faith and practice, to all Chris¬ 
tians and churches in like circum¬ 
stances. It was the most natural 
course the apostles could pursue, 
after preaching the gospel in any 
town or district, and establishing 
a church, that they should, in their 
absence, address them by letter, 
to remind them of the doctrines 
and injunctions they had receiv¬ 
ed, and to illustrate more fully 
the duties and obligations of dis¬ 
ciples. The epistles may be re¬ 
garded as illustrating, applying 
and enforcing the truths which 
are taught in the parables and 
conversations, but especcially in 
the life and death of the divine 
Redeemer; and they present to 
us a beautiful and harmonious 
system of Christian precept and 
doctrine. 

Of tho epistles, Paul wrote four¬ 
teen ; James, one; Peter, two; 
John, three; and Jude, one; which 
are more particularly noticed 
either under the names of tho in¬ 
dividuals respectively, or of the 
.churches or per sons to whom they 
wrote. 

The following table is suppos¬ 
ed to show the probable chrono¬ 
logical order of the epistles, with 
the places at which they were 
written, and the date of each. It 



ERA ESH 

'Will oe perceived that the earliest | of less than twenty years for th* 
and latest date embrace a period | whole. 


Epistle to the Places where written. 

Galatians.Thessalonica, or Corinth 

1 Thessalonians....Corinth. 

2 Thessalonians. ...Ibid. 

1 Corinthians.Ephesus.. 

2 Corinthians.Macedonia. 

1 Timothy.Ibid. 

Titus.Colosse, or Macedonia... 

Romans.Corinth.. 

James.Judea. 

Philemon.Rome. 

Colossians.Ibid. 

Ephesians.Ibid.. 

Philippians.Ibid. 

Hebrews.Ibid.. 

Jude.Uncertain.. 

2 Timothy.Rome. 

1 Peter.Uncertain. 

2 Peter.Uncertain.. 

1, 2, and 3 John.Ephesus. 


Tear of Clmet. 

.51—53 

.52—54 

....52—55 
... .56 

-57—59 

_56—59 

.56—59 

.58 

_61 

.61—63 

.61—62 - 

.61—62 

.62 

.62—63 

_64 

.61—62 

.66 

.68 

.70 


ERASTUS (Acts xix. 22) was 
the steward or treasurer of the 
city of Corinth, (see Chamber- 
lain,) and a convert under Paul’s 
preaching. (Rom. xvi. 23.) Ho 
followed Paul to Ephesus, and 
thence went to Macedonia, (Acts 
xix. 22,) and afterwards returned 
to Corinth. (2 Tim. iv. 20.) 

ERECH. (Gen. x. 10.) A city 
of Chaldea, built by Nimrod on 
the Tigris. It was called Erecca 
and Aracca by the Greeks and 
Romans. Some have supposed 
there were two places of this name, 
and others that Erech was the 
same with Edessa, (now Orfah,) 
in northern Mesopotamia. 

ESAIAS. (Matt. iii. 3.) The 
same with Isaiah. 

ESARHADDON. (2 Kings xix. 
37.) Son and successor of Senna¬ 
cherib king of Assyria, and the 
same with Sargon, (Isa. xx. 1,) 
and with Sardanapalus of profane 
history. 

ESAU, (Gen xxv. 25,) or 
EDOM. (Gen. xxxvi. 1.) Son of 
Isaac and Rebecca, and twin bro¬ 
ther of Jacob. The most import¬ 
ant events of his life are so inti¬ 
mately connected with the life of 


Jacob, that they will be considered 
under that article. His family 
settled on mount Seir, east of 
Jordan, which was hence called 
Edom, and his descendants were 
the Edomites, one of the most 
powerful and formidable nations 
of that age. (See Edom.) 

ESH-BAAL. (1 Chron. viii. 
33.) The same with Ishbosheth. 
(See Ishbosheth.) 

ESHCOL. 1. A person. (Gen. 
xiv. 24.) One of Abraham’s allies. 

2. A rivulet, or valley, 
(Deut. i. 24,) in the south of Ju¬ 
dea. The spies sent out by the 
Israelites to explore the promised 
land and ascertain its situation, 
fertility, <fcc. &c., came to this 
brook, and cut down a branch of 
a vine with a single cluster of 
grapes, which was so large and 
heavy as to be borne upon a staff 
by two men. This they took to 
their brethren, as a visible illus • 
tration of the richness of the soil 
and its productions. (Num. xiii 
24; xxxii. 9.) 

ESHTAOL. (Josh. xv. 13.) A 
town in the valley or lowlands of 
Judah, though afterwards in the 
possession of Dan. (Judg. xiii. 

245 









































ESH 

25,' xvi. 31.) It is supposed .0 
have been situated southeast of 
Askalon. 

ESHTEMOA. (Josh. xxi. 14; 
1 Chron. vi. 57,) or A S H T E- 
MOTH. (Josh. xv. 50.) A town 
in the southern part of Judah, 
assigned to the sons of Aaron. 

ESPOUSE. (See Betroth.) 

ESROM. (Matt. i. 3 ; Luke iii. 
S3.) The same with Hezron. (Gen. 
rlvi. 12.) 

ESTATE (Mark vi. 21) is the 
general name for an order or class 
of men in society or government. 
As in Great Britain, the lords and 
commons are called the estate's of 
the realm. (See Elders.) 

ESTHER, or IIADASSAH. 
(Esth. ii. 7.) An orphan child of 
the kindred of Mordecai, whom 
he adopted as his own daughter. 
She was fair and beautiful, and in 
process of time became the wife 
of Ahasuerus, one of the most dis¬ 
tinguished of the monarchs of the 
East. (The history of this cele¬ 
brated queen, in all its details, is 
given in IIadassah, with a vari¬ 
ety of beautiful illustrative en¬ 
gravings.) 

Book op, is the seventeenth in 
the order of the books of the Old 
Testament, and embraces a period 
of probably less than twenty 
years, commencing about A. m. 
3544. The author of the book is 
not certainly known. Some sup¬ 
pose it was Mordecai, but the bet¬ 
ter opinion seems to be that the 
historical details are derived from 
the records of the Persian kings. 
It bears the most unquestionable 
mternal evidence of its authenti¬ 
city, and the feast of Purim, (of 
the institution of which this book 
gives an account,) is still observ¬ 
ed by the Jews; who hold, that 
whatever may be the fate of the 
246 . 


ETE 

other parts of their Scriptures, 
this will ever be preserved. It 
contains an account of the eleva¬ 
tion of Esther to the throne, the 
pride and envy of Hainan, his 
malicious plot for the destruction 
of the Jews, the turning of his 
schemes against himself, the ho¬ 
nour and dignity of Mordecai, the 
destruction of the enemies of the 
Jews, (and among them Haman’s 
family,) and the power and glory 
of the king. It is remarkable 
that the name of God does not 
occur in any passage of the whole 
book. 

ETAM. (Judg. xv. 8, 11.) A 
famous rock/probably near a city 
of the same name in Judah, built 
by Rehoboam, (1 Chron. iv. 32 ; 2 
Chron. xi. 6,) and lying between 
Bethlehem and Tekoah. Modern 
maps place it in the tribe of Si¬ 
meon, east of Gaza. 

ETERNAL, ETERNITY 
(Deut. xxxiii. 27; Isa. lvii. 15.) 
These terms, when applied to Je¬ 
hovah, embrace the past as well 
as the future. Being self-existent, 
he must be eternal. He is without 
beginning of days or end of years. 
When applied to the future exist¬ 
ence, happiness or misery of man, 
(Matt. xix. 16; 2 Cor. iv. 17; Jude 
7,) they denote the endlessness of 
the state. And it is to be observ¬ 
ed, that if the word is restricted 
in its application to future punish¬ 
ment, it must be restricted in the 
same degree in its application to 
future happiness and even exist¬ 
ence. When applied to the prin¬ 
ciples of truth and justice, they 
signify unchangeableness. The 
words forever, everlasting, eternal, 
<fcc., are often used figuratively to 
denote long duration, as Gen. xvii. 
8; xlix. 26; Ex. xii. 14; but this 
restricted sense is always shown 



ETH 

by the connection, and affords no 
argument in favour ol the like 
restriction? in other connections, 
where the term is evidently em¬ 
ployed in its full force and extent. 

ETHAM. (Nam. xxxiii. 6.) 
One of the early stations of the 
Israelites in their journeyings to 
Canaan. It is said to have been 
in the edge of the wilderness, and 
was probably situated at the ex¬ 
tremity of the western gulf of the 
Red sea. 

The wilderness of Etham 
(Num. xxxiii. 8) was probably 
part of the great desert or wilder¬ 
ness of Shur, which lay around 
the bottom of the western gulf of 
the Red sea. 

ETHAN, (1 Chron. vi. 44,) call¬ 
ed the Ezrahite, (Ps. lxxxix. title,) 
was of the tribe of Levi, and was 
remarkable for his wisdom. (1 
Kings iv. 31.) He is supposed to 
have written the eighty-ninth 
Psalm, and was a leader of the 
temple music. (1 Chron. xv. 19.) 

ETHANIM. (See Months.) 

ETHIOPIA. (Acts viii. 27.) 
The Hebrew word Cush, which is 
here and elsewhere translated 
Ethiopia, seems to have been ap¬ 
plied to at least three distinct 
countries. It was probably used 
very much as the word India is at 
this day. 

1. In Zeph. iii. 10, where the 
prophet speaks of Judah’s return 
from captivity, it refers probably 
to the country east of the Tigris, 
the principal seat of the captivity, 
which is lalled Cuthah. (2 Kings 
xvii. 24. Comp. Ps. lxviii. 31; 
Isa. xviii.) Profane writers call 
this country Ethiopia, or Cush, 
from which the modern name 
Khusistan is derived. 

2. In Num. xii. 1, the word 
Ethiopia is applied to a country 


EUP 

of southern Arabia, lying along 
the Red sea, elsewhere called 
Cushan, (Hab. iii. 7;) in which 
last passage allusion is made to 
the portion of history recorded, 
Num xxxi. 

3. In numerous other passages, 
(Isa. xlv. 14; Jer. xiii. 23; Ezek. 
xxix. 10 ; xxx. 4, 9; Acts viii. 27,) 
it must be understood as Ethiopia 
proper, lying south of Egypt, and 
including the modern countries 
of Nubia and Abyssinia. It was 
a mountainous and well-watered 
country. (Isa. xviii. 2; Zeph. iii. 
10.) The northern part of Ethi¬ 
opia was called by the Hebrews 
Seba, (Isa. xliii. 3,) after the old¬ 
est son of Cush, (Gen. x. 7,J and 
by the Romans Meroe. The in¬ 
habitants are said to have been 
men of stature, (Isa. xlv. 14;) and 
this is confirmed by an eminent 
Greek historian, who says they 
are the “ tallest of men.” 

The Ethiopian queen Candace 
(which, as profane historians say, 
was the common name of the 
queens of that country) reigned 
in Seba. Her treasurer was bap¬ 
tized by Philip. (Acts viii. 27.) 
There is a version of the Scrip¬ 
tures in the Ethiopian tongue. 

EUNICE. (2 Tim. i. 5.) The 
mother of the evangelist Timothy. 
She was by birth a Jewess, but 
married a Gentile. (Acts x\i. 1.' 

EUNUCH. (2 Kings ix. 32.) 
Eunuchs were employed by East¬ 
ern kings to take charge of the 
beds and lodging apartments, and 
also of the secluded princesses. 
(Esth. ii. 3.) In Persian and 
Turkish courts the principal offices 
are held by eunuchs. (Acts viii. 
27.) 

EUPHRATES, (Gen. ii. 14,) a 
famous river of Asia, rises in Ar¬ 
menia, on the northern sido of 

247 



EUP 

mount Taurus, receives many tri¬ 
butaries in its winding course 
along the borders of Syria, and 
skirting the Arabian desert, 
passes through the middle of Ba¬ 
bylon to the sea. Its whole length 
is fifteen hundred miles. It is 
navigable for ships of five hun¬ 
dred tons to Bassora, seventy 
miles above its mouth, and for 
large boats one hundred and fifty 
miles. It flows in a broad, deep 
current, filled to the level of its 
banks, and at Babylon i-s consi¬ 
derably less than a mile in width. 
The Tigris flows in a narrower 
channel, with deeper banks, and 
a less rapid current. The coun¬ 
try between the two rivers slopes 
towards the Tigris, and thus great¬ 
ly favours the draining off of the 
superfluous waters of the Eu¬ 
phrates. 

The Euphrates overflows its 
banks in the spring of every year, 
when the snow of the Armenian 
mountains dissolves; and it some¬ 
times rises twelve feet. Dykes, 
lakes and canals, constructed at 
vast expense, preserved the water 
for irrigation during the dry sea¬ 
son, and prevented its carrying 
away the soil. The Euphrates is 
called in Scripture the great river, 
and was the eastern boundary of 
the promised land. (Deut. i 7; 
Josh. i. 4.) 

EUROCLYDON. (Acts xxvii. 
14.) A very tempestuous wind, 
and now known under the name 
of a Levanter. It blows from all 
points, and its danger results from 
its violence and the uncertainty 
of its course. 

EUTYCHUS. (A3tsxx.9.) 
The name of a young man who 
fell from the third story of a 
house where Paul was preaching 
in Troas. It ia generally supposed 
248 


EVE 

he was killed by the fall, and tha* 
his restoration to life was a mira¬ 
cle. It is not important to prove 
this point, however, inasmuch as 
the possession of the gift of mi¬ 
racles by the apostle is sufficiently 
shown without it. (See Dwell¬ 
ings.) 

EVANGELIST. (Acts xxi. 8.) 
One who brings good tidings. 
Hence the writers of the four gos¬ 
pels are called “the evangelists,” 
because they, in a pre-eminent 
sense, declare good tidings of sal¬ 
vation through Christ. Evange¬ 
lists were early designated as a 
particular class of religious teach¬ 
ers, (Eph. iv. 11;) and some sup¬ 
pose that, without being attached 
to any particular church, they 
abandoned all worldly relations 
and pursuits, and, probably, by 
the commission of the apostles, 
preached the gospel wherever they 
were called. (2 Tim. iv. 5.) Others 
suppose that they were rather se¬ 
condary or assistant apostles, and 
were entirely under the authority 
and direction of the chief apostles 
when they ordained ministers and 
regulated churches. The primi¬ 
tive order of evangelists, distinct 
from other public religious teach¬ 
ers, is supposed to have been 
merely temporary, like that of 
apostles and prophets. And therr< 
is no doubt that whatever extra¬ 
ordinary gifts and powers they 
possessed have ceased; but the 
principal duties and services 
which they performed, and many 
to which they were not called, 
seem to have fallen upon those 
who in modern days are called 
missionaries. 

EVE. (Gen. iii. 20.) The name 
given by Adam to his wife. It is 
derived from a word which signi¬ 
fies life, and was applied to 




EVE 

as the mother of all the living. In 
consequence of h ?r disobedience to 
the divine command, (see Adam,) 
she was doomed to suffer a multi¬ 
plication and aggravation of sor¬ 
row, especially in the birth of her 
cflspring. It was also declared con¬ 
cerning her, that her desire should 
be to her husband, and he should 
rule over her. (Gen. iii. 16.) It 
is well known that ip those coun¬ 
tries which are unenlightened by 
the gospel, women are the most 
degraded and miserable slaves to 
man; and, taking into view the 
delicacy and sensitiveness which 
are characteristic of their sex, we 
may suppose this part of the ori¬ 
ginal sentence is visited upon 
millions of them with intense se¬ 
verity even at this day. 

EVENING, (Ps. lv. 17,) EVEN¬ 
TIDE. (Gen. xxiv. 63.) The He¬ 
brews reckoned two evenings: 
one commencing at sunset, and 
embracing the period of twilight; 
and the other commencing at dark. 
Some suppose that the first even¬ 
ing commenced as early as three 
o’clock in the afternoon, and the 
second at sunset. It was in the 
interval between the two even¬ 
ings, at whichever of these periods 
it occurred, that the passover was 
to be killed and the daily sacrifice 
offered. (See marginal reading 
of Ex. xii. 6; Num. ix. 3; xxviii. 
4.J Eventide is the same with 
evening-time. 

EVIL-MERODACH. (2 Kings 
xxv. 27.) Son and successor of 
Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, 
who reigned during the exile of 
that monarch from human society. 
Soon after his permanent acces¬ 
sion to the throne, he released Je- 
hoiachin king of Judah from pri¬ 
son, and treated him with great 
regard through life. (Jer. Hi. 31- 


EXO 

34.) It is supposed that when 
Nebuchadnezzar was restored to 
his reason and his crown, he caused 
Evil-Merodach to be imprisoned 
for the abuses of which he was 
guilty while he administered the 
government, and that it was then 
he became acquainted with Jehoi- 
achin as a fellow-prisoner. He 
at last fell a victim to a conspi¬ 
racy, formed among his own kin¬ 
dred, headed by his brother-in-law 
Neriglissar, who succeeded him. 

EXCHANGERS. (See Chang 
ers of Money.) 

EXODUS. The name of thr 
second book of Moses, and the se¬ 
cond in the order of the books of 
the Old Testament, and descrip¬ 
tive of its design ; for the word is 
derived from a Greek word which 
signifies going out, or departing; 
and the book contains the history 
of the release of the Israelites 
from their bondage in Egypt, and 
of their going out of that country 
up to the promised land. 

This book is cited as the work 
of Moses by David, Daniel and 
others of the sacred writers; and 
it has been remarked, that twenty- 
five distinct passages are quoted 
from it by Christ and his apostles 
in express words, and nineteen in 
substance. It comprehends a his¬ 
tory of nearly one hundred and 
forty-five years, viz. from A. m. 
2369 to a. si. 2514, inclusive, or 
from the death of Joseph to the 
erection of the tabernacle; and 
informs us respecting the birth, 
preservation, education, exile and 
divine legation of Moses, and the 
miraculous deliverance of Israel 
from the bondage of Egypt, tho 
institution of the passover, the 
entrance into the wilderness of 
Sinai, and their subsequent jour¬ 
ney in gs ; until the giving of the 




EXO 

law and the building of the taber¬ 
nacle. 

The third and fourth volumes 
of Union Questions are framed 
upon portions of this book, and 
contain maps of the journeyings 
of the children of Israel, while 
the Teacher’s Assistant, in the 
use of these two volum.es, and the 
Life of Moses, with maps, <fcc. 
furnish a full exposition of the 
leading passages of the history. 

EXORCISTS. (Acts xix. 13.) 
Those who, by the use of the name 
of God, attempted to expel evil 
spirits from places 
or persons of whom 
they had posses¬ 
sion. It was not 
an uncommon pro¬ 
fession among the 
Jews, as we may 
infer from Matt. 

xii. 27, and Mark 
ix. 38. 

EXPIATION, 

FEAST OF. (See 
Feasts. I 

EYES. (Gen. 

xiii. 10.) The figu¬ 
rative uses of this 
word abound in the 
sacred writings, 
and are generally 
obvious. In the 
visions of Ezekiel 

and John, (Ezek. i. 18; x. 12; 
Rev. iv. 6, 8,) the allusions are 
evidently to the alacrity and vigi¬ 
lance with which the ministers of 
Jehovah perform his wiL. 

EYELIDS. (Prov. vi. 25.) 
'he custom of adorning the eye- 
ids in any way for effect is not 
known among us, but the practice 
is often alluded to in the sacred 
writings. (2 Kings ix. 30 ; Jer. 
iv. 30; Ezek. xxiii. 40,) and pre¬ 
vails extensively now among East- 
250 


EYE 

ern ladies. The hair and edges 
of the eyelids are tinged with a 
fine black powder, moistened with 



oil or vinegar, which causes a 
small black line to appear around 
the edge, and at a distance (and 
especially by candle-light) gives a 
heavy, dark shade to the eye$. 
The manner of doing it is parti¬ 
cularly described by travellers. A 



smooth cylindrical piece of silver 
or ivory, shaped like a quill, and 
about two inches long, is dipped 
into the composition and placed 
within the eyelashes, which are 
closed over it. 

Th6 accompanying figure indi¬ 
cates the profuseness with which 
this black dye was sometimes em¬ 
ployed in setting off the features 
of the face. It shows, moreover, 
one mode of wearing the veil, and 
also the abundance of ornaments 





EZE 

with which the hand wag some¬ 
times loaded 

EZEKIEL, (Ezek. i. 3,) the son 
of Buzi, was both a prophet and 
priest of the Jews, and was car¬ 
ried into captivity with Jehoiachin. 
king of Judah, b. c. 598, and was 
probably settled, with other exiles, 
on the banks of the Chebai, a 
river of Chaldea. (See Chebar.) 
He was favoured with sublimo 
visions of the divine glory, and 
his prophecy as a whole is cha¬ 
racterized by great force, sub¬ 
lime imagery, and as much per¬ 
spicuity as the subjects of it would 
allow. 

Prophecy of, —is the twenty- 
sixth in the order of the books of 
the Old Testament. It was ut¬ 
tered during a period of about 
twenty-one years, between B. c. 
590 and b.c. 540. The first eight 
years of this period were contem¬ 
poraneous with the last eight of 
Jeremiah. The prophecy relates 
chiefly to Tyre, Egypt, Edom and 
Judea. It contains the most so¬ 
lemn denunciations against the 
idolatry, hypocrisy and rebellion 
of the Jews, with exhortations to 
faith and confidence in God’s 
righteousness, and with promises 
of mercy and final restoration. 

EZION-GEBER, or GABER. 
(Num. xxxiii. 35 ; 1 Kings ix. 26.) 
A city of Arabia, at the head of 
the eastern or Elanitic gulf of the 
Red Sea, adjoining Elath. It was 
here that Solomon’s vessels were 
built, which were intended to trade 
with Ophir and Tarshish. It de¬ 
rives its name (Ezion-Geber, or 
the back-bone of a man ) from a 
reef of rocks at the entrance of 
tb3 harbour resembling that part 
of the human frame. (See Elath.) 

EZRA (Ezra vii. 1) was a son 
»r rather descendant of Seraiah, 
22 * 


EZR 

who was slain by order of tb r 
king of Babylon. (2Kingsxxv 18 
-21.) He governed Judea twelve 
years, under a commission from 
the king of Persia, which expired 
A. it. 3558, when he was super¬ 
seded by Nehemiah. lie then 
engage 3, as it is supposed, in col¬ 
lecting and publishing the Jewish 
Scriptures, and restoring the pu¬ 
rity of the Jewish worship. 

Book oi,— is the fifteenth in the 
order of the books of the Old Tes¬ 
tament, and is a continuation of 
the Jewish history from the close 
of the book of Chronicles. The 
period embraced by it is from se¬ 
venty-five to one hundred years, 
between 3450 and 3550 ; and it 
may be read most profitably in 
connection with the prophecies of 
Haggai and Zechariah. It con¬ 
tains a history of the return of 
the Jews from the time of Cyrus, 
with an account of his own sub¬ 
sequent proceedings. There are 
two apocryphal books ascribed to 
him under the name of Esdras, 
which is the Greek form of the 
name Ezra. 

The book of Ezra is written in 
Chaldee from the eighth verse of 
the fourth chapter to the nine¬ 
teenth verse of the sixth chapter, 
and from tbe beginning of the 
seventh chapter to the twenty- 
seventh verse; for as this part of 
the work contains chiefly letters, 
conversation and decrees uttered 
in that language, it was consistent 
with the fidelity of tjie sacred 
historian, to transcribe the very 
words which were used; especially 
as the people recently returned 
from the captivity were familiar, 
and, perhaps, more conversant 
with the Chaldee than even with 
the Hebrew tongue; and it was 
probably about this time that the 
251 





EZR 

Chaldee paraphrases began to be 
used; for it appears by Nehemiah’s 
account, that all could not under¬ 
stand the law ; which may mean 
that some of them had forgotten 
the Hebrew during their disner- 
sion in the captivity, borne as¬ 
sign, likewise, to this time, the 
origin of the Jewish synagogues, 


EZR 

though i-t is possible that they ex¬ 
isted before the captivity. (Foi 
a particular and highly interest¬ 
ing account of Ezra, and the 
events of his time, see Eljsama, 
chap. xi.; and for an historical 
and chronological analysis of the 
events of the same period, see 
Union Questions, vol. ix.) 


FAC 

ACE. (Gen. iii. 19. See 
Blackness.) Whatever of 
a thing is most exposed to view, 
is called its face; hence we read 
of the face of the country, field, 
gate, house, ground, porch, wil¬ 
derness, waters, sky, &c. 

Face, when applied to God, de¬ 
notes, (1.) His omniscience, (1 
Sam. xxvi. 20;) and to provoke 
him to the face, is to do it very 
openly and impudently. (Isa. lxv. 
3.) (2.) The brighter displays of 
his glory, which cannot be enjoy¬ 
ed in this world. (Ex. xxxiii. 20; 
1 Tim. vi. 16.) (3.) His favour 

and love, and the gracious dis¬ 
plays thereof: this is always 
meant, when his face is said to 
shine, or it is represented as a 
mercy to behold and enjoy it, or 
a misery to bo deprived of it. (2 
Chron. xxx. 9; Ps. xxxi. 16; lxxx. 
7 ; Dan. ix. 17.) (4.) His wrath, 

and the providential displays 
thereof. (Ps. xxxiv. 16.) Christ’s 
face denotes, (1.) His person and 
office, as the image of the invisi¬ 
ble God. (2 Cor. iv. 6.) (2.) His 
gracious, glorious, or terrible ap¬ 
pearances. (Rev. xx. 11.) 

FAIR HAVENS. (Acts xxvii. 
8.) The name of a harbour or an¬ 
chorage on the southern shore of 
the island of Crete. (See Crete.) 

FAIRS (Ezek. xxvii. 12) may 
either mean periodical meetings 
252 


FAI 

of buyers and sellers, for purposes 
of merchandise, or fixed places of 
buying and selling in any city or 
town, such as we call markets. 

FAITH. (Matt. viii. 10.) The 
word sometimes denotes the cre¬ 
dit we give to the declaration of 
God, or to the evidence of the 
facts or propositions presented to 
us in the Bible. The word is also 
used to denote the truth of the 
gospel, or that which is the object 
of faith. (Jude 3.) The faith 
which is necessary to salvation, 
and without which it is impossi¬ 
ble to please God, (Heb. xi. 6,) 
combines assent with reliance,— 
belief with trust. Thus Christ is 
exhibited in the gospel as having 
made an atonement for sin; ana. 
whoever believeth in him shall 
not perish, but havo everlasting 
life. Exercising this faith, tho 
sinner is received and treated as 
if he were just and righteous; and 
hence the process is called justifi¬ 
cation by faith. The belief or 
fa^th in him, by which this salva¬ 
tion is secured, includes not only 
a cordial concurrence of the will 
and affections in this scheme or 
plan of redemption, together with 
all its relations and bearings, aa 
they are revealed in the gospel, 
but also such an actual, personal 
trust in Christ as a Saviour, as 
leads to the renunciation of everj 







FAI 

other trust; to the forsaking of 
*Ii known sin, and to the cheerful 
and constant obedience of all his 
commands. 

The faith of God, (Rom. iii. 3,) 
means his faithfulness. 

FAITHFULNESS (Ps. Ixxxix. 
1, 33, 34) is a divine attribute, and 
denotes tha truth and certainty 
of the accomplishment of all that 
the divine Being has declared. 
(Num. xxiii. 19; Heb. x. 23.) 

FALLOW-DEER. (See Hart.) 

FAMILIAR. (See Divina¬ 
tion.) 

FAMINE. (Gen.xii. 10.) We 
have an account of several famines 
in Palestine and the neighbour¬ 
ing countries. They were among 
the judgments of God for national 
sins, and were often prophetically 
announced. The most remark¬ 
able one was that of seven years 
in Egypt, while Joseph was go¬ 
vernor. It was distinguished for 
its duration, extent and severity; 
particularly as Egypt is one of the 
countries least subject to such a 
calamity, by reason of its general 
fertility. Famine is produced by 
a variety of causes, as when the 
Nile does not overflow in Egypt, 
or rains do not fall in Judea, at 
the customary seasons, spring and 
autumn; or when caterpillars, lo¬ 
custs or other insects, destroy the 
fruits; or when some disease befals 
a staple article of common fc?d, 
as the potato crop in Ireland. 

FAN. (Isa. xxx. 24.) A well 
known agricultural implement, 
which was used by the Jews as it 
is by husbandmen of the present 
day, to separate the chaff from the 
wheat whtgp the wind is not suffi¬ 
cient. The shovel which is men¬ 
tioned in the same passage in 
Isaiah was used to throw up the 
jrain in the air, when the wind 


FAS 

was strong enough to cleanse it* 
(Matt. iii. 12. See Thresh.) 

FARTHING ''See Mea¬ 
sures.) 

FAST, (1 Kings xxi. 9,) FAST¬ 
ING, (Neh. ix. 1,) or DAYS OF 
FASTING. (Jer. xxxvi. 6.) In 
seasons of danger, or general af- 
j fliction, when nature itself ceases 
for a time to crave indulgence, it 
was customary among the Jews 
to abstain from food as a religious 
duty, (Josh. vii. 6; Judg. xx. 26,) 
and the same practice prevailed 
among individuals when the oc¬ 
casion was personal. (Ex. xxiv. 
18; 2 Sam. xii. 16; 1 Kings xix. 
8.) So our blessed Saviour fasted 
forty days and fort}' nights. (Matt, 
iv. 2.) Some of these protracted 
fasts were endured by miraculous 
interposition. The Jewish fasts 
were kept with great strictness, 
and generally from evening to 
evening, that is, twenty-four 
hours, and included not only an 
abstinence from food, but from all 
other sensual indulgence. The 
body was clothed in sackcloth, no 
shoes were worn, ashes were 
sprinkled upon the head, the 
hands wore unwashed, and the 
head unanointed, and the Syna¬ 
gogues were filled with the voice 
of supplication and the sobs of 
grief and penitence. (Isa. xxii 
12; Joel ii. 15-17.) During tho 
captivity, four special fast days 
were observed, (Zech. vii. 5;) tho 
fast of the fourth month, for the 
capture of Jerusalem, (Jer. li. 27;) 
the fast of the fifth month, for tha 
burning of the temple, (Jer. Iii. 
13 ;) the fast of the seventh month, 
for Gedaliah’s death, (Jer. xli. 2;) 
and the fast of the tenth month, 
for the commencement of the at¬ 
tack on Jerusalem. (Jer. Iii. 4.) 

Fasts are evidently of divine 
253 





FAT 

authority. Fasting, at the pre¬ 
sent day, may be regarded a a one 
of the outward means which may 
be profitably employed to humble 
and chasten the soul, ana train it 
anew to the love and pursuit of 
holy and spiritual joys. There 
can be no doubt of its being sanc¬ 
tioned under the gospel dispensa¬ 
tion (Matt. vi. 18; ix. 15; Acts 
xiii. 3 ; 1 Cor. vii. 5.) 

FATHER. (Gen. xiv. 8.) The 
word “ father” is used in this case 
to signify “an adviser,” or “coun¬ 
sellor;” and it is not unusual for 
this idea to be connected with it 
in Eastern countries. 

FATHOM. (See Measures.) 

FEAR. (1 Pet. i. 17.) The fear 
of God is a Christian grace, and 
denotes such a reverence for his 
holy character, and such a dread 
of offending him by a violation of 
his holy law, as lead to watchful¬ 
ness, humility and unceasing 
prayer. It is entirely filial in its 
nature, and is necessarily accom¬ 
panied by love and obedience. It 
is the peculiarity of the Christian 
faith, that the revelation of God’s 
justice, in the suffering and death 
of our divine Redeemer, which 
fills the soul with fear and trem¬ 
bling, discloses at the same '.irae 
a scheme of unparalleled lov< and 
mercy : so that our strongest im¬ 
pressions of fear, and our deepest 
emotions of lore, grat.tude and 
confidence, are derived from a 
common source, and share a com¬ 
mon character. 

FEAST, (Lube xiv. 13.) 
FEASTS. (Lev. xxiii.2.) We 
often read in the Bible of feasts, 
or sumptuous entertainments, and 
of the customs pertaining to them. 
They were generally given to cele¬ 
brate or commemorate some im¬ 
portant or joyful evert. (Gen. 
254 


FEA 

xxi. 8; xxix. 22; xL 20; EocL 
x. 19.) 

It was common among the East¬ 
ern nations to ask and bestow spe¬ 
cial favours at these festivals 
(Esth. v. 6; vii. 2.) As the He¬ 
brews brought back with them 
from their captivity the custom 
of lying at meals, so they learned 
to imitate the Persian voluptuous¬ 
ness. The Romans also were ac¬ 
customed to this long continuance 
at entertainments: they assem¬ 
bled early on such occasions, and 
often remained together all night. 

Entertainments in the East are 
commonly held in the evening; 
at which time the rooms are bril¬ 
liantly illuminated. The Roman 
feast was always a supper , which, 
however, began about three 
o’clock. We suppose it to have 
been much the same among the 
Hebrews. The guests amused 
themselves with stories, or sallies 
of humour, and sometimes with 
enigmatical questions, (Judg. xiv. 
12,) but more frequently with poe¬ 
try and music. (Isa. v. 12; xxiv 
7-9 ; Amos vi. 4-6.) 

The customs of the Arabs re¬ 
semble those which have been 
described; and, perhaps, we may 
say the same of all oriental coun¬ 
tries. And such being the festi¬ 
vity of these occasions, we see 
how a feast became the emblem 
of great mirth and gladness. (Isa. 
xxv. 6.) 

Among the Romans, the guest* 
at feasts reclined upon couches. 
The first ceremony was to bathe 
with the master of the feast, and 
then to change their dress. Then 
the first man in order took his 
place at the head of the long 
couch, resting the upper part of 
his body on his left elbow, and 
having a pillow or bolster to sup- 



FEA 

port his hack. The second guest 
lay with his head and feet on a 
line, or parallel with the first, 
from whom he was separated by 
his own bolster. Being settled in 
their places, they wash their 
bands, (Mark vii. 2;) after which 
the guests are served with gar¬ 
lands of flowers, and also with 
essences and perfumes. (Ps.xxiii. 
5; xlv. 7; Eccl. ix. 8; Luke vii. 38.) 

The most honourable place, or 
seat, or uppermost room, as it is 
called, (Matt, xxiii. 6,) or highest 
or chief room, (Luke xiv. 7, 8,) 
was the middle couch, and the 
middle of that; and lying below 
one at table, is to lie as it were in 
or upon his bosom. (John xiii. 23.) 

In ancient times, besides music 
and dancing while they were eat¬ 
ing, they had combats of gladia¬ 
tors. 

Some idea may be formed of the 
number of guests, and the gran¬ 
deur of an ancient feast, from the 
fact that Julius Cesar once gave 
a popular entertainment, the 
guests of which occupied twenty- 
two thousand places, (rooms or 
seats.) The accounts in the Bible, 
of feasts with a multitude of guests 
are not improbable, therefore, as 
some have alleged. (Esth. i. 5; 
Luke xiv. 16-24.) 

Under the Mosaic dispensation, 
the rites of hospitality were ren¬ 
dered sacred by being connected 
with religion. The Israelites were 
not merely allowed, but command¬ 
ed, to rejoice before the Lord in 
this way. They were ordered to 
come to the holy place, and bring 
thither their sacrifices, tithes and 
firstlings ; and there (says the law) 
ye shall eat before the Lord your 
God ; xnd ye shall rejoice in all 
that ye put your hand unto. (Deut. 
jii.) Every member of the family 


FEA 

was to join thin, and especially the 
Levite, who had no other inherit¬ 
ance. In these entertainments, 
not only the children and the Le- 
vites were to take part, but tno 
slaves of both sexes, the poor, the 
widow and the orphan were to be 
invited ; and the stranger, and the 
fatherless, and the widow that arc 
among you; and thou shalt remem¬ 
ber that thou wast a bondman in 
Egypt. (Deut. xvi. 11.) In con¬ 
sequence of these regulations, the 
feasts of the Hebrews were more 
or less religious observances, and 
were hence free from the abuses 
which prevailed on similar occa¬ 
sions among the heathen. We 
observo here, likewise, that our 
Lord gave no new commandment, 
but simply expounded the ancient 
law, when he said, When thou 
makest a dinner, (orafeast,) call 
the poor, the maimed, the blind; 
and thou shalt be blessed. (Luke 
xiv. 12.) 

There were also stated seasons 
of religious worship among the 
Jews, attended with particular 
duties and ceremonies, by the ob¬ 
servance of which some great 
event in God’s providence was 
brought into remembrance:—such 
were the Sabbath, which comme¬ 
morated the creation of the world. 
—the feast of the Passover, ano 
the feast of Pentecost. 

The Sabbath. The only week¬ 
ly feast among the Jews was the 
Sabbath. (Gen. ii. 3 ; Ex. xvi. 23; 
Lev. xxiii. 3.) This feast or festi¬ 
val did not come into being, how¬ 
ever, with the Jewish worship, but 
was ay pointed before the aposta¬ 
sy, as a special memorial of the 
goodness and power of God dis¬ 
played in the finished work of 
creation; and it is the opinion of 
many very learned men, formed 
265 




FEA 

after the most laborious and un¬ 
prejudiced investigation, that it is 
in some form or other recognised 
throughout the world as a sacred 
day. It seems to be agreed among 
Christians generally, that the 
knowledge and observance of the 
Sabbath was preserved in some 
form and degree, through Noah 
and his family; nor is it surpris¬ 
ing that it is not particularly men¬ 
tioned in the concise history of the 
intervening period, which the 
Bible contains. In the law of the 
ten commandments, the Sabbath 
not only is recognised, but its in¬ 
violable sanctity and perpetual 
obligation are both taught us, 
not only in the language and 
spirit of the commandment itself, 
but by its incorporation with that 
original and fundamental law of 
God’s government which was pro¬ 
mulgated amidst the thunders and 
lightnings of mount Sinai, and 
engraved on tables of stone. 

It is true that the observance 
of the Sabbath as a Jewish festi¬ 
val partook of the peculiar cere¬ 
monial character of their whole 
system of religion; and it was 
also by special command to be re¬ 
garded as a particular and inte¬ 
resting memorial of their wonder¬ 
ful deliverance from Egypt, (Deut, 

6) and as a sign or perpetual 
covenant between God and them. 

' (Ex. xxxi. 13-17.) And it is true, 
moreover, that so much of the 
Jewish Sabbath as stood in carnal 
ordinances was done away when 
vhe Lord of the Sabbath came 
and made known the true import 
of the ancient dispensation. (Matt, 
xii. 1-15 ; Mark ii. 28 ; Lun.e xiii. 
14-17.) But in all this time, the 
original and substantial principle 
of the institution was never aban¬ 
doned or lost sight of; but, on 
256 


FEA 

the contrary, is established and 
solemnly ratified in a variety of 
forms throughout the whole sacred 
volume. 

Labour ceased at the time of 
the evening sacrifice, upon the 
day preceding the Sabbath, that 
preparation might be made for 
the sacred season. (Mark xv. 42 .) 
Some suppose this was as early as 
three of the clock, or even earlier. 
Appropriate religious service was 
attended in the evening by each 
family, and resumed on the next 
day, (See Evening,) and every 
thing relating to food, dress, <fcc. 
was prepared. When the day ar¬ 
rived, it was spent in religious 
services, (2 Kings iv. 23,) two ex¬ 
tra sacrifices were offered, and the 
shew-bread was changed. This 
was tho priest’s work. (Matt, 
xii. 5.) 

The Sabbath, by the Jewish 
law, was observed on the seventh 
day of the week, or on Saturday; 
but Christ changed it to the first 
day of the week, (which is our 
Sabbath day, or Lord's day, as it 
is frequently called in the New 
Testament,) that it might become 
a memorial of his resurrection 
Irom the dead; while it should 
lose none of its original character, 
nor answer any less perfectly all 
the primitive purposes of its in¬ 
stitution. The expression, second 
Sabbath after the first , (Luke vi. 
1,) more properly rendered, the * 
first Sabbath after the second, is 
supposed to denote the first Sab¬ 
bath after the second day of un¬ 
leavened bread. The second day 
of unleavened bread was a festi¬ 
val day for which a particular ser¬ 
vice was appointed, (Lev. xxiii. 

5, 9,) and from it the Sabbaths 
were reckoned; as first, second or 
third Sabbath after the second 































































































I 





















Jewish Company at Table 





































































































































































































































































































































































































































































FEA 

day of unleavened bread. (Sec 
Sabbath.) 

The word Sabbaths is sometimes 
used to denote all the sacred days 
or festivals. (Lev xix. 3, 30. Sab¬ 
bath day’s journey. See Mea¬ 
sures.) 

Feast of New Moons, or Trum¬ 
pets. The first day of every month 
was sacred to the Jews, (Num. 
xxviii. 11-15,) and was to be ob¬ 
served by abstinence from com¬ 
mon worldly business, and by re¬ 
ligious duties and services. (2 
Kings iv. 23; Amos viii. 5.) Par¬ 
ticular sacrifices were appointed, 
in addition to the daily sacrifices, 
and were to be attended with the 
sound of the trumpet. 

The first day or now moon of 
the seventh month, which was 
the beginning of the Jewish civil 
year, was particularly regarded 
above other feast-days of the like 
period. It was distinguished by 
more strict observance, by extra¬ 
ordinary public sacrifices, and by 
special annunciation and procla¬ 
mation from the trumpets. (Lev. 
xxiii. 24; Num. xxix. 1-6.) The 
observance of these seasons being 
wholly of ceremonial appoint¬ 
ment, and not (like the Sab¬ 
bath) an original fundamental 
law of the moral government of 
God, ceased with the Jewish dis¬ 
pensation. (Gal. iv. 10; Col. 
ii. 16.) 

Feast of Pentecost , or Feast of 
Weeks, or Feast of Harvest, lasted 
only one day. It was celebrated 
at the close of harvest, and was a 
solemn public thanksgiving to 
God for the bounties of his pro¬ 
vidence. It was observed at the 
end of seven weeks, (or a week 
of weeks,) forty-nirn days from 
the second day of the passover, 
when the offering of first-fruits 
22* R 


FEA 

was made, or the day on which 
“ the sickle was first put in the 
corn." The sacrifices were special, 
both public and private. (Lev 
xxiii. 15-20 ; Num. xxviii. 26-31; 
Deut. xvi. 9-12.) It was to cele. 
brate this feast that the multitude 
of devout men out of every na¬ 
tion under neaven had assembled 
at Jerusalem, when the promise 
of the Saviour was fulfilled in the 
wonderful descent of the Holy 
Ghost, as related in the second 
chapter of Acts. (See Omar, 
chap, v.) 

Feast of Tabernacles lasted 
eight days, the first and eighth 
of which were peculiarly sacred. 
It was celebrated from the fif¬ 
teenth to the twenty-third of the 
seventh month, or first month of 
their civil year. It was so called 
because the peoplo during its con¬ 
tinuance dwelt in booths, (Neh. 
viii. 14-18,) or tents of the 
branches of trees, as they did in 
the journey through the wilder¬ 
ness, in memory of which the 
feast itself was appointed. It is 
also called the feast of ingather¬ 
ing, (Ex. xxiii. 16; Lev. xxiii. 39 
-44,) because it took place at the 
close of the vintage, when the 
fruits of the year were all ga¬ 
thered in. Some have supposed 
that the people were required to 
attend at tho temple during the 
whole of the eight days, while, in 
the other feasts, an attendance 
on the first and last days sufficed. 
This festival was distinguished 
by extraordinary sacrifices and 
offerings, both public and private. 
(Num. xxix. 12-38; Deut. xvi. 13 
-15.) A variety of ceremonies 
were appended to the obsorvan?e 
of this feast, a particular and in¬ 
teresting account of which may 
be found in Biblical Antiquities, 
257 



FEA 

chap. vi. Z 4, and also in Elisama, 
cnap, xii. 

Feast of unleavened Bread, or 
of the Passover, was instituted to 
commemorate the distinguishing 
mercy of God in passing over the 
families of Israel when he went 
through Egypt to smite the first¬ 
born of every other family with 
death. (Ex. xii. 1-28.) The time 
of its celebration was in the first 
month of the Jewish sacred year, 
—answering to our April,—and 
it lasted from the 15th to the 21st 
inclusive, or seven days. The 
principal ceremony of this festi¬ 
val consisted in the sacred sup¬ 
per by which it was introduced; 
the nature and preparation of 
which are stated minutely in the 
passage above cited. The utmost 
strictness was observed in regard 
to the removal of all leaven from 
the house. This was done on the 
fourteenth day, which was hence 
called the first day of unleavened 
bread, though it was not one of the 
feast-days. The manner of celebra¬ 
ting this feast in the early and mo¬ 
dern periods of the church, is given 
at length in Biblical Antiqui¬ 
ties, chap. vi. $ 4, and Selumiel, 
chap. iv. (See also Passover.) 

These three feasts of unleavened 
bread, tabernacles and weeks, were 
the great festivals of the Jews, 
when all the males of their nation 
who were oi sufficient age were re¬ 
quired to appear before God. (Ex. 
xxiii. 14-17 ; Deut. xvi. 16, 17.) 

The advantages of these cele¬ 
brations, both in a religious and 
civil view, are obvious. The for¬ 
mal national recognition of Jeho¬ 
vah as their king and ruler, and 
as the bountiful giver of every 
good and perfect gift, made at 
stated times and under such im¬ 
posing solemnities, could not be 
258 


FEA 

without effect on the religious 
character of the people; while the 
mingling together of all the na¬ 
tion, for purposes suited to call 
forth the best social and benevo¬ 
lent feelings, would remind them 
of their common origin, faith and 
worship, and unite them more 
closely in bonds of religious and 
friendly regard. (See Evening 
Recreations, vol. iv. pp. 43-60.) 

Atonement, or Feast of Expia¬ 
tion, was celebrated on the tenth 
of the seventh month, or six days 
before the feast of tabernacles, 
and was the most important and 
solemn of all the yearly feasts. 
It was the day on which the sins 
of the year were brought into 
special remembrance. The peo¬ 
ple were required to observe it as 
a day of rigid rest, fasting, humi¬ 
liation and affliction of soul. Tho 
high-priest, as the head and re¬ 
presentative of the entire priest¬ 
hood, personally officiated, and 
entered with blood into the Holy 
of Holies,—where the life and the 
glory of the sanctuary w^ere ap¬ 
pointed to reside,—and there he 
offered a sacrifice for himself and 
his family and the whole congre¬ 
gation of Israel, from the highest 
to the lowest. This was the gene¬ 
ral expiation, and seemed design¬ 
ed to reach and wash away that 
deep stain of guilt which remain¬ 
ed on the heads of the people, 
notwithstanding the blood which 
flowed day by day, unceasingly, 
from the altar of common sacri¬ 
fice. The manner of celebrating 
this feast is set forth in Lev. xvi., 
and an account of the interesting 
ceremonies which attended it, 
with their typical import, may be 
found in Biblical Antiquities, 
vol. ii. chap. vi. $ 5. 

Th e Feast of Purim was observ- 





PEA 

ed about the middle of the twelfth 
month. It was instituted in com¬ 
memoration of the deliverance of 
the Jews from the power and ma¬ 
lice of Haman, in the days of 
Mordecai and Esther. The name 
Is derived from Pur, a word which 
signifies lot. (Esth. iil. 6, 7 ; ix. 
24-32.) 

This feast is celebrated in mo¬ 
dern times with singular ceremo¬ 
nies, and with great licentiousness 
and extravagance. (See Biblical 
Antiquities, vol. ii. pp. 190,191.) 

An American missionary who 
was at Jerusalem, March 16,1835, 
when this feast was celebrated, 
speaks of it as a day of great ex¬ 
cess, intemperance and boister¬ 
ous mirth with the Jews. The 
Talmud enjoins intoxication on 
this day as a duty. A man is in 
duty bound (it says) to get so in¬ 
ebriated that he cannot distin¬ 
guish between the words, “ cursed 
be Hainan/' and “blessed be 
Mordecai.” 

Feast of the Dedication. This 
feast was instituted one hundred 
and sixty-four years before Christ, 
in remembrance of the new dedi¬ 
cation of the sanctuary, after it 
had been grossly profaned by a 
heathen monarch. The season 
of celebration was in the latter 
part of the ninth month, and of 
course partly in our December. 
(John x. 22.) 

The Sabbath Year, or Year of 
Release, was every seventh year. 
No particular religious services 
were prescribed for its celebra¬ 
tion ; but the land was to be left 
nntilled, and the vineyards un¬ 
dressed, and the spontaneoui pro¬ 
duce of both was tc be enjoyed 
by all the people in the land in 
common. (Lev. xxv. 2-7; 20-22.) 
Prevision was made by the spe- 


FEA 

cial interposition of God, to sup* 
ply the deficiency of food which 
this abstinance from labour for a 
whole year would necessarily 
cause; and a law was made that 
no debts should be collected dur¬ 
ing the Sabbatical year, and yet 
that none should for this cause 
refuse to lend to such as would 
borrow. Whether the law required 
an absolute release of debts, or 
only a suspension of the right to 
enforce payment, has been con¬ 
sidered doubtful. The language 
of the law is however very precise. 
(Deut. xv. 1-11.) 

The Year of Jubilee was a most 
singular appointment of the Jew¬ 
ish law. It was celebrated every 
half century, or at the end of every 
seven times seven years. The 
manner of its celebration is par¬ 
ticularly described, Lev. xxv. 8- 
18. It commenced on the great 
day of atonement, and was usher¬ 
ed in with the universal sound of 
trumpets throughout the land. 

The remarkable feature of this 
festival was, that it restored indi¬ 
viduals, families and communi¬ 
ties, as far as possible, to the same 
situation they occupied at the be¬ 
ginning of the fifty years. All 
servants of Hebrew origin were 
set free ; all pledges were given up, 
and the inheritances which had 
been alienated, no matter how 
often, nor for what cause, came 
back to the hands of the original 
proprietors. The only exception 
was in the cases of houses built in 
walled towns. (Lev. xxv. 29-31.) 
And as its effect was known and 
anticipated, the business of society 
was conducted with reference to 
that period, and of course no in¬ 
justice cr hardship was occasion¬ 
ed. The manner of keeping the 
festival, and its striking enable- 
259 



FEE 

uiatifal import, are particularly 
described in Biblical Antiqui¬ 
ties, chap. vi. $ 6. 

The master, ruler or govern¬ 
or of the feast, (John ii. 8,) was 
an officer appointed to direct the 
servants, and to regulate the 
whole order and ceremony of the 
table during the festivities. He 
seems to have been one of the 
most pleasant and diverting of 
the company, selected for his skill 
and adroitness for this delicate 
and important office, and after 
the feast was ended he took his 
place with the guests. One of 
his duties was to taste of the wine, 
that he might judge of its quality 
and fitness for the particular 
stage of the entertainment at 
which it was brought on. (John 
ii. 8, 9.) 

Feasts uF charity, or love. 
These are mentioned in Jude 12, 
and are supposed te refer to 
the social interviews established 
among the early Christians, in 
imitation, perhaps, of the Jewish 
(Deut. xii. 18; xxvi. 12) or Gen¬ 
tile observances of like character. 
The Greeks and Romans observed 
similar services. The feast was 
supplied by the contributions of 
the guests, each according to his 
ability. There was no distinction 
of rank among the guests; and 
every thing was marked with 
simplicity, temperance and reli¬ 
gious feeling. It was held in the 
assembly or church, either after 
or before the celebration of the 
Lord’s supper. Simi'.ar observ¬ 
ances are customary at the present 
day among some Christian deno¬ 
minations. 

FEET. (Ex. iii. 5.) To re¬ 
move the shoes from the feet was 
regarded as a token of reverence, 
and also of mourning. (Ezek. xxiv. 

260 


FEL 

17.) It is supposed that the priests 
officiated with naked feet; and in 
modern times, among heathen na¬ 
tions and some nominal Chris* 
tians, it is customary to enter the 
place of worship with the shoer 
off and the feet washed. To wash 
the feet was a common mark of 
hospitality, (Gen. xviii. 4,) and 
was usually done by a servant. (1 
Sam. xxv. 41; John xiii. 5, 6.) 
Our Eastern missionaries have 
given particular accounts of the 
prevalence of this custom. At 
Smyrna, the washing of the 
priests’ feet by the bishop is a dis¬ 
tinct and very imposing ceremo¬ 
ny, and is designed to be an exact 
imitation of Christ’s example. (See 
Clothes, Dust, Foot.) 

Foot-chains are supposed to 
be meant by the word chains in 
Num. xxxi. 50, and Isa. iii. 19, 
They were worn around the an¬ 
kles, and caused the wearer to ob¬ 
serve a certain measured pace. 
The same ornaments are now 
worn by the women of Syria and 
Arabia. Little rings are hung 
upon them, which tinkle when the 
foot is in motion; and they are 
often richly ornamented. 

FELIX (Acts xxiii. 26) was 
the Roman governor of Judea, 
A. d. 50-60. He persuaded Dru- 
silla to leave her husband, and 
marry him; and they were resid¬ 
ing at Cesarea when Paul was 
brought there, in custody of a 
guard of soldiers, to be examined 
on a charge of sedition, &c. 

On a certain day, Paul was sum¬ 
moned to appear before Felix, that 
he and his wife might hear from 
him some account of the new. re¬ 
ligion of which he was a believer 
and advocate. The apostle obey¬ 
ed the summons; and so faithfully 
did he reprove and admonish the 



FEN 


JIG 


governor, that he made him trem¬ 
ble in view of his sins, and of 
their impending punishment. We 
have good reason to believe, how¬ 
ever, that the impression was 
transient; for he kept the apostle 
in custody two years without any 
warrant or just cause,—which was 
in itself a most cruel and arbi¬ 
trary act,—and postponed the in¬ 
quiry respecting his own salva¬ 
tion, which his conscience had 
been excited to suggest, until a 
more convenient season, which, 
probably, never arrived. Felix 
was recalled to Rome soon after,/: 
and was succeeded by Festus. i 

FENCED CITY. (See Cities.) 

FERRY-BOAT. (2 Sam. xix. 
18.) This word, as used by us, is 
of modern derivation, and we 
know the rivers of Judea were 
generally fordable; but when the 
translators of the history found a 
word denoting the passing over 
the river, (it might have been on 
a raft or on a rude bridge of some 
kind,) they, perhaps, adopted a 
term to express the fact most in¬ 
telligibly to modern readers. 

FERRET. (Lev. xi. 30.) The 
animal known to moderns by this 
name is tamed in Europe, and 
used in catching rats. It is of 
the weasel family ; but the ferret 
mentioned in the Levitical law is 
supposed by many to have been 
of the lizard species, called the 
gekko, which is found in the East, 
and is said to be poisonous. 

FESTUS, (PORCIUS,) (Acts 
xxiv. 27,) succeeded Felix (a. d. 
60) in the government of Judea, 
under the Romans, and died in 
62. Paul had a hearing before 
him on sundry charges alleged 
against him by the Jews. Butin 
the exercise of his right as a Ro¬ 
man citizen, h* appealed to the 


emperor, and was sent to Roma 
for trial. 

FIG, FIG-TREE. (Isa. xxxiv. 
4.) A well-known fruit, which 
formerly abounded in Judea, 
(Deut. viii. 8,) and hence is often 
alluded to in the sacred writings. 
The fruit, in its natural state, re¬ 
sembles the pear; and with the 
leaf, and manner of growth, may 
be seen in the annexed cut. 



Fig. 

The fig-tree spreads its branches 
high and wide, and the leaves are 
broad. (Gen. iii. 7.) In one spe¬ 
cies they are said to be found four 
or five feet long by three broad. 
Hence the shade was highly va¬ 
lued. (1 Kings iv. 25; 2 Kings 
xviii. 31; Isa. xxxvi. 16; Mic. iv. 
4; Zech. iii. 10 ; John i. 48.) 

One of the most striking pecu¬ 
liarities of the fig-tree is, that the 
fruit shoots forth without the ap¬ 
pearance of any blossom, and even 
before the leaves. Hence a fig- 
tree with leaves, but without fruit, 
may be known to be barren for 
the present season. (Matt. xxi. 
19.) The fruit which the tree 










FIG 


FIR 



Dears during ten months of the 
year is of three sorts :— 

1. The early jig. (Sol. Song ii. 
13; IIos. ix. 10.) These are ripe 
towards the end of June. This 
early fig is the most beautiful and 
delicious. (Jer. xxiv. 2.) 

2. The summer Jig, which ap¬ 
pears in June, about the time that 
the early fig is ripe, and comes to 
maturity in August. These last a 
long time, and may be kept. 

3. The winter jig appears in 
August, and is ripe towards the 
latter part of autumn, when the 
tree has lost its foliage. If the 
winter is not severe, it is plucked 
in the spring as a dainty. It 

is larger than the former, of 
an oblong shape, and a dark 
colour. 

These various kinds of figs 
are eaten as they come from 
the tree, and are also dried in 
masses or cakes. (1 Sam. xxv. 

18.) They seem to have been 
an ordinary article of food, 
and to have possessed medici¬ 
nal properties. (2 Kings xx. 

7; 1 Chron. xii. 40.) 

The putting forth of the fig- 
tree was one of the earliest 
indications of summer, (Sol. 
Song ii. 13; Matt. xxiv. 32; 
Luke xxi. 29;) and a failure 
of its fruit was a great calami¬ 
ty. (Jer. v. 17; viii. 13; Joel i. 

7, 12; Hab. iii. 17, 18.) 

The cursing of the fig-tree, by 
our Saviour, (Mark xi. 13, 21,) has 
perplexed some persons, because 
t is said that the time of figs had 
ot come, and, of course, they 
ere not to be expected. The 
passage rather means that it was 
not the time to gather figs, and, 
therefore, it was reasonable to ex¬ 
pect to find some on the tree; but 
It had none, (ripe or unripe,) 
262 


though it had leaves, which, in » 
bearing fig-tree, are not found 
until after the fruit appears. It 
was, therefore, cursed for its un 
fruitfulness. The object undoubt¬ 
edly was to inculcate some great 
moral truth on the minds of the 
disciples. 

FIR-TREE. (Hos.xiv.8.) A 
well-known evergreen, which grew 
luxuriantly upon mount Lebanon 
and in other parts of Palestine, 
and was a very valuable tree. It 
was used for ship-building, (Ezek. 
xxvii. 5,) musical instruments, (2 
Sam. vi. 5,) and in the frame and 
ornamental work of costly edi- 


Fir-Tree. 

fioas. (1 Kings v. 8,10 ; vi. 15, 34; 
ix. 11; 2 Chron. ii. 8; iii. 5; Sol. 
Song i. 17.) The fir is still used 
in the manufacture of harps, lutos, 
guitars, <fcc. It was a tall, straight 
tree, of fine appearance, in the 
tops of which the storks built their 
nests. (Ps. civ. 17.) Hence it is 
used to illustrate power or gran¬ 
deur, (2 Kings xix. 23; Isa. xiv. 8 ; 
xxxvii. 24;) and in Nah. ii. 3, the 








FIR 

o> an dishing of weapons of war is 
compared to the shaking of the 
tops of fir-trees by a violent wind 
The springing up of the fir is em¬ 
blematical of verdure and plenty. 
(Isa. xli. 19; lv. 13; lx. 13.) 

FIRKIN. (See Measures.) 

FIRMAMENT. (Gen. i. 17.) 
The word expansion would more 
perfectly convey the meaning of 
the original word. A similar idea 
is suggested, Ps. civ. 2; Isa. xl. 
22; and the same word is used to 
denote a covering, (Num. xvi. 38, 
39,) or a spreading over, (Isa. xl. 
19,) ox spread forth. (Isa. xlii. 5.) 
The Jews probably understood the 
word firmament to denote an im¬ 
mense arch sprung from one side 
of the horizon to the other, stud¬ 
ded with stars, and forming a sort 
of separating wall between the 
upper and lower waters. (SeePs. 
xix. 1; Dan. xii. 3.) 

FIRST-BORN. (Gen. xxvii. 
19.) The first-born male of every 
Jewish family, though by a suc¬ 
cession of wives, and of all beasts 
also, was consecrated in a solemn 
. manner to the service of God, in 
commemoration of the judgment 
which God brought upon the first¬ 
born of Egypt in the night of Is¬ 
rael’s deliverance. Several provi¬ 
sions of the Jewish law relate to 
the first-horn. He received a dou¬ 
ble portion of the estate, (Deut. 
xxi. 17,) and officiated as priest 
of thq family, in the father’s ab¬ 
sence or death. The privileges 
of the first-born were obviously 
great, in the cases of Esau and 
Reuben, (Gen. xxvii. 29; 1 Chron. 
v. 1, 2;) and there is reason to 
believe that they extended to the 
Jewish families generally; and 
that the religious pre-eminence 
was far more desirable than the 
worldly. It is supposed, however, 


FIR 

that the former ceased when the 
priesthood was committed exclu. 
sively to the tribe of Levi. (Num. 
iii. 12-18.) On that occasion it 
was designed that a Levite should 
be substituted for every first-born 
male; but the number of the lat¬ 
ter exceeded that of the former 
by two hundred and seventy-three 
persons. It was then required 
that a certain piece of money 
(about $2.50) should be paid for 
the redemptiou of these, and of 
all the first-born of succeeding 
generations; and this redemption- 
money became part of the sacred 
revenue. (Num. iii. 12, 13, 40- 
51; xviii. 51.) The first-born of 
all beasts used in sacrifice were 
devoted to the Lord, and could 
not be redeemed; but the first¬ 
born of beasts not lawful for sa¬ 
crifice might be redeemed if the 
owner chose to redeem them; 
otherwise, they were sold, ex¬ 
changed or destroyed. (Ex. xiii. 
13; Lev. xxvii. 27.) It is sup¬ 
posed that dogs were never re¬ 
deemed. (Deut. xxiii. 18.) 

Several figurative expressions 
of the sacred writers are derived 
from the relation of the first-born; 
and by all of them some extreme 
or superlative quality or circum¬ 
stance is denoted. The first-horn 
of the poor (Isa. xiv. 30) implies 
extreme poverty; the first-horn of 
every creature (Col. i. 15) denotes 
the beginning and head of crea¬ 
tion ; the first-horn of God (Heb. 
i. 6) expresses the dignity and 
superior glory of Christ. 

FIRST-FRUITS. (Num. xviii. 
12.) The first-fruits of harvest, of 
the vintage, the threshing-floor, the 
wine-press, the oil-press, the first 
baked bread of the new crop, and 
the first fleeces of the flock were 
required by God to be given for tb e 




FIS 


FLA 



use of his ministers, the priests, 
'Ex. xxiii. 19 ; Num. xv. 19-21 ; 
xviii. 11-13.) These offerings were 
brought to the temple. No parti¬ 
cular quantity was designated, but 
it is supposed a sixtieth part of 
the whole was the least 
measure. 

The manner of offer¬ 
ing the first-fruits is 
prescribed. (Lev. xxiii. 

10-14.) A sheaf of 
the first ripe barley was 
brought on the second 
day of the passover, and 
waved by the priest be¬ 
fore the Lord; and, af¬ 
ter being threshed in a 
court of the temple, a 
handful of it was cleans¬ 
ed and roasted, and 
pounded in a mortar; 
oil was mingled with 
it, and it was then offer¬ 
ed to the Lord in the 
name and behalf of the 
nation, as an acknow¬ 
ledgment of depend¬ 
ence and gratitude. Un¬ 
til this was done, the 
harvest remained un¬ 
touched. 

The first-fruits are 
thus emblematical of 
abundance and excel¬ 
lence, (Rom. viii. 23,) 
and also the earnest or 
sample of a full harvest 
at hand. (1 Cor. xv. 20.) 

FIS H-H 0 0 K S. (Amos v. 2. 
Comp. Jer. xvi. 16.) The modern 
nethod of taking fish with hooks 
was doubtless known in the early 
ages of the world. (Job xli. 1, 2.) 
The spear was also used. (Job 
xli. 2, 7.) 

The fish-pools of Ileshbon are 
used to illustrate clearness, bright¬ 
ness and serenity (Sol. .Song vii. 

264 


4.) They were probably situated 
near a public gate of the town, 
and well known for their quali¬ 
ties. (See Heshbon.) 

FITCHES. (Isa. xxviii. 25.) A 
vegetable resembling the common 


Fitches. 

pea. The word rendered fitchew 
in Ezek. iv. 9, is rendered rye in 
Ex. ix. 32. 

FLAX. (Ex. ix. 32.) A well- 
known plant, which furnishes the 
material of linen stuffs of every 
variety. It was produced of the 
best quality in Egypt, (Isa. xix. 
9,) and was an article of extensive 
commerce 








FL1 



Flax. 

The spinning of flax was an¬ 
ciently the labour of the most no¬ 
ble ladies. (Prov. xxxi. 13,19, 24. 
See Linen and Distaff.) 

FLINT. (Ps.cxiv.8.) A hard 
Btone, the uses of which are well 
known. The figurative use of the 
word in Dout. xxxii. 13, repre¬ 
sents the great abundance of oil; 
and in Isa. 1. 7, and Ezek. iii. 9, 
it is used to denote firmness and 
constancy. 

FLOATS. (1 Kings v. 9.) Pro¬ 
bably like the rafts of modern 
days; by which the timbers al¬ 
ready fitted for the building might 
be floated coastwise to Joppa, and 
then carried overland to Jerusa¬ 
lem. (2 Chron. ii. 16.) 

FLOCK. (See Sheep.) 

FLOOD. (Gen. vi. 17.) One 
of the most remarkable events in 
the history of our world, and, of 
course, one of tho principal epochs 
in chronology. It occurred in the 
year 1656, or 2348 years before 
the birth of Christ. It was a 
judgment upon the world for the 
great wickedness of its inhabit- 
23 


FLU 

ants, only eight of whom were 
saved. These eight composed the 
family of Noah, a righteous man, 
who was divinely instructed to 
preparo a vessel large enough to 
contain his family and so many 
animals as were necessary to pre¬ 
serve each species. (See Ark.) 
Having faith in God, he obeyed 
the divine command, and furnish¬ 
ed the vessel, and was securely 
lodged in it with his family before 
the judgment came. It was in 
the six hundredth year of Noah's 
life, and between the middle of 
October and the middle of No¬ 
vember, that the waters began to 
fall. Tho clouds from above de¬ 
scended in overwhelming torrents 
and the fountains of the great 
deep were broken up; so that, at 
the end of forty days, tho highest 
elovation upon the face of the 
earth was fifteen cubits, or twen¬ 
ty-two and a half foet, under wa¬ 
ter, and “all flesh diod that mov¬ 
ed upon the earth/’ and Noah 
only remained alive and they that 
were with him in tho ark; and tho 
waters prevailed upon the earth, 
or increased continually, for one 
hundred and fifty days. The se¬ 
veral dates mentioned, the account 
of the deluge, and the items ot 
evidence from observation, histo 
ry and tradition, that such ac 
event as tho deluge happened, 
will be found arranged in tho 
Teacher’s Assistant, vol iii, 
pp. 45-50, and also in Even- 
ivg Recreations, part i. pp 
17-28. 

FLOOR. (See Threshing.) 

FLUTE. (Dan. iii. 5, 7.) A 
wind instrument of music, made 
of reed, horn, bone or wood, and 
used on mournful as well as on 
festive occasions. It was played 
like the clarionet, though ther* 
265 






FLY 

were probably various modes both 
-af making and using it. 

The pipe was, according to 
eminent writers, a kind of pan- 
dean pipe, which was furnished 
with bellows, and thus was in its 

{ )rinciple an organ. It is trans- 
ated flute in Dan. iii. 5. 

FLY. (Isa. vii. 18.) The name 
of a large tribe of insects, some of 
which are exceedingly annoying 
and destructive. They abounded 
in Egypt and Judea; and one 
species, which is found by modern 
travellers in the vicinity of the 
Nile, and called the Abyssinian 
fly, is as large as a bee, and is so 
terrible an annoyance to cattle 
and other large animals, as to 
oblige them to forsake their pas¬ 
tures and ranges, and to flee to 
some place where they can roll 
themselves in the mud or sand. 
Hence we may judge of the ter- 
/ible nature of the judgments men¬ 
tioned in Ex. viii. 24; Isa. vii. 18; 
in which last passage, we are in¬ 
formed that the fly shall be found 
in the very places to which the 
oattle resort to rid themselves of 
their presence. 

FOLD. (See Sheep.) 

FOOD. (Gen. iii. 6.) We may 
form some judgment of the ancient 
diet from, what we know of the 
modern Orientals. Vegetable food 
is much more common than ani¬ 
mal. Instead of butter, lard and 
suet, they use olive oil. A ernp, 
or rather pottage, of beans and 
fen tiles, seasoned with garlic and 
oil, is still, as it was of old, a fa¬ 
vourite dish. The “red pottage 
of lentiles,” for which Esau sold 
his birthright, was something of 
this kind. Eggs, honey, milk 
(especially sour milk) and garden 
productions of every kind, afford 
the principal materials of Eastern 
266 


F00 

diet. The most common dish at 
this day in the East is the pilau; 
which consists of rice cooked with 
meat so as to make a sort of broth, 
seasoned variously, and coloured 
blue, red or yellow. 

We do not find the use of animal 
food often occurring, except upon 
the occasion of entertainments, 
or the exhibition of hospitality 
to a friend. (Gen. xviii. 7 ; Luke 
xv. 23.) 

Though, as above stated, the 
Orientals make far less use of ani¬ 
mal food than we do, yet we find 
it, in every successive age, upon 
the tables of the rich; and the 
animals used for this purpose, es¬ 
pecially neat cattle, were often 
stalled and fattened. (1 Sam. xvi. 
20; xxviii. 24; 1 Kings iv. 23; 
Neh. v. 18 ; Isa. i. 11; xi. 6 ; Jer. 
xlvi. 21; Ezek. xxxix. 18; Amos 
vi. 4; Mai. iv. 2.) 

Wild game, lambs and kids may 
be considered as constituting the 
favourite viands in the East. At 
this day beef is not much used, 
though from some texts above and 
other similar authorities, we learn 
that the flesh of young bullocks 
and stall-fed oxen was highly priz¬ 
ed. (Prov. xv. 17; Matt. xxii. 4.) 

In very ancient times it was 
always the master of the house, 
whether he were rich or poor, who 
slew the animal. Grecian and 
Roman writers mention a like cus¬ 
tom of later times. (Judg. vi. 19.) 
The preparation of the food by 
cooking was the business of the 
mistress. The shoulder was pro¬ 
bably the choicest part. (1 Sam. 
ix. 24.) 

It is customary for the Arabs 
to serve up at one meal the whole 
of any animal which they have 
killed. This is occasioned in some 
measure by the difficulty of pre- 



FOO 

serving fresh meat in that climate. 
(Gen. xviii. 7; Luke xv. 23.) 

The people of the East are par¬ 
ticularly fond of fish, and in Egypt 
this constitutes a very important 
part of their subsistence. (Num. 
xi. 5.) 

Melons, cucumbers and onions 
are the common food of the Egyp¬ 
tians in summer. It is said that 
the Egyptian onions are the sweet¬ 
est in the world. Endive, or suc¬ 
cory is a common food of the poor. 
Purslane is also common. Ra¬ 
dishes, carrots and the leaves of the 
vine are commonly eaten. Leeks 
and garlic—the latter of which is 
imported from the Archipelago— 
are also a common repast. Goats’ 
milk makes a great part of the diet 
of the East, from the beginning 
of April till September, and cows’ 
milk the rest of the year. The 
food of the common people of 
Aleppo, in winter, is very plain, 
and consists of bread, the juice of 
grapes thickened to the consist¬ 
ence of honey or coagulated sour 
milk, butter, rice, and a very little 
mutton. We are told, concerning 
the Arabs, that roasted meat is 
almost peculiar to the tables of 
their emirs or princes, and also 
lambs stewed whole, and stuffed 
with bread, flour, mutton-fat, rai¬ 
sins, salt and aromatic herbs. (Sec 
Bedouin Arabs, chap, vii.) 

FOOL, (Prov. x'% 5,) FOOL¬ 
ISH, (Job ii. 10, ; FOOLISH¬ 
NESS. (2 Sam. xv. 31.) These 
terms are used by the sacred wri¬ 
ters, sometimes to denote weak¬ 
ness or defect of understanding, 
as in their modern use, (1 Cor. i. 
27; iv. 10;) but generally they 
denote sin or wickedness. (2 
Sam. xiii. 13; Ps. xiv. 1; Prov. 
xix. 1.) Foolish talking, jesting, 
fodish and unlearned questions, 


FOR 

Ac., (2 Tim. ii. 23,) are such a« 
are vain, frivolous, or have m 
useful tendency. 

The phrase, thou fool, (Matt. v. 
22,) implies not only an angry 
temper, by which such severe lan 
guage is prompted, but a scornful 
contemptuous feeling, utterly in¬ 
consistent with the love and meek¬ 
ness which characterize the dis¬ 
ciples of Christ, and, of-*;ourse, 
exposing the individual who is 
under their influence to eternal 
punishment. 

FOOT, (Deut. xi. 10,) FEET. 
(Gen. xlix. 33.) In the first of 
these passages, the phrase water- 
edst tcith tuy foot is supposed to 
refer to some process by which 
the foot was employed in irrigat¬ 
ing the soil; and very learned 
commentators trace the allusion 
to a machine for raising and dis¬ 
tributing water, which modern 
travellers tell us is still used for 
this purpose in Eastern countries. 
(But see Water.) Nakedness of 
the feet was a sign of mourning, 
(Ezek. xxiv. 17,) and of respect 
or reverence. (Ex. iii. 5. See 
Feet ) 

FOOTSTOOL. (2 Chron. ix. 
18.) Kings and other rulers, sit¬ 
ting in state, required a stool upon 
which to rest their feet. The di¬ 
vine glory, which resided symbo¬ 
lically in the holy place between 
the cherubim above the ark, is 
supposed to use the ark as a foot¬ 
stool. (1 Chron. xxviii. 2; Ps. 
xcix. 5.) So the earth is called 
God’s footstool by the same ex¬ 
pressive figure which represents 
heaven as his throne. 

FOREIGNER. (Ex. xii. 45.) 
Any one not of the genuine He¬ 
brew stock. (Comp. Eph. ii. 12.) 

FOREKNOWLEDGE. (Acts 
ii. 23.) A peculiar and essential 
267 



FOR 

attribute of the Supreme Being 
(Acts xv. 18. Comp. Prov. xix. 
21; xxvii. 1; Isa. xiv. 24 ; James 
iv. 14.) It implies the absence 
of any succession of time, as past, 
present and future. (2 Pet. iii. 8.) 

FORERUNNER. (Heb. vi. 20.) 
One who not only goes before to 
a particular place, to make ar¬ 
rangements for his successor, but 
who leads or prepares the way. 
The Athenians call the figs that 
are ripe before the rest by the 
same word which, in the above 
passage, is translated forerunner; 
that is, the first-fruits. (Comp. 

1 Cor. xv. 20, 23.) There is also 
supposed to be a beautiful meta¬ 
phorical allusion to the person or 
boat that carries the anchor with¬ 
in the pier-head, and makes the 
ship fast, although the tide will 
not yet admit her to come up. 
Swinging at her cable’s length, 
the ship rides out the gale; for 
her anchor is sure and steadfast. 
(Heb. vi. 19.) 

FOREST. (1 Kings vii. 2.) 
Several tracts of country were de¬ 
signated in this way; as, the for¬ 
est of Ephraim, &c. The house 
of the forest of Lebanon, which 
was built by Solomon, and which 
was magnificent in size and style, 
(1 Kings vi.) was so called proba¬ 
bly from the great quantity of ce¬ 
dar wmch was used in the con¬ 
struction of it. 

FORGIVENESS. .’Actsv. 
31.) Forgiveness of sin is the 
great blessing of the gospel. To 
forgive sin is the exclusive prero¬ 
gative of Jehovah, of whose law 
sin is the transgression. (Ps. exxx. 

4; Isa. xliii. 25 ; Mark ii. 7.) And 
the gospel makes known, not only 
that there is forgiveness with God, 
but also how he can forgive sin 
and still ma'ntain unsullied the | 
268 


FOR 

infinite purity and holiness and 
perfection of his nature, govern¬ 
ment and law, and even clothe 
them all with new glory. 

The consciousness of guilt is 
universal. Hence, in all parts of 
the world, Christian and pagan, 
savage and civilized, there are 
found institutions or customs 
which have a direct reference— 
more or less clearly defined—to 
expiation and forgiveness; but 
the Christian scheme alone makes 
known a way of mercy, (Acts xiii. 
38, 39,) safe to man and honour¬ 
able to God, and, through Christ, 
offers forgiveness—full, free and 
everlasting—to all who will be¬ 
lieve and obey the gospel. (Acts 
v. 31; xiii. 38, 39; 1 John ii. 
12.) The duty of mutual forgive¬ 
ness is urged upon man with the 
most solemn sanctions. (Matt. vi. 
14, 15; xviii. 15-35; Luke xvii. 
3, 4.) 

FORKS. (1 Sam. xiii. 21.) The 
oriental manner of partaking of 
food is—like their furniture—very 
simple. They make use of no 
plates, spoons, knives nor forks; 
nor are these implements neces¬ 
sary. Instead of plates, they use 
their round pieces of bread, upon 
which they lay such things as we 
should put on a plate. (See Eat, 
Eating.) Their bread is broken 
■with the hands, and their meat is 
usually cut into small morsels be¬ 
fore it is served up. When this 
is not the case, as in the instance 
of boiled fowls, they tear it to 
pieces with their fingers, and car¬ 
ry it to the mouth in this way; as 
they also do in helping themselves 
to rice, pulse, and other articles 
of diet. The dishes are of wood 
or tinned copper; in the Persian 
palaces, of silver and gold. Even 
broth and milk are ladled out in 



F OR 

the hollow of the hand, or the 
bread is dipped into them. 

The forks mentioned in the 
above passage were used, not in 
eating, but in taking meat out of 
the vessels in which it was cooked. 

FORNICATION. (Matt. v. 
32.) This word, as used by the 
sacred writers, denotes 
various acts of lewd¬ 
ness and incontinen- 
cy; and it is also figu¬ 
ratively applied to ido¬ 
latry, or the mingling 
of the pure worship of 
God with the impure 
•ites of heathenism. 

FORSWEAR. (See 
Oath.) 

FOUNTAINS. 

(Gen. xvi. 7.) Springs 
or sources of water are 
often mentioned by 
the sacred writers. In 
the dry and thirsty 
land of Judea they were of pecu 
liar value; and hence the figura¬ 
tive use of the word, when applied 
to the hopes, blessings and con¬ 
solations of religion, must have 
been very forcible to the Jews. 
Perpetual fountains, or springs of 
living water, were greatly valued. 
(Ps. xxxvi. 7-9; Isa. xlix. 10; 
Jer. ii. 13; Joel iii. 18; Zech. xiii. 
1; John iv. 10 ; Rev. vii. 17.) The 
word fountains is figuratively used 
to denote children or posterity. 
(Deut. xxxiii. 28; Prov v. 16.) 

FOX. (Neh. iv. 3.1 A well- 
known animal, remarkable for its 
cunning and voracity. Foxes, or 
jackals, abounded in some dis¬ 
tricts of Judea. They live on 
birds and small quadrupeds, and 
follow armies that they may feed 
on bodies that may be left on the 
march. Hence the allusion, (Ps. 
jtiii. 10. The method adopted by 
23* 


FRA 

Samson (Judg. xv. 4, 5) to destroy 
the corn, vineyards and oliveyarda 
of the Philistines, shows that this 
animal must have been very com¬ 
mon ; and that there is nothing 
incredible in the account itself 
appears from the fact, that in an 
ancient Roman festival it was cus- 


Fox. 

tomary to couple foxes in a simi¬ 
lar way, with a brand between 
them. The crafty, artful nature 
of the fox is proverbial. (Ezek. 
xiii. 4; Luke xiii. 32.) 

Yolney says that jackals are 
concealed by hundreds in Syx*ia, 
in the gardens and among ruins 
and tombs. Hence the allusion, 
Lam. v. 18. 

FRANKINCENSE. (Ex. xxx. 
34.) A dry, resinous, aromatic 
substance, of a yellow tinge, bit¬ 
ter and acrid to the taste, but ex¬ 
ceedingly odoriferous. The tree, 
whence the gum is obtained by 
incision of the bark, grows in 
Arabia, and resembles our su¬ 
mach. It is also found in India, 
but of an inferior quality; and, 
as some suppose, it was found in 
the mountainous districts of Ju¬ 
dea. It is sometimes called in¬ 
cense. (Isa. lx. 6; Jsr. vi. 20 





FRA 


FRI 



Frankincense. 


Luxe i- 9.) It is called frank, be¬ 
cause of the freeness with which 
it burns and gives forth its odours; 
and the pure incense is that which 
is first obtained, and is freest from 
foreign admixture. 

Sweet incense, (Ex. xxx. 7,) 
might as well be rendered incense 
of spices, and is the composition 
mentioned in Ex. xxx. 34. 

The substance which is gene¬ 
rally used in modern times as 
frankincense, is the production of 
the Norway pine. 

The use of incense in the Jew¬ 
ish worship may be learned from 
Ex. xxx. 7, and Lev. xvi. 12, 13, 
and it is figuratively employed to 
270 


represent lovely and agreeable 
qualities, (Sol. Song iii. 6; iv. «, 
14,) and devotional fervour. (Ps. 
cxli. 2; Mai. i. 11; Rev. viii. 3.) 

FRIEND. (Ex.xxxiii.il.) 
There are several passages in 
which this word is used where no 
actual friendship or affection ia 
intended, (Matt. xxii. 12; xxvi, 
50;) and in these it Is, perhaps, 
employed as a common term of 
salutation, as the word neighbour 
is often used in modern times. 

FRINGES (Deut. xxii. 12) wore 
the hem or border of a particular 
Jewish garment. (Matt. ix. 20; 
xiv. 36.) 

At the time when the Sabbath- 



FRI 

breaker was stoned to death, 
tNmn. xv. 32, 41,) Moses was 
commanded to speak to the chil¬ 
dren of Israel, and “bid them 
make fringes in the borders of 
their garments, throughout their 
generations,” and that they should 
“put upon the fringe of the bor¬ 
ders a riband of blue, as a con¬ 
stant remembrancer of God’s com¬ 
mandments, and a visible warn¬ 
ing against forbidden indulgence. 
These fringes were principally 
upon the corners of the dress. 
Perhaps the hem was of lace ; for 
the original word denotes that 
which was twisted like a rope, and 
hung like hair. (Ex. xxxix. 31.) 
It was evidently a badge of dis¬ 
tinction. (See Clothes, and cut.) 

In some parts of Europe and 
Asia a Jew is instantly known by 
his apparel. In all synagogues, 
however, there is worn a kind of 
scarf, from three to five feet long, 
and one foot wide, which is fur¬ 
nished with fringes at the cor¬ 
ners. Let us hear the account 
which they give of it themselves : 
—“ When we put on that garment 
on which the fringes ordained by 
the law are fixed, (Num. xv. 37; 
Deut. xxii. 12,) we pronounce like¬ 
wise the following prayers of 
thanks: ‘ Praised [be God] who 
hast sanctified us through thy 
commandments, and commanded 
us the precept of the fringes/ 
But when we cover ourselves with 
the prayer-cloak, we say, in place 
of the concluding words of the 
foregoing, ‘sanctified and com¬ 
manded us to envelope ourselves 
•vith the garment of fringes' 
These fringes are to be considered 
as marks of remembrance, and 
tokens, by which wo are always 
reminded of the c .mmandments 
of God: as it is written, (Num. 


FUE 

xv. 39,) ‘These fringes shall serve 
you for the purpose that you may 
see them, and remember all the 
commandments of the Eternal, 
and do them; but not follow the 
bent of your heart and of your 
eyes, by which you are led to sin; 
ye will thereby remember all my 
precepts, and obey them, that you 
may be holy to your God.” 

A Jewish commentator on Num. 
xv. says, that any man clothed 
with this fringe is safe, and shall 
be delivered from all hurt and 
destruction. 

FROGS. (Ex. viii. 2.) A well 
known, amphibious, loathsome 
reptile, found generally on the 
margin of brooks and ponds, and 
living on insects, worms, &c. 
They were sent upon the Egyp¬ 
tians in such numbers as to fill 
their beds, ovens and kneading- 
troughs; and when they died, as 
they did in immense masses, they 
filled the land with an offensive 
and pestilential effluvia. (See 
Life of Moses, p. 69.) 

FRONTLETS. (See Phylac¬ 
teries.) 

FRUIT. Lov. xix. 23 is the 
only passage in which this term is 
used in a doubtful sense; and it 
here means, that the fruit of a tree 
newly planted shall be regarded 
as unfit to be offered to the Lord, 
until the fourth year of its growth. 

FUEL (Isa. ix. 5) was so scarce 
in the East that the people re¬ 
sorted to almost every kind of 
combustible matter; such as the 
withered stalks of herbs and 
flowers, (Matt. vi. 28-30,) thorns, 
(Ps. lviii. 9; Eccl. vii. 6,) and even 
excrements. (Ezek. iv. 12-16. 
See Dung.) It is supposed that 
by the word brand (Amos iv. 11) 
is meant a dry vine, twig or other 
brush-wood, which is so light and 
271 



FUL 

combustible as to be consumed 
at once, if not instantly plucked 
out; thus rendering the striking 
figure of the prophet still more 
expressivo. 

FULFILLED. (Matt. ii. 17.) 
This word is generally used in 
reference to the accomplishment 
of prophecy. It is to be observed, 
however, concerning the expres¬ 
sion, that it might be fulfilled ,— 
which is frequently used, (Matt. ii. 
15, 23 ; viii. 17; xii. 17, <fcc. <fcc.) 
—that the event does not hap] en 
merely for the purpose of making 
good the prediction. When it is 
said, for example, that they part¬ 
ed Christ’s garments among them, 
casting lots,—that it might be ful¬ 
filled which was spoken by the 
prophet, Ac.—it is not intended 
that this was done in order to se¬ 
cure the accomplishment of the 
prediction; but rather that, in or 
by this was fulfilled the prophecy, 
<fcc.; or thus it came to pass, in 
fulfilment of the prophecy, <fec. 
Those concerned had no know¬ 
ledge generally of the fact that 
they were fulfilling a prophecy. 
Our Saviour of course knew it; 
and hence the peculiar expres¬ 
sion, John xix. 28 (See Pro¬ 
phecy.) The meaning in most 
of the above and parallel pas¬ 
sages would be more accurately 
expressed by tho word verified. 
In this event was verified or seen to 
be true, what ivas said by, &c. 

FULLER’S FIELD. (See 
Conduit.) 

FULNESS. (Gal.iv.4.) This 
expression has a peculiar mean¬ 
ing in some passages of the sa¬ 
cred writings. The f ulness of time, 
in relation to the Messiah, means 
the actual presence of the very 
time appointed for his advent. 
So, when the day of Pentecost was 
272 


FUR 

fully come. (Acts ii. 1.) The 
same word is used (John i. 16, 
and Col. i. 19) to signify the per¬ 
fect and complete sufficiency of 
spiritual blessings in Christ Jesus, 
to meet all the wants of our guilty, 
ruined, helpless race. 

The fulness of the Godhead 
(Col. ii. 9) denotes all the attri¬ 
butes of the divine nature, in their 
entire and complete perfection. 

FUNERAL. (See Bury.) 

FURLONG. (See Measures.) 

FURNACE. (Gen. xv. 17.) 
Furnaces were used for melting 
the precious metals. (Prov. xvii. 
3.) They were also used to pun¬ 
ish criminals. The furnace ’nto 
which Nebuchadnezza- cast tho 
young Hebrews who refused to 
worship his image was probably 
an open furnace, or place of fire, 
sufficiently confined to concen¬ 
trate the heat to the last extreme, 
and yet so open that v/hat took 
place in the midst of it might be 
easily seen. Such places are now 
found in Syria, and were evident¬ 
ly used by idolaters as templos for 
the fires which represented their 
gods, and in which they offered 

cq prj fippo 

FURNITURE. (See Camel.) 

FURROW. (Ps. lxv. 10.) The 
phrase, they shall bind themselves 
in their two furrows, (Hos. x. 10,) 
is explained by the context, espe¬ 
cially versus 4, and 11-13. 

FURY (Jer. x. 25) is attributed 
to God like anger, metaphorical¬ 
ly, or speaking after the manner 
of men ; that is, God’s providen¬ 
tial actions are such as would be 
performed by a man in a state 
of anger; so when he is said to 
pour out his fury on a person, or 
on a people, it is a figurative ex¬ 
pression for dispensing afflictive 
judgments. 



GAA 

AAL (Judg. ix. 28) was the 
son of Ebed, and the leader 
of a revolt against Abimelech, 
king of the Shechemites. He was, 
however, defeated and put to 
flight, and his partisans were 
scattered and destroyed. 

GAASH. (Judg. ii. 9.) A hill 
in the territory of Ephraim, in 
the vicinity of which was Tim- 
nath-serah, where Joshua lived 
and died. (Josh. xxiv. 29, 30.) 
The brooks (or valleys) of Gaash 
(2 Sam. xxiii. 30; 1 Chron. xi. 32) 
were probably in the same neigh¬ 
bourhood. 

GaBBATHA. (John xix. 13.) 
A Hebrew word, denoting an ele¬ 
vated place; like the bench of 
the judges in modern court rooms. 
Probably the floor of this plat¬ 
form, and perhaps the whole area 
of the apartment, was paved with 
dtono,—a common practice in pa¬ 
laces and public offices. Hence 
tt is called, in Greek, by a word 
signifying the pavement. 

GABRIEL. (Luke i. 19.) One 
Df the ministering spirits of God, 
who was specially charged with 
the message to Zacharias respect¬ 
ing the birth of John, and to Mary 
respecting the birth of Christ. At 
an earlier period he was sent to 
Daniel to unfold a vision. (Dan. 
viii. 16; ix. 21.) The name signi¬ 
fies the strength of God. 

GAD. (Gen. xxx. 9-11.) 1. 

Tribe of. (Num. i. 25.) The 
posterity of Gad, the son of Jacob, 
by Zilpah, Leah’s handmaid. 

It was predicted of Gad by his 
father, (Gen. xlix.19,) that a troop 
should overcome him, but he 
should overcome at the last. And 
in Deut. xxxiii. 20, 21, Moses pre¬ 
dicts still more particularly the 
events which distinguish the his¬ 
tory of this tribe. 


GAD 

After the defeat of the kings of 
Bashan, the tribes or Gad and 
Reuben petitioned Moses to as¬ 
sign them their portion in that 
district of the country, as it was 
favourable to tbeir pastoral pur¬ 
suits. Their request was grant¬ 
ed, and Gad’s tribe was located 
south of Reuben, between tho 
mountains of Gilead and the river 
Jordan. 

In this position they were sub¬ 
ject to frequent incursions from 
the neighbouring hordes; but 
they were valorous, (1 Chron. v. 19, 
20, 22; xii. 8,) and, under David, 
subdued all their enemies. 

In the song of Moses, (Deut. 
xxxiii. 20, 21,) allusion is made to 
the enlargement and courage of 
the Gadites; to the provision 
made by Moses the lawgiver for 
that tribe before the rest, on tho 
cast of Jordan, and to the fidelity 
with which the tribe fulfilled their 
agreement to go up with the other 
tribes to the conquest of the pro¬ 
mised land,—just as if no portion 
had been assigned them in Ba¬ 
shan. 

2. (1 Sam. xxii. 5.) A prophet 
and a particular friend of David. 
He was on more than one occa¬ 
sion God’s messenger to David, 
(1 Sam. xxii. 5; 2 Sam. xxiv. 13 
-19; Chron. xxi. 9-11,) and was 
also one of his biographers. ( 1 
Chron. xxix. 29.) 

GADARENES, country cf. 
(Mark v. 1.) Gadara was one of 
the ten cities called Decapolis. 
(See Decapolis.) It was on the 
east of Jordan, in the vicinity of 
the lake of Gennesaret, beyond 
the brook Jarmuk, about eight 
miles above its junction with jthe 
Jordan. It gave its name to the 
district or canton of which it was 
the chief town. Gergesa or Gs 
5 273 



GAI 

resa was another city in the same 
neighbourhood, which gave to 
another district the name of the 
country of the Gergesenes. Ger- 
gesa was situated about twenty 
miles east of the Jordan, and ten 
or twelve south-east of Gadara: 
po that the region generally might 
be designated by either name, 
(Matt. viii. 28 ; Mark v. 1,) and 
the discrepancy rather confirms 
than invalidates the sacred his¬ 
tory, as it might so easily have 
been avoided. 

A traveller discovered, in the 
year 1816, what he supposes to 
be the ruins of Gergesa, now call¬ 
ed Djerash, where three temples, 
two superb amphitheatres of mar¬ 
ble, and hundreds of columns 
still remain, among other monu¬ 
ments of Roman power. 

It was in this vicinity that 
Christ wrought a wonderful mira¬ 
cle on two demoniacs. (Luke viii. 
26-36.) Gadara, in the time of 
Josephus, was an important city, 
and the metropolis of Perea, or 
the country beyond Jordan. It 
now lies in ruins, being wholly 
deserted on account of the scarci¬ 
ty of water, though the founda¬ 
tions of its spacious streets are 
visible. In the vicinity are fa¬ 
mous medicinal springs; and we 
are told by modern travellers, that 
the rocks by which the coast is 
bound contain the remains of 
tombs, cut out by the early in¬ 
habitants of Galilee, which even 
now seem a fit resort for the 
wretched outcasts of society who 
had their dwelling among them 
two thousand years ago. (Luke 
viii. 27.) 

GAIUS. (Acts xix. 29.) A Ma¬ 
cedonian, resident in Corinth, at 
whose house Paul stayed while 
labouring as a missionary in that 
274 


GAL 

city. (Rom. xvi. 23.) He wna 
probably converted under Paul’s 
ministry, (1 Cor. i. 14,) and ac¬ 
companied him to Ephesus, and, 
with Aristarchus, another ol 
Paul’s adherents, was seized by 
the mob, during the uproar occa¬ 
sioned by the apostle’s preaching. 
Probably reference is made to 
this individual, Acts xx. 4, and 
3 John 1; though some have sup¬ 
posed two individuals to be in¬ 
tended. 

GALATIA. (Acts xvi. 6.) A 
province of Asia Minor, lying 
east of Phrygia, and called Ga 
latia by the Gauli* who were the 
original settlers of it. 

Christianity was introduced into 
this province by the Apostle Paul, 
who was :here once with Silas 
and Timothy, (Acts xvi. 6,) about 
the year 63, and again, four oi 
five years afterwards, on his re¬ 
turn from Corinth. (Acts xviii. 23.) 

GALATIANS, epistle to, is 
the ninth in the order of the books 
of the New Testament, and was 
written by Paul about the year 
53-54. Its design evidently is, 
to correct some erroneous opin¬ 
ions they had been taught, par¬ 
ticularly respecting the doctrine 
of justification by faith; and to 
instruct them as to the true scope 
and intent of the gospel. This 
epistle is peculiarly interesting, 
as it contains a record of the evi¬ 
dences of Paul’s apostleship, a 
sketch of his life after his con¬ 
version, and a masterly elucida¬ 
tion and defence of the great but 
simple plan of salvation through 
faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. 
(See Union Questions, vol. viii., 
for a complete analysis of this in¬ 
teresting epistle.) 

GALBANUM. (Ex. xxx. 34.) 
A resinous gum, produced in 




GAL 


GAL 

Syria and its vicinity, from the 
sap or milk of a plant of the same 
name, which grows eight or ten 
feet high. It was an ingredient of 
the sacred incense, and is still va¬ 
luable for its medicinal properties. 

GALILEANS. (Luke xiii. 1.) 
A sect or party of the Jews who 
took their name from their leader, 
Judas, a G&ulanite, or Galilean. 
It is supposed that the party ori¬ 
ginated in opposition to a tax im¬ 
posed by the Roman government 
on the Jews, A. d. 10-12. Judas 
and his party resisted the govern¬ 
ment, (Acts v. 37,) and maintain¬ 
ed their opposition until the de¬ 
struction of Jerusalem and the 
temple. Jewish historians tell us 
that the Galileans agreed with the 
Pharisees, but were distinguished 
by an unconquerable love of liber¬ 
ty, contending on the strength of 
Deut. xvii 15, that God only was 
their sovereign, and that all ex¬ 
actions of earthly princes were 
oppressive and unlawful. 

The Galileans who were men¬ 
tioned as having been offering sa¬ 
crifices at Jerusalem, when they 
wer^ suddenly assaulted and put 
to death by order of Pilate,—so 
that their blood flowed out and 
actually mingled with the very 
sacrifices they were offering, 
(Luke xiii. 1, 2,)—were probably 
the subjects of Herod, between 
whom and Pilate there was a 
deep-rooted hostility. (Luke xxiii. 
12.) Their sudden and violent 
death, in the very act of worship, 
seems to have marked them, in 
the view of some, as the special 
jbjects of divine indignation. 

GALILEE. (Matt. iv. 12; 
Mark i. 9 ; Luke ii. 39.) In the 
time of Christ, Palestine was di¬ 
vided into three parts: of which 
the northern was Galilee, bound¬ 


ed on the north by Anti-Libanus; 
east, by Jordan and the sea of 
Galilee; south, by Samaria; and 
west by Phoenicia, which occupied 
the coast north from Carmel to 
Tyre. It was distinguished into 
Upper and Lower; the former 
lying on the north, and inhabited 
partly by Syrians, Phenicians and 
Arabians: whence it was called 
Galilee of the Gentiles, (Isa. ix. 1.) 
or Nations, (Matt. iv. 15,) the lat¬ 
ter, especially the valley along the 
sea of Tiberias, was fertile and 
populous. 

Within the limits of Galilee 
were comprehended Issachar, Ze- 
bulon, Naphtali and Asher. Christ 
is called Jesus of Galilee, (Matt, 
xxvi. 69,) because he was brought 
up in that province, and there 
lived, taught and called his first 
disciples, (Matt. iv. 13-23; xiii. 
55 ; Mark i. 39 ; Luke iv. 44; viii. 
1; xxiii. 5; John vii. 1;) and it 
became a name of contempt, (John 
i. 46; vii. 52; Acts ii. 7,) both 
among Jews and Gentiles, because 
they were a mongrel race, and 
used a corrupted dialect, which 
originated in the amalgamation 
of the Jews, who settled there 
after the captivity, with the Gen¬ 
tile foreigners. (Matt. xxvi. 69, 
73; Mark xiv. 70.) 

Galilee, says a modorn travel¬ 
ler, would be a paradise, were it 
inhabited by an industrious poo- 
ple, under an enlightened govern¬ 
ment. Vine stocks are to be seen 
here a foot and a half in diameter, 
forming, by their twining branches, 
vast arches and extensive ceilings 
of verdure. A cluster of grapes, 
two or three feet in length, will 
give an abundant supper to a 
whole family. The plains of Es • 
draelon are occupied by tribes, 
around whose brown tents the 
275 




fiAL 

elieep and lambs gambol to tbs 
sound of the reed, which at night¬ 
fall calls them home. 

Sea of Galilee. (See Chin- 

NEUETH.) 

GALL. (Ps. lxix. 21.) An 
animal fluid, of exceedingly bitter 
taste, secreted by the liver. Allu¬ 
sion is made to it in Job xvi. 13; 
xx. 14, 25 ; Lam. ii. 11, and else¬ 
where. But by the same word in 
Ps. lxix. 21, reference is made to 
the extraction of a very bitter 
herb, (Deut. xxix. 18; xxxii. 32,) 
perhaps hemlock. (Ilos. x. 4.) It 
was so bitter as to be used as a 
generic term for bitter substances ; 
as sour wine, sour cider, &c. is 
called vinegar. (Comp. Matt.xxvii. 
34; Mark xv. 23; Acts viii. 23. 
See Myrrh.) 

GALLERIES. (See Dwell¬ 
ings.) 

GALLEY. (See Ship.) 

GALLIO (Acts xviii. 12) was 
the brother of Seneca, the famous 
philosopher, who describes him as 
a man of uncommon mildness and 
simplicity. He w r as appointed 
proconsul of Achaia by the Ro¬ 
man emperor Claudius, A. d. 53. 
He resided chiefly at Corinth: 
and when Paul was preaching in 
that city, and had excited the 
jealousy of the Jews by the suc¬ 
cess of his mission, they took him 
by violence before Gallio, and 
charged him with persuading men 
to worship God contrary to the 
law. Gallio was disinclined to in¬ 
terfere with controversies of that 
kind, which were not cognizable 
by the law which he w r as appoint¬ 
ed to administer; and so he dis¬ 
missed the parties. As they were 
leaving the place, a tumult occur¬ 
red, in which Sosthenes, an officer 
of the Jewish church, was severe¬ 
ly treated by a party of Greeks. 
27e 


GAM 

It does not appear but Gallia had 
left the bench before this event 
occurred; and even if be were pro 
sent, the expression, that he cared 
for none of these things, may im¬ 
ply nothing more than that he did 
not concern himself with the con¬ 
troversies of the various sects and 
parties into which the community 
around him was divided. This 
course, so far from evincing hos¬ 
tility or indifferenco to Paul, or tc 
religion generally, was certainly 
wise and prudent for a. commis¬ 
sioner of the Roman government, 
appointed, as he w T as, to a tempo¬ 
rary office in a foreign province. 

GAMALIEL. (Acts v. 34.) A 
distinguished Jewish rabbi, a doc¬ 
tor or teacher of the law, and pos¬ 
sessed of a large share of public 
confidence. It is said he was for 
thirty-two years president of the 
Jewish sanhedrim. He is first 
introduced to our notice in con¬ 
nection with the attempt made at 
Jerusalem, a. d. 33, by the op- 
posers of the gospel, to stop the 
mouths of Peter and the other 
apostles. The faithful mission¬ 
aries were brought before^the 
Jewish council, and there boldly 
proclaimed their inflexible pur¬ 
pose. This excited their enemies 
to madness; and they had already 
made up their minds to put them 
to death, when Gamaliel, by a 
plain and seasonable exhibition 
of the folly of such a step, chang¬ 
ed their counsel; and, after hav¬ 
ing scourged the apostles, they 
discharged them. So distinguish¬ 
ed was this rabbi for his wisdom 
and learning, that Paul went up 
to Jerusalem to receive instruction 
from him, and afterwards men¬ 
tions this fact in his oration to the 
people of Jerusalem, (A. d. 60,) as 
evidence that he had the best 



GAM 

opportunity to know the nature 
and requisitions of the law (Acts 
xxii. 3.) 

GAMMADIMS. (Ezek. xxvii. 
11.) The prevailing opinion re¬ 
specting this term is, that it is 
•ather desciiptive of the charac¬ 
ter of a people; as, the brave, the 
warlike, the invincibles, than the 
name of any particular nation or 
tribe. 

GARDEN. (Isa. i. 8.) The 
gardens of the Hebrews were 
doubtless very rude and simple. 
Allusions to them are made, Gen. 
xxi. 33; Num. xxiv. 6; Job viii. 
16 ; and there is reason to suppose 
that they were chiefly devoted to 
fruit and shade trees, and aroma¬ 
tic plants and herbs. (1 Kings 
xxi. 2; Sol. Song iv. 12-16.) A 
reservoir of water was considered 
an indispensable appendage either 
in the form of a fountain, well or 
stream, passing through it. (Gen. 
ii. 10; xiii. 10.) The gardens 
around Damascus are described 
as abundantly watered by little 
currents which are made to flow 
through every part of them. Beau¬ 
tiful allusions to this are made, 
Prov. xxi. 1; Isa. lviii. 11; Eccl. 
ii. 5, 6. The gardens of Persia, 
at the present day, are well laid 
out, and cultivated with much 
care. Gardens were used to some 
extent as burying-places, (John 
xix. 41,—see Burial,) and also 
as places of religious worship and 
retirement. (Isa. i. 29; lxv. 3.) 
Gardens were probably often un¬ 
fenced, and formerly, as now, es¬ 
culent vegetables were planted on 
come fertile spot in the open field. 
A custom prevails in Hindostan, 
as travellers inform us, of plant¬ 
ing, at the commencement of the 
rainy season, in the extensive 
plains, an abundauco of melons, 
24 


GaP, 

cucumbers, gourds, &c. In tha 
centre of the field is an artificial 
mound, with a hut on the top just 
largo enough to shelter a single 
person from the storm and heat. 
Here a solitary being is posted 
night and day, in the midst of 
tempests and storms, for two or 
three months, to protect the crop: 
and if any depredation is attempt¬ 
ed, the alarm is given to some adja¬ 
cent village. This custom fully 
explains the allusion in Isa. i. 8. 

At this season, Niebuhr relates 
that he observed in Yemen, that 
men were placed in trees, or upon 
some such elevation, to watch the 
fields, and keep off birds, beasts 
and thieves. So also among the 
Hebrews, watchmen were station¬ 
ed to guard the harvest, who re¬ 
lieved one another. An the keep¬ 
ers of a field are they against 
Jerusalem round about: xoatchers 
come from a far country, and give 
out their voices against the cities 
of Judah. (Jer. iv. 16, 17.) He 
(the wicked) buildeth his house as 
a moth, and as a booth that the 
keeper inaketh. (Job xxvii. 18.) 
These keepers were not allowed to 
prevent one from taking from the 
field enough for the supply of hi? 
immediate wants. (Deut.xxiii.25.) 

GARLANDS. (Acts xiv. 13.) 
The heathen adorned the victims 
of their sacrifices in a variety of 
ways. Probably the garlands 
mentioned in this passage were to 
decorate the head of the ox which, 
they designed to sacrifice to tho 
supposed gods. 

GARLICK. (Num. xi. 5.) A 
well-known bulbous root or vege¬ 
table, which w r as in common use 
in Egypt, and much esteemed by 
the Jews. 

GARMENTS. (Matt. xxi. 8.) 
The raiment of the Jews was o; 

277 



GAR 

homo manufacture, spun and wo¬ 
ven by the women from their own 
flocks. (Ex. xxxv. 25.) After 
leaving Egypt their principal ar¬ 
ticle of dress was a woollen gar¬ 
ment fit to sleep in, (Ex. xxii. 27,) 
which no part of the Egyptian 
r^stume resembles. The prevail- 


GAR 

ing style of dress was a close tu¬ 
nic under a loose outer robe, as 
in fig. 2, the place of the latter 
being sometimes supplied by a 
large cape, as in fig. 1. The dress 
is confined by a girdle ,* the faces 
are bearded, and the head-dress 
bound round with a fillet. 



fhe simplicity and scantiness 
of this dress is not extraordinary 
when we consider the character 
of the country, and the habits 
and occupations of the 
people. If it should be 
asked, when the Israel¬ 
ite had parted with his 
outer garment, “wherein 
he slept,” what had he 
eft, the answer is sup¬ 
plied by the subjoined en¬ 
graving, which represents 
different fabrics of wool¬ 
len or cotton frocks or 
shirts, which at this day, 
fti warm weather, form the 
only dress of the Bedouin 
peasants and the lower 
grade of townspeople, as in 
fig*. 2 and 3. To this the 
hyke is the proper outer 
278 


robe as in fig. 1. It is sometimes 
worn without a girdle, as in fig. 
2, and is often short and loose, 

(fi3- 3 0 










































GAR 


GAR 


The shirt of the higher classes 
was of finer material and more 
ample. The following figure de¬ 
scribes the dress of a man of 
wealth just risen from bed. 



If we call his garment a shirt, 
the Hebrews, doubtless, wore it as 
the sole dress (except the cloak) 


of the poor, and the inner robe of 
the rich. Such, probably, were the 
sheets (translated shirts in some 
versions) of which Samson despoil. 
edthePhilistines.(Judg.iv. 13,19.) 

The various ways in which gar 
ments were adjusted to leave the 
arm and limbs at liberty, is seen 
in the following figures. 

Servants and workmen secured 
their dress by drawing the sleeves 
up and fastening them by a knot 
between the shoulders, or by sim¬ 
ply tucking them up near the 
shoulders, as in the figures on the 
following page. 

The custom of spreading gar 
ments in the way is of great anti¬ 
quity. Soldiers have spread their 
garments before a conquering ge¬ 
neral; and in Palestine, when, 
owing to a rebellion, the inhabit¬ 
ants of Bethlehem were in deep 
distress, “ the aged people,” says 
Mr. Farren, then English consul 
at Damascus, “ camo out to meet 



279 









































GAR 



me with tears and lamentations, 
Beseeching my interposition in 
their behalf; and, 1800 years after 
the memorable event recorded of 
the Saviour, they strewed their 
garments in every path, which, 
with my suite, I Rurally rode 
over, while my heart beat and 
my eyes were bathed with tears, 
at such a memorial of past ages 
amidst such a scene of present 
wretchedness.” 

Border of his garment. (Luke 
viii. 44.) Whatever may have been 
the origin or design of borders or 
fringes upon the garments of the 
Jews, much ostentation and super¬ 
stition came to be connected with 
them. If it was designed as a 
badge of superior sanctity or cere¬ 
monial strictness, the making 
broad such borders would be a 
natural custom of the hypocritical 
pharisees. The use of a border 
upon the outer garment might be 
a proper and suitable finish to the 
edge ; but when its breadth or any 
other peculiarity came to be re¬ 
garded as a symbol of extraordi¬ 
nary sanctity, the superstitious 
would be very likely to attach 
»ome virtue to it. Such an im- 
280 


GAT 

pression might co-exist with 
true faith, as in the case of the 
woman who sought to touch 
the hem of the Saviour’s gar¬ 
ment. (Luke viii. 44.) (See 
Fringes.) 

Long clothing, (Mark xii 
38,) probably alludes to the 
same custom of extending the 
breadth of the border or fringe 
of the garment. 

GARRISON. (See War.) 
GATE. (1 Sam. iv. 18.) 
The entrances to walled cities 
are secured by gates, either of 
wood, iron or brass. (Acts xii. 
10.) Houses also were protect¬ 
ed in the same way, and we may 
suppose that sometimes a door or 
passage was made in the gate, (as 
is common in many parts of our 
own country,) so as to save the ne¬ 
cessity of opening the whole gate 



Gate. 


every time a single person would 
pass. (Acts xii. 13.) In many 
Asiatic cities, there are broad 
streets covered over wholly or in 
part, and appropriated to mer¬ 
chants or tradesmen in particular 

































GAT 

orancnes of business; and there 
were also open squares in which 
tbe booths and stalls of venders 
were erected. These were fre¬ 
quently at the gates of the city, 
which were, of course, places of 
the greatest concourse. (2 Sam. 
xv. 2; 2 Kings vii. 1; Neh. viii. 
1; Job xxix. 7; Prov. xxii. 22; 
xxxi. 23.) The gates were often 
also the places of judicial pi-oceed- 
ings, (Deut. xvii. 5; xxv. 7; Amos 
v. 10, 12, 15;) the mode of con¬ 
ducting which may be learned 
from Ruth iv. 1-12; and of general 
resort, (Gen. xix. 1,) and, of course, 
frequented by idlers and loungers. 
(Ps. lxix. 12.) In Arabia, the 
gate of the city is still the place 
of judgment. The king or go¬ 
vernor passes certain hours of the 
day there, and not only hears and 
decides controversies, but trans¬ 
acts business with the people who 
are passing in and out. As the 
possession of the gates of the city 
was a possession of the city itself, 
the word is sometimes used to 
signify power. (Gen. xxii. 17; Isa. 
xxiv. 12.) We are told, that it 
is common in many parts of Asia 
to build the gate or door of the 
house of iron, very strong, and so 
low as to prevent the incursion of 
the Arabs, who often ride on 
horseback into the houses of those 
whom they wish to harass and 
rob. Sometimes the gate is not 
more than three feet high; and to 
elevate or exalt it, was only to 
court the notice of the destroyer, 
or to admit a friend. (Ps. xxiv. 
7, 9.) There are other figurative 
uses of the word which are suffi¬ 
ciently obvious in themselves. 
(See Hell, Jerusalem, Laza¬ 
rus, Temple.) 

GATH. (Josh. xi. 22.) An 
ancient city in the territory of 

24* 


GAZ 

Dan, celebrated as the birthplace 
of Goliath. (1 Sam. xvii. 4.) It 
was situated about thirty-two 
miles west from Jerusalem. In 
the days of David, it was in the 
possession of the Philistines, and 
Achish was its king. (1 Sam. xxi. 
10-15; xxvii. 1-7.) David after¬ 
wards captured it. (2 Sam. xv. 
18; 1 Chron. xviii. 1.) It was af 
terwards subject to frequent revo¬ 
lutions. (1 Kings ii. 39 ; 2 King* 
xii. 17; xiii. 25; 2 Chron. xi. 8; 
xxvi. 6.) The inhabitants of Gath 
are called Gittites, (Josh. xiii. 3,) 
and the place Gittah-hepher. (Josh. 
xix. 13.) 

GATH-IIEPHER. (2 King* 
xiv. 25.) A city in the tribe of 
Zebulon, and probably in the land 
of Heplier. (1 Kings iv. 10.) It 
is noted as the birthplace of th« 
prophet Jonah. 

GATH-RIMMON. (Josh. xix. 
45.) It would seem there were at 
least three cities of this name : one 
in the tribe of Dan, (Josh. xxi. 
24;) a second in the half-tribe of 
Manasseh, (Josh. xxi. 25;) and a 
third in the tribe of Ephraim. 
(1 Chron. vi. 69.) 

GAZA. (Gen. x. 19.) A city, 
and one of the five principalities 
of the Philistines, was situated on 
the coast of the Mediterranean, at 
the southern extremity of Canaan, 
within the tribe of Judah, (Judg. 
i. 18; 1 Sam. vi. 17,) and about 
sixty miles southwest of Jerusa¬ 
lem. In the reigns of Jotham ana, 
Ahaz, it recovered its independ¬ 
ence, but was again subdued by 
Hezekiah. (2 Kings xviii. 8.) It 
was afterwards subject to the Per¬ 
sians and Chaldeans, and waa 
captured by Alexander the Great 
about b. c. 300. In the time of 
Eusebius, it was a flourishing city, 
but has been often reduced since 
281 



GEB 

lhat day, and now consists of three 
small villages, with from 3000 to 
5000 inhabitants. Some Ameri¬ 
can missionaries who have visited 
tho place tell us that the city 
stands on an elevation, and that 
the houses are built of stone, but 
make a very mean appearance. 
The scenery around is beautiful. 
They found several Greeks among 
the inhabitants, and a Greek 
priest, who said the church there 
had been built twelve centuries. 
They sold twenty-five copies of 
the Scriptures, in CJreek, and gave 
away thirteen. 

The place once abounded in 
monuments of the power, opu¬ 
lence, and greatness of the city. 
Many traditions are held by the 
inhabitants respecting Samson 
and his feats; and they formerly 
showed the sunken arches of the 
temple which Samson pulled down 
upon himself and the people 
around him, and also the hill to 
whose summit he bore the gates 
of the city. 

Another American missionary, 
who was at Gaza in the spring 
of 1834, speaks of the number of 
Christians in the place as exceed¬ 
ing his expectations, and also men¬ 
tions a flourishing school there. 

GEBA, (2 Kings xxiii. 8,) call¬ 
ed also Geba of Benjamin, (Josh, 
xxi. 17; 1 Kings xv. 22,) probably 
to distinguish it from another 
town of the same name, was one 
of the most northerly towns of 
Judea. Hence the expressions, 
2 Kings xxiii. 8, and Zech. xiv. 10, 
denote the length of the land. It 
was in the vicinity of this place 
chat the Philistines were defeated 
by David’s army. (2 Sam. v. 25.) 

GEBAL. (Ezek. xxvii. 9.) A 
city of Phenicia, north of Beyroot, 
called Byblos by the Greoks and 
282 


GEM 

' Romans, and latterly Jiblah, or 
Jibail. It now exhibits little else 
than ruins, which are sufficiently 
magnificent to indicate its former 
greatness. In the days of Tyre’* 
glory it was great for ship-build¬ 
ing. (Ezek. xxvii. 9.) Tho land 
of the Giblites (Josh. xiii. 5) was 
theexten.sive plain which stretches 
around this city. In Ps. lxxxiiL 
7, Gebal most probably refers to 
a district in Idumea, east of the 
El-Ghor, known to the Romans as 
Gebalene, and at present Djebal. 

GEDALIAH (Jer. xl. 5) was 
appointed by Nebuchadnezzar to 
take charge of the government 
of Palestine, after he had subdued 
it, and destroyed the temple and 
capital of the nation. (2 Kings 
xxv. 22.) lie was assassinated by 
a party of the royal family of 
Judah, headed by Ishmael; of 
which event we have the particu¬ 
lars in Jer. xli. Several other per¬ 
sons of the same name are merely 
mentioned in the Bible. 

GEDEON. (See Gideon.) 

GEHAZI. (2 Kings iv. 12.) 
The servant and constant attend¬ 
ant of the prophet Elisha. When 
the prophet had accomplished, by 
divine power, the wonderful cure 
of Naaman, the latter offered him 
a munificent present, as a token 
of hj gratitude, which the pro¬ 
phet declined. Gehazi coveted 
what his master refused, and by 
a deliberate falsehood obtained a 
portion of Naaman’s gift. As a 
punishment for his offence, the 
very disease of which Naaman 
had just been cured was visited 
upon him and his family. (2 Kings 
v. 15-27.) 

GEMARIAII. (Jer. xxix. 3.) 
Zedekiah’s ambassador to the 
king of Babylon, by whom Jere¬ 
miah sent a letter to his country- 



GEN 

mei. in captivity, warning them 
against the indulgence of any 
false hopes of redemption. There 
was also a minister of Jehoiachim 
of the same name. (Jer. xxxvi. 12.) 

GENEALOGY. (1 Chron. v.l.) 
The lineage of a family, or list of 
ancestors, was preserved with ex¬ 
traordinary care (Ezraii. 62; Heb. 
vii. 3) by the Jewish nation, (1 
Chron. v. 17; ix. 1; 2 Chron. xii. 
15,) not only because it was 
through Abraham that the privi¬ 
leges of the Jewish church were 
transmitted, but chiefly because 
of the deep interest which was felt 
in the predictions concerning the 
Messiah, and the tribe or family 
from which he was to spring. 
(Heb. vii. 14.) The variance which 
seems to exist in many of the ge¬ 
nealogical tables, or statements 
of the sacred writers, has been 
in a great measure reconciled by 
those who have diligently inves¬ 
tigated and compared them. It 
is a matter of astonishment that 
records of such high antiquity— 
and concerned principally with 
names of families and individuals, 
which are very liable to many in¬ 
accuracies—are preserved so per¬ 
fectly. These public tables, or 
genealogical records, were in ex¬ 
istence as lately as the time of 
Josephus; for he undertakes to 
show his descent by them. 

The genealogies against which 
the apostolic admonitions were 
directed, (1 Tim. i. 4; Tit. iii. 9,) 
were probably speculations on the 
subject of genealogy, when the 
reason for regarding it so particu¬ 
larly was done away by the ap¬ 
pearance of the Messiah, and the 
introduction of a new dispensa¬ 
tion bv him. 

GENERATION. (Gen. v. 1.) 
This word is used to denote a 


GEN 

particular class of peopie. (P«. 
xxiv. 6.; 1 Pet. ii. 9.) It signifies 
the history as well as the lineago 
of a man,—as in the passage first 
cited, and Matt. i. 1,—and also 
the history of other things. (Gen. 
ii. 4.) It is employed to denote a 
period of time, (Matt. xxiv. 34; 
Acts ii. 40,) and sometimes pos¬ 
terity of future ages. (Isa. xxxiv. 
10.) When vsed to mark the 
lapse of time, its import is very 
uncertain. Perhaps it may ge¬ 
nerally mean, as it does in our 
day, the period which one gene¬ 
ration or race of men spend on 
earth. 

GENESIS. This is the name 
of the fir^t book of the Bible, and 
in the original it denotes the con¬ 
tents of the book; viz. an account 
of the generation or production 
of all things. Moses is universally 
regarded as its author, and its 
authenticity is settled by the most 
indisputable evidence. It has been 
remarked that passages of this 
book are cited in the New Testa¬ 
ment twenty-seven times literally, 
and thirty-eight times substan¬ 
tially. The history it contains 
embraces a period of at least 2370 
years, and presents to us an ac¬ 
count of the creation and fall of 
man, the religion, arts, settle¬ 
ments, genealogies, corruption 
and destruction of the antedilu¬ 
vian world, excepting eight souls, 
—the re-peopling and division of 
the earth, the dispersion of the 
inhabitants, and the interesting 
biographies of Abraham, Isaac, 
Jacob and Joseph. 

It is well observed, that with¬ 
out this history the world would 
be in comparative darkness; but 
that, in tne first page of Genesis, 
a child may learn more in an hour, 
than all the philosophers in the 
283 



GEN 

world learned without it in thou 
Bands of years. (For an analysis 
of the contents of this book, and 
explanatory and illustrative notes, 
Ac., see The Mine Explored, 
Part iii. chap. i. p 1. Union Ques¬ 
tions, vol. iii.; and Teacher’s 
Assistant in the use of the same 
work.) 

GENNESARET. (See Chin- 

NERETH.) 

GENTILE. (Rom.ii. 9.) This, 
was the name by which the Jews 
distinguished all the rest of tho 
world from themselves. All who 
were not Jews and circumcised, 
they regarded as Gentiles, or hea¬ 
then ; and as such, they were ex¬ 
cluded from the religious privi¬ 
leges and relations by which the 
Jews were so greatly exalted: 
Hence, they became accustomed 
to look on the Gentiles as outcasts 
from the favour of God; and, mis¬ 
taking the end of their peculiar 
dispensation, and supposing it to 
be perpetual, we cannot wonder 
at the strong prejudices they en¬ 
tertained against a Saviour and 
a gospel which placed Jews and 
Gentiles on the same footing, (Acts 
x. 1-48; Rom. ix. 30-33; xi. 1- 
36,) thus displaying the riches of 
that grace and mercy through 
which all that call on the name 
of the Lord are saved. And now, 
in the wonderful order and econo 
my of the divine government, the 
Gentiles compose the great body 
of God’s people, and the Jews, 
who reject the Messiah, have be¬ 
come a reproach and by-word in 
tho earth. Those who embraced 
Judaism, but were not Jews, were 
called proselytes. The word 
Greeks, in the writings of Paul, 
usually denotes the Gentiles; and, 
in the New Testament generally, 
those are called Gentiles who were 
284 


GET 

subject to the Greek government, 
either in the East or West. 

Court of the Gentiles. fSee 
Temple.) 

Isles of the Gentiles (Gen 
x. 5) are supposed to denote Asia 
Minor and the whole of Europe, 
which were peopled by the child¬ 
ren of Japheth. 

GERAII. (See Measures.) 

GERAR, (Gen. x. 19,) a capital 
city of the Philistines, was situ¬ 
ated south-west of Gaza, between 
Kadesh and Shur. (Gen. xx. 1.) 
It is remarkable that both Abra¬ 
ham and Isaac retired to this 
place during the prevalence of a 
famine, and were both guilty of 
deceiving Abimelech, the king of 
the place, respecting their wives. 
(Gen. xx. 1; xxvi. 1.) 

Valley of, (Gen. xxvi. 17.) 
was the residence of Isaac, and 
probably in the vicinity of the 
city above described. 

GERGESENES, GERGESA 
(See Gadarenes.) 

GERIZIM. (See Ebal.) 

G E S H U R. (2 Sam. xiii. 38.) 
A district of Syria, (2 Sam. xv. 8,) 
lying on the east of Jordan, north 
of Bashan, and near mount Her- 
mon. (Josh. xiii. 11, 13.) Tho 
Geshurites are also spoken of as 
inhabiting another territory south 
of Judea. (1 Sam. xxvii. 8.) The 
district above mentioned retained 
its independence in the time of 
David. (2 Sam. xiii. 37.) Travel¬ 
lers tell us of a bridge over the 
Jordan, between the sea of Tibe¬ 
rias and mount Hermon, called 
the Geshur, ( Jisr , or Jisser, lieni- 
Jakub,) the bridge of the sons 
Jacob. 

GETIISEMANE. (Matt. xxvi. 
36.) A retired place, containing 
about half an acre of land on the 
western side of mount Olivet, 




GEZ 

commanding a full view of the 
city of Jerusalem. The name in¬ 
dicates the fertility of the spot, 
especially in olives. It is called 
a garden, though it was probably 
a grove, laid out in walks, and 
furnished with fountains, afford¬ 
ing shade and seclusion to those 
who resorted thither from the 
noise and distraction of the adja¬ 
cent city. Modern travellers tell 
us that the garden is about a 
stone's cast from the brook Ce- 
dron; and that it now contains 
eight large and venerable-looking 
olives, whose trunks show their 
great antiquity. The spot is sandy 
and barren, and appears like a 
forsaken place. A low, broken 
wall surrounds it. One of our 
American missionaries informs us 
that he sat down beneath one of the 
trees, and read Isa. liii., and also 
the gospel history of our Redeem¬ 
er’s sorrow during that memora¬ 
ble night in which he was there 
betrayed; and the interest of the 
association was heightened by 
the passing through the place of 
a party of Bedouins, armed with 
spears and swords. It is said 
that the monks, to whom this 
ground now belongs, preserve the 
kernels of the nlives that grow 
there, to use as beads for rosaries. 
(See Selumiel, chap, vii.) 

G E Z E R. (Josh. xvi. 3 ) A 
town of Ephraim on the border 
of Benjamin, north-west of Jeru¬ 
salem. It remained in the posses¬ 
sion of the Canaanites (Josh, x, 
33; xvi. 10; Judg. i. 29) till the 
king of Egypt subdued it, and 
gave it to his daughter, the wife 
of Solomon. (1 Kings ix. 16.) Solo¬ 
mon rebuilt it. (1 Kings ix. 17.) 

GHOST. (Gen. xxv. 8.) To 
give up the ghost is a common 
term wicn the sacred writers, to 


GIB 

express death. It is the yielding 
up of the spirit or soul to God who 
gave it. When used to express 
the death of Christ, a different 
word is employed in the original, 
which implies the voluntary cha¬ 
racter of the act, or the power to 
give life up, or retain it at pleasure. 

Holy Ghost. (See God, 
Spirit.) 

GIANT. (1 Chron. xx. 6.) Some¬ 
times this word is employed to de¬ 
note men of great violence, cruelty 
and crime; and at others, it de¬ 
notes men of extraordinary size or 
height. The sons of Anak were 
the most noted of the latter class 
which the sacred writers mention. 
They dwelt in Hebron, and were 
such mighty men that the Israel¬ 
ites thought of themselves as 
mere grasshoppers in comparison; 
an expression, however, by no 
means indicative of exact relative 
size, but simply denoting a fear¬ 
ful odds in strength and stature. 
The king of Bashan (Deut. iii. 11) 
and Goliath (1 Sam. xvii. 4) were 
men of extraordinary size. (See 
Rephaim.) 

GIBBETIION. (Josh. xxi. 23.) 
A city of the Philistines, within 
the tribe of Dan, where Baasha 
killed Nadab, son of Jeroboam. 
(1 Kings xv. 27.) 

GIBEAH. (1 Sam. xiii. 2.) A 
city a few miles north of Jerusa¬ 
lem, called Giheah of (the child, 
ren of) Benjamin, (2 Sam. xxiii. 

29, ) in distinction from one in 
Judah. (Josh. xv. 57.) It was also 
called Giheah of Saul, (2 Sam. xxi. 
6,) because it was his birth-place 
and residence. (1 Sam. x. 26; Isa. 
x. 29.) Its inhabitants were emi¬ 
nently wicked, as they evinced by 
their conduct, recorded Judg. xix. 

30, to which Hosea refers as pro¬ 
verbial. (Hos. ix. 9; x. 9.) The 

285 



GIB 

city was terribly destroyed. (Judg. 
xx. 46.) 

GIBEON. (Josh.x.2; 1 Chron. 
xvi. 39.) A great city in the ter¬ 
ritory of Benjamin, five to seven 
miles northerly of Jerusalem, 
inhabited by Hivites, who secured 
the protection and alliance of 
Joshua by stratagem, (Josh. ix. 
4-15,) and were consequently at¬ 
tacked by the five Canaanitish 
kings, but delivered by the aid 
of the Israelites. (Josh. x. 10; 
Isa. xxviii. 21.) In the close of 
David’s and the beginning of So¬ 
lomon’s reign, the sanctuary was 
there, (1 Chron. xvi. 39, 40; xxi. 
29.) Near to it was a pool; pro¬ 
bably the “ great waters ” referred 
to by Jer. xli. 12, where Abner 
was defeated by Joab; and also 
“a great stone” or monumental 
pillar, perhaps to the twenty-four 
men of David and Ishbosheth 
who fell there. (1 Sam. ii. 13; xx. 
8. See Servant.) 

The WILDERNESS OF GlBEON 
(2 Sam. ii. 24) was doubtless in 
the vicinity of the city of the 
same name; as was also the val¬ 
ley of Gibeon, famous for the vic¬ 
tory over the five allied kings 
above described, and for the won¬ 
derful miracle performed there. 
(Josh. x. 12.) 

It is supposed that the four ci¬ 
ties named, Josh. ix. 17, enjoyed 
a sort of democratic government. 
(Comp. Josh. x. 2, and ix. 11.) 

GIDEON. (Judg.vi.il.) The 
ton of Joash the Abi-ezrite, and 
the same with Jerubbaal the se¬ 
venth judge of Israel, a mighty 
man of valour, and peculiarly fa¬ 
voured with the presence of the 
Lord. lie was a very humble 
man; and when the angel pro¬ 
posed to him to go in the strength 
of the Lord to save Israel from 
2\56 


GIH 

the hands of the Midianites, ho 
replied, “Behold, my family is 
poor in Manasseh. and I am the 
least of my father’i house.” The 
Lord was pleased to favour Gi¬ 
deon with most remarkable tokens 
of his power and grace, which are 
particularly mentioned in Judg. 
vi. vii. and viii. He is honour, 
ably mentioned, Heb. xi. 32. 

GIFT, (Ex. xxiii. 8,) GIFTS. 
(Rom. xii. 6.) The practice of 
making presents as a token of 
honour, respect or affection, pre¬ 
vailed very extensively in Eastern 
countries in early ages, and is still 
maintained. Hence to refuse mak¬ 
ing presents to a king was es¬ 
teemed a mark of contempt. (1 
Sam. x. 27.) Kings and princes 
often made splendid gifts of gar¬ 
ments to their favourite officers, 
and to others whom they were 
disposed to honour. (Gen. xlv. 
22, 23.) 

The peculiar offerings under the 
law are spoken of as gifts. (Deut. 
xvi. 17; Matt. v. 23, 24.) And it 
is with singular force that the 
blessings of the gospel, and espe¬ 
cially the great blessing of eternal 
life, through Jesus Christ our 
Lord, are called gifts; inasmuch 
as they never could be purchased, 
and nothing can be given in re¬ 
turn for them. The word gifts is 
also employed to describe those 
graces or qualities with which 
Chnst only can endue his disci¬ 
ples. | Eph. iv. 8, 11, 12.) Some 
of these, which were bestowed on 
the early apostles, were miracu¬ 
lous, and designed to confirm their 
claims to apostolic authority; such 
as the gift of tongues, ^>f prophecy, 
<fcc.; and when the end of confer¬ 
ring them was answered, they 
ceased. 

GIHON. 1. (Gen. ii. 13.) One 




GIL 

ct the rivers of Eden, supposed by 
some to be the Araxes which emp¬ 
ties into the Caspian sea. Gihon 
signifies impetuous; and such is 
the current of the Araxes Others 
suppose that the river known to 
modern geographers as the Oxus, 
which the Arabs at this day call 
Jihon, is the same with the Gihon. 

2. (1 Kings i. 33.) A fountain 
or stream near the city of Jerusa¬ 
lem, (2 Chron. xxxii. 30,) beside 
which Solomon was anointed. 
(1 Kings i. 38, 39.) 

GILBOA. (1 Sam. xxviii. 4.) 
A ridge of mountains west of the 
plain of Jordan, which the Arabs 
of this day call Djebel Gilbo. It 
is memorable as the field of battle 
on which Saul and his three sons 
fell. (1 Sam. xxxi. 8; 2 Sam. i. 
21. See Omar, pp. 118,119.) 

GILEAD. 1. A place, (2 Kings 
x. 33,) or GALEED, (Gen. xxxi. 
47, 48,)—so called because of the 
monument which was erected by 
Laban and Jacob to perpetuate 
the remembrance of their cove¬ 
nant,—was a mountainous region, 
embracing Trachonitis, east of the 
Jordan. The term is used rather 
indefinitely by the sacred writers. 
The possessions of the tribe of 
Gad are described as all the cities 
of Gilead, and half the land of the 
children of Ammon. (Josh. xiii. 
25.) And the half-tribe of Ma- 
nasseh are said to have received, 
is part of their inheritance, all 
Bashan and half Gilead, (Josh, 
xiii. 30, 31;) and in Deut. iii. 12, 
13, 16, half mount Gilead is said 
to have beeD given to Reuben and 
Gad, and t he rest of Gilead to 
Manasseh; while, in verse 15, we 
are told that Gilead was given to 
Machir. 

It would seem that the posses- 
iions of Manasseh lay north of 


GIL 

the Jabbok, and were divided be 
tween his two sons, Jair and Mo 
chir; the former taking tho lank 
of Argob, and the latter the land 
of Gilead, or the northern part of 
it; and that the Reubenites and 
Gadites took the tract between the 
Jabbok and the Arnon, including 
the southern section of Gilead. 

The land of Gilead, (Deut. 
xxxiv. 1,) as used in this passage, 
probably denotes the whole coun¬ 
try east of the Jordan to Arabia, 
including the modern Belka. 

Mount Gilead, properly speak¬ 
ing, is the ridge or summit which 
rises six miles south of the Jab- 
bok 1 , and extends five or six miles 
from east to west. It is now called 
Djelaad. It was at this point 
that a part of Gideon’s army de¬ 
serted him. (Judg. vii. 3.) 

There was a tree in Gilead, the 
gum of which (hence called the 
balm of Gilead) possessed medi¬ 
cinal properties, (Jer. viii. 22; 
xlvi. 11; li. 8,) and was an import¬ 
ant article of commerce. (Gen. 
xxxvii. 25.) 

Strabo, the prince of ancient 
geographers, speaks of afield near 
Jericho, in Palestine, which was 
full of these balsam-trees. The 
sap is like viscid and tenacious 
milk, and coagulates rapidly. It 
was valuable for inflammations; 
and, in the time of Alexander, 
was estimated at twice its weight 
in silver. (See Balm.) 

2. A person. (Num. xxvi. 29, 
30, and Judg. xi. 1, 2;) in both 
which cases the name is probably 
derived from the fact that the in¬ 
dividuals resided, or had their 
inheritance, in Gilead. 

GILGAL. (Josh. iv. 20.) The 
origin of this name is given us in 
Josh v. 9. It was a village in the 
plain j of Jericho, east of that city, 
287 



GIR 

and northeast of Jerisalem. Itwas 
from three to five miles west of 
the river Jordan, and was the first 
place of encampment of the army 
of the Israelites after passing that 
river. There the twelve stones 
were set up as a memorial of the 
miracle. It was the resting-place 
of the tabernacle until it was taken 
to Shiloh, whence it was again 
returned to Gilgal, (1 Sam. x. 8; 
xv. 33,) and also the seat of go¬ 
vernment, or place of rendezvous, 
during Joshua’s wars with the 
Canaanites. In Samuel’s day, it 
was one of the places for holding 
a circuit court, (1 Sam. vii. 16,) 
but afterwards became devoted 
to idolatry. (Hos. xii. 11; Amos 
iv. 4.) 

The word quarries, in Judg. iii. 
19, is rendered graven images in 
the margin, and, if correctly ren¬ 
dered, shows the prevalence of 
idol worship there. Other inte¬ 
resting incidents connected with 
this place are recorded, 1 Sam. xi. 
14, 15 ; xiii. xv. 

There was another Gilgal “be¬ 
side the plains of Moreh,” not far 
from Shechem. (Deut. xi. 30; 
Josh. xii. 23. See Omar, p. 137, 
and Selumiel, p. 157.) 

GIRD, GIRDLE. (See 
Clothes.) 

GIRGASITE, (Gen. x. 16,) or 
GIRSIIASHITES. (Gen.xv.21.) 
A tribe of the Canaanites, who 
are supposed to have inhabited a 
Bection of the country east of the 
sea of Galilee; whence the name 
of the city of Gergesa. 

GITT AH-IIEPHER. (See 
Gath-hepher.) 

GITTITES. (See Gath.) 

GITTITH. Ps. viii. lxxxi. and 
Ixxxiv. are inscribed to the chief 
musician upon Gittith. The word 
may refer to a particular instru- 
288 


GLO 

menV A music, or to a particular 
tune, or it may have relation to 
some circumstance in the time or 
occasion of its composition, which 
the word Gittith denotes, but 
which has not been preserved. 

GLASS. (1 Cor. xiii. 12.) The 
substance which we call glass was 
invented in the twelfth century; 
but the ancients probably used 
some semi-transparent substance, 
through which a degree of light 
was admitted, and external ob¬ 
jects very indistinctly seen. Spe¬ 
cimens of such substances are 
often found among Roman anti¬ 
quities. Looking-glasses (Ex. 
xxxviii. 8; Job xxxvii. 18) were 
doubtless made of polished metal. 
One of the latter is supposed to 
be meant in James i. 23, and one 
of the former in 1 Cor. xiii. 12. 

GLEAN. (Ruth ii. 2.) In the 
joyful season of harvest, the Jew¬ 
ish farmer was not allowed to for¬ 
get the poor and the stranger. A 
special command was given (Lev. 
xix. 9, 10) that he should leave 
some of the fruits for them to 
gather. 

GLEDE. (Deut. xiv. 13.) A 
rapacious bird of the hawk or vul¬ 
ture species. The original word 
is rendered vulture, in Lev. xi. 14. 

GLORY, GLORIFY. (Ps. xlix. 
16; Isa. xxiv. 15.) These terms are 
of frequent occurrence throughout 
the Bible; and are so common 
that many fail to see how very 
significant they are. 

To glorify is to render glorious. 
(Dan. v. 23; Acts iii. 13; 2 Pit. i. 
17.) Hence the comprehensive 
precept of the apostle, (1 Cor. vi. 
19, 20,) requiring the devotion of 
our whole powers and faculties to 
this one great end, the glory of 
God, (1 Cor. x. 31,) or making God 
glorious. The glory of God ia 




ON A 

uisplayed to his creatures in the 
work a of creation, providence and 
grace; so that they aro without 
excuse who see even the things 
that are made, and the evidence 
they furnish of his eternal power 
and Godhead, and yet neglect or 
refuse to glorify him as God. 
(Rom. i. 20-32.) 

Under the Mosaic economy, the 
glory of God often appeared in 
some visible emblem, but dwelt 
especially within the vail, between 
the cherubim. (1 Kings viii. 11; 
Ps. lxxx. 1; Zech. ii. 5.) 

It is, however, in the plan of 
redemption that we have exhibited 
to us at once a complete, consist¬ 
ent and perfect display of the 
glory of the divine character, to 
which every other manifestation 
of it, whether in creation or pro¬ 
vidence, or in the former dispen¬ 
sation of his grace, were and are 
subservient. The wisdom, power 
and goodness of God, as well as 
his holiness, faithfulness and jus¬ 
tice, are here magnified to the 
highest degree; so that the ex¬ 
pressions of the apostle have great 
force, THE LIGHT OF THE KNOW¬ 
LEDGE OF THE GLORY OF God, IN 

the face of Jesus Christ. (John 
i. 14; 2 Cor. iv. 6; Ileb. i. 3.) 

GNASH, GNASHING. (Ps. 
cxii. 10 ; Matt. viii. 12.) A strik¬ 
ing or grinding of the teeth in the 
paroxysms of anguish or despair. 

GNAT. (Matt, xxiii. 24.) A 
very small but troublesome insect, 
common in hot countries. In the 
passage cited, the words strain at 
should rather be strain out; the 
phrase will then better express the 
gross inconsistencies which our 
Saviour reproved. 

GOAD. (Judg. iii. 31.) This 
was a rod or polo, about eight feet 
long, armed at the largest end 
25 T 


GOA 

with a piece of iron, with which 
the ploughshare was freed frcm 
clods and earth, and at the smallest 
with a sharp spike, by which the 
oxen were urged on in their labour. 

A modern traveller in the East 
says :—“ The country people were 
now everywhere at work plough¬ 
ing in the fields, in order to sow 
cotton. It was observable, that 
in ploughing they used goads of 
an extraordinary size. Upon the 
measuring of several, I found them 
about eight feet long, and at the 
bigger end six inches in circum¬ 
ference. They were armed at the 
lesser end with a sharp prickle 
for driving the oxen, and at the 
other end with a small spade or 
paddle of iron, strong and massy, 
for cleansing the plough from thtf 
clay that encumbers it in work¬ 
ing. May wo not from hence con¬ 
jecture, that it was with such a 
goad as one of these, that Sham- 
gar made that prodigious slaugh¬ 
ter related of him? (Judg. iii. 
31.) I am confident that whoever 
should see one of these instru¬ 
ments, would judge it to be a wea¬ 
pon not less fit, perhaps fitter, than 
a sword for such an execution. 
Goads of this sort I saw always 
used hereabouts, and also in Sy¬ 
ria; and the reason is, because 
the same single person both drives 
the oxen and also holds and ma¬ 
nages the plough, which makes it 
necessary to use such a g ,ad as is 
above described, to avoid the en¬ 
cumbrance of two instruments.” 

GOAT. (Lev. iii. 12.) Goats 
were among the chief possessions 
of the wealthy in the early agos 
of the world. (Gen. xxvii. 9 ; 1 
Sam. xxv. 2; 2 Chron. xvii. 11.) 
Resembling the sheep in its gene¬ 
ral structure and appearance, it is 
covered with hair instead of wool, 
28J> 



GOA 



Goat. 

and is much more active, bold 
and wandering in its habits. It 
feeds on bark and tender twigs, 
and its feet are formed for leaping 
and climbing among rocks and 
mountains. Its milk is valuable 
for food, (Prov. xxvii. 27,) the 
hair for manufactures of various 
kinds, (Ex. xxv. 4; Num. xxxi. 
20; Heb. xi. 37,) and the skin for 
vessels or bottles, (Josh. ix. 4; 
Ps. cxix. 83; Matt. ix. 17,) and in 
modern times for leather. 

It was a clean animal by the 
Jewish law, (Deut. xiv. 4,) and 
was much used in sacrifices. (Lev. 
iii. 12; Num. xv. 27 ; Ezra vi. 17.) 

The peculiar qualities of goats 
occasion frequent figurative allu¬ 
sions to them. The boldness and 
strength of the leaders of the 
flocks are alluded to, Prov. xxx. 
31; Zech. x. 3 ; and they are made 
to represent oppressors and wick- 
ad men generally. (Ezek. xxxiv. 
17; xxxix. 18; Matt. xxv. 33.) 

Wild Goats, (Deut. xiv. 5,) 
(new called the ibex, or mountain 
goat,) were of the same species; 
but being confined to the high and 
almost inaccessible summits of 
mountains, were seldom taken, 
290 


GOD 

and were of little do¬ 
mestic use. 

The mountain gvat 
is still found in many 
parts of Syria, and 
the flesh is nearly of 
the flavour of venison. 
The Bedouins make 
bags or bottles of their 
skins, and rings of 
their horns. When 
they are found among 
the rocks, they usually 
elude the pursuit of 
the hunter, sometimes 
leaping even twenty 
feet,—but in the plains 
they are often taken. Their ha¬ 
bits are alluded to, 1 Sam. xxiv. 2; 
Job xxxix. 1; Ps. civ. 18.) 

Scape-goat. (Lev. xvi. 26.) 
In this chapter we have an inte¬ 
resting account of the manner in 
which goats were employed under 
the Jewish law to prefigure the 
atoning sacrifice of Christ. It 
was on the great day of atone¬ 
ment that two goats were taken; 
one to be presented as a sin-offer¬ 
ing, and the other to stand while 
the priest laid his hands upon its 
head, and confessed over it the 
sins of the people; after which it 
was led or sent away into the 
wilderness; thus representing the 
taking or bearing away of guilt 
(See the ceremony and its mean¬ 
ing fully illustrated in Biblical 
Antiquities, vol. ii. chap. vi. $ 5, 
and Elisama, pp. 169-172.) 

GOB. (2 Sam. xxi. 18, 19.) A 
place or plain where the Israelites 
fought two battles with the Phi¬ 
listines. It is supposed to be the 
same with Gezer. (1 Chron. xz. 
4. See Gezer.) 

GOBLET. (See Cup.) 

GOD. (Gen. i. 1.) The name 
of the uncreated Creator of all 



GOB 

things. He is revealed to us in 
an endless variety of ways in his 
works and providential govern¬ 
ment, (Roin. i. 20,) but more fully 
in the Holy Scriptures, as a Spirit 
infinitely wise, holy, just and be¬ 
nevolent; and though he is truly 
and essentially one in his being, 
nature and attributes, and the 
only proper object of religious 
worship, (Deut. vi. 4; Isa. xliv. 
8; xlv. 5, 6, 14, 18, 21, 22,) yet he 
is clearly revealed to us as the Fa¬ 
ther, the Son and the Holy Spirit, 
(Isa. xlviii. 16, 17,* Matt, xxviii. 
19, 20; John i. 1-3; v. 23; x. 30; 
xiv. 23; Phil. ii. 6 ; 1 Tim. iii. 16,) 
to each of whom are ascribed the 
essential attributes of the supreme 
God, while they are distinguished 
from each other in the sacred 
writings by all the acts and all 
the forms of speech by which men 
are accustomed to designate dif¬ 
ferent persons. Among a multi¬ 
tude of passages, the following 
may bo cited : Gen. i. 26; iii 22; 
xi. 6, 7; Acts v. 3, 4; 2 Cor. xiii. 
14; Col. ii. 9. As every thing con¬ 
cerning the mode cr manner of 
the divine existence must be ne¬ 
cessarily and entirely a matter of 
iivine revelation, it is to be re¬ 
ceived as such, with the most 
profound and humble reverence. 
The student of the Bible, how¬ 
ever, and especially the teacher, 
would do well to settle in his mind 
distinctly and definitely what are 
the facts or truths which the Bible 
makes known to us respecting this 
great mystery of our holy reli¬ 
gion ; and so to arrange and clas¬ 
sify them, that they shall exhibit at 
one view, to his own mind, and to 
the minds of those he teaches, ex¬ 
actly what is revealed, and no 
more: and in doing this, (especial¬ 
ly when the matter is of such 


GOL 

great solemnity and importance,^ 
it is safest to abide as closely a* 
possible by the language of in¬ 
spiration. 

The words god and gods are 
frequently used to express the 
office, power or excellence of some 
created being; as angels, (Ps. 
xcvii. 7,) magistrates, (Ex. xxii. 
28,) the devil. (2 Cor. iv. 4. jlee 
Jehovah, Christ Jesus.) 

GODHEAD. (Col ii. 9.) The 
nature or essential being of God 
(Acts xvii. 29 j Rom. i. 20.) 

GODLINESS. (2 Pet. iii. 11.) 
Piety, resulting from the know¬ 
ledge and love of God, and lead¬ 
ing to the cheerful and constant 
obedience of his commands. Iu 
1 Tim. iii. 16, it imports the sub¬ 
stance of revealed religion. 

GOG AND MAGOG. (Ezek. 
xxxviii. 2.) Magog was the name 
of one of Japheth’s sons. (Gen. x. 
2.) It was also a general name 
of a country north of the Cauca¬ 
sus or Mount Taurus, or for the 
people of that district. Gog was 
the king of the country. Proba¬ 
bly they were remarkable for their 
invasive and predatory habits; 
and, perhaps, the phrase was de¬ 
scriptive of barbarians and spoil¬ 
ers generally. (Rev. xx. 8.) 

GOLAN. (Deut. iv. 43.) A 
considerable city belonging to the 
half-tribe of Manasseh, and situ¬ 
ated in the northwestern part of 
the old kingdom of Bashan; 
whence the district, of which it 
was the capital, is called Gaulo- 
nitis. It was east of the sea of 
Tiberias, and still bears the name 
of Jolan. Golan was one of the 
cities of refuge. (Josh. xx. 8.) 

GOLD. (Gen. ii. 11.) This 
heaviest and most malleable of 
metals, is found at the present day 
chiefly in Africa and in South Arne 
291 



GOL 

rioa. Of late years the chief pro¬ 
duct of gold has been from Cali¬ 
fornia and Australia. Several 
places are mentioned by the sacred 
writers as abounding in gold; 
such as Ophir, (Job xxviii. 16,) 
Parvaim, or Ceylon, as some sup¬ 
pose, (2 Chron. iii. 6,) and Sheba 
and Raamah. (Ezelc. xxvii. 22.) 
The use of gold was very common 
among the Hebrews. Several 
parts of the temple, its furniture 
and utensils, were overlaid with 
this precious metal. (Ex. xxxvi. 
34-38; 1 Kings vii. 48-50;) and 
many of the vessels of the wealthy, 
as well as their personal orna¬ 
ments and insignia of office, were 
of gold. (Gen. xli. 42 ; 1 Kings x. 
17-22; Esth. i. 6, 7; Dan. v. 29; 
Luke xv. 22; James ii. 2.) 

GOLDEN CANDLESTICK. 
(See Candlestick.) 

GOLGOTHA. (See Cal¬ 
vary.) 

GOLIATH. (1 Sam. xvii. 4.) 
A renowned champion of the Phi¬ 
listines. His native place was 
Gath. He was more than nine 
feet in height, and his armour 
corresponded with his stature and 
strength. The particulars of his 
defeat in single combat with Da¬ 
vid are given, 1 Sam. xvii. (See 
Life of David, chap, iii.) 

In 2 Sam. xxi. 16-22, is an ac¬ 
count of several contests, in one 
of which Elhanan, a Bethlehem- 
ite, is spoken of as having slain 
Goliath, the Gittito. In another, 
which occurred in Gath, a man 
of stature, with twelve fingers and 
twelve toes, is represented as hav¬ 
ing been slain by Jonathan, Da¬ 
vid’s nephew. In a third, a giant 
named Saph, was slain by Sibbe- 
chai, the Ilushathite; and a fourth 
was between IshbLbenob and 
Abishai, in which the former was 
992 


GOP 

slain. These four, it is said, were 
born tc the giant in Gath. 

The probability is, that some 
other giant than Goliath is In¬ 
tended in this verse, as one of the 
four persons named was his bn, 
ther, and not his son, and that 
the true reading of 2 Sam. xxi. 19 
is given in 1 Chron. xx. 5. 

GOMER. (Ezek. xxxviii. 6 
The eldest son of Japheth, whose 
posterity peopled a large district 
of Asia Minor, embracing Phry¬ 
gia. From them came the natives 
of northern Europe. Hence, too, 
the Gauls and Celts, and the hands 
of Gomer, and in later times, the 
people of Germany, France and 
Britain. 

GOMORRAH. (See Salt sea.) 

GOPHER WOOD. (Gen. vi. 
14.) The ark was constructed of 
gopher wood. It has been sup¬ 
posed that this may mean, (1.) 
The wood of those trees which 
shoot out horizontal branches, 
such as the fir, cedar, <fcc.; (2.) 
Squared timber; (3.) Smooth or 
planed timber; (4.) Any light, 
floating wood ; (5.) Any wood that 
does not readily corrupt; (6.) 
Pitched wood; (7.) Wicker or 
basket work, made of osier or 
other pliable material of the same 
species; (8.) Or any of the kinds 
of wood that abound with resin¬ 
ous, inflammable juices. The 
weight of authority, or rather con¬ 
jecture, is between the cypress and 
cedar. The Greek name of cypress 
bears a resemblance to the Hebrew 
of gopher. It was considered by 
the ancients as the most durable 
wood, and least exposed to worms 
and natural decay. It abounded 
in Syria, was used very commonly 
for ship-building, and was almost 
the only wood which could fur¬ 
nish suitable timber for so large 





GOS 

■ vessel. The cedar is light, in¬ 
corruptible and resinous. It was 
used by the Egyptians and Assy¬ 
rians in the construction of ships; 
and some of the oldest rabbins 
suppose it was used for the ark. 

GOSHEN. 1. (Gen. xlv. 10.) A 
fertile section of pasture land in 
the northeastern division of Egypt, 
between the Red sea and the river 
Nile, upon the southern border of 
Canaan, allotted by Joseph to his 
father and his brethren; where 
they dwelt for upwards of two 
hundred years. It was, for graz¬ 
ing purposes, the best of the land. 
(Gen. xlvii. 6, 11.) 

One of our American mission¬ 
aries passed, with a caravan, 
through the northern district of 
ancient Goshen in 1827; and he 
describes it as an immense sandy 
desert, drifted with sand-banks; 
and presenting here and there, in 
small patches, a few shrubs of 
evergreen, like our whortleberry 
bushes, on which the Bedouins 
pasture their flocks, llameses and 
Pithon are mentioned as cities of 
Goshen, and the supposed ruins 
of them are described by modern 
travellers. The pacha of Egypt 
has lately established a colony of 
five hundred Syrians in the an¬ 
cient land of Goshen, for the pur¬ 
pose of cultivating the mulberry 
and rearing silkworms. 

2. (Josh. xv. 51.) A city in the 
territory of Judah, which gave the 
name of the land of Goshen to the 
country around it. 

GOSPEL. (Mark i. 1.) The 
word which is rendered gospel in 
this passage is elsewhere rendered 
good or glad tidings, (Luke ii. 10; 
Acts xiii. 32;) and in loth cases 
it describes the books written by 
the four evangelists. Hence, when 
we say the gospel according to 
25* 


GOS 

Matthew, we mean, the history of 
Jesus Christ the Son of God, ana 
an account of the salvation offer¬ 
ed by and through him, as the 
same was prepared under the 
guidance of the Holy Ghost by 
Matthew, one of our Saviour’s dis¬ 
ciples. A harmony of the gospels 
is an arrangement of these four 
histories in such a manner as to 
show their harmony with each 
other, and to present them in 
connected chronological order. 
One of these harmonies may be 
found in The Help to the Gos¬ 
pels, and in The Mine Ex¬ 
plored, p. 328, &c. 

The gospel of Matthew was un¬ 
doubtedly written first, and, as it 
is generally supposed, about the 
year 65. It is not certain whe¬ 
ther it was originally written in 
Greek or Hebrew, but probably in 
Hebrew. 

The gospel by Mark was proba¬ 
bly written under the influence 
and direction of the Apostle Peter; 
and tradition says it was written 
at Rome, and published after the 
death of Peter and Paul. 

The gospel of Lulce is supposed 
to have been written by the be¬ 
loved physician, the companion 
of Paul in his travels, under the 
direction or oversight of the apos¬ 
tle, and after the destruction of 
Jerusalem. 

The gospel of John is to be re¬ 
garded as supplementary; and it 
was written last of all. Some have 
fixed the period as late as the year 
96, when John was eighty years 
old, and after Matthew’s gospel 
had been published thirty years. 

The gospel is termed the gospel 
of peace, (Rom. x. 15,) and the 
tcord of reconciliation, (2 Cor. v. 
19,) because it shows the only way 
in which man can be at peace 
293 



GOU 

with God through Jesus Christ; 
and hence it is also called the gos¬ 
pel of the grace of God, (Acts xx. 
24,) as it is a declaration of God’s 
free favour and good-will towards 
those who are utterly worthless 
and undeserving. 

As to the general characteris¬ 
tics of these four books we may 
observe that they were written 
by different men, each of whom 
was under the immediate inspira¬ 
tion of God, and was led to adopt 
a style and arrangement suited to 
the purpose he had in view. When 
it is considered what an endless 
variety of places, persons and in¬ 
cidents are introduced into the 
sacred narratives, and what a va¬ 
riety of expressions are reported, 
on the accuracy of which*and the 
circumstances under which they 
were spoken, so much of their 
force depends; when we consider, 
moreover, the character and edu¬ 
cation of the writers, and the pe¬ 
culiar disadvantages of their situ¬ 
ation ; we shall be ready to admit 
the extraordinary claims of these 
books, and to allow that the im¬ 
material discrepancies which they 
present confirm rather than inva¬ 
lidate those claims. (See “The 
Mine Explored,” for a variety 
of interesting facts touching these 
inspired compositions.) 

GOURD. (Jonah iv. 6.) The 
gourd known in our country is a 
climbing vine of quick growth, 
allied to the family of the cucum¬ 
ber, melon, squash, <fcc. Its fruit 
is found in a hard ligneous shell, 
Df which drinking-cups and other 
household utensils are formed. It 
was cultivated from the earliest 
limes in Asia and Africa. The 
pulp is eatable; and the lower 
jlasses in Egypt and Arabia boil 
it in vinegar, or make it into a 
294 


GOV 

sort of pudding bj filling the shell 
with rice and meat. In a wild 
state, gourds were probably poi¬ 
sonous, as the wild parsnip is 
among us. (2 Kings iv. 38-41.; 

It is generally admitted, tha* 
whatever the plant was under the 
shade of which the prophet took 
shelter, its growth was miracu¬ 
lous. Some, however, have re¬ 
garded the expression, “ it came 
up in a night and perished in a 
night,” as a strong oriental figure, 
indicating rapid growth, but not 
so rapid as a literal interpretation 
of the expression denotes. The 
declaration that the Lord prepared 
a gourd, and prepared a worm, 
and prepared an East wind, indi¬ 
cates the direct and special inter¬ 
position of his providence to teach 
the prophet a lesson of submission 
to the divine will. Jonah was dis¬ 
pleased and angry, because Nine¬ 
veh was not destroyed according 
to the word which he was com¬ 
manded to speak. To show him 
the inconsistency and wickedness 
of his feelings, God put him in a 
position where his comfort and 
present enjoyment were depend¬ 
ent on the preservation of a shade- 
plant of very quick growth and 
decay; and when he expressed 
his angry impatience that the 
plant was not spared for his pro¬ 
tection, God pointed him to the 
vast city of Nineveh filled with 
crowds of men and beasts, and 
significantly inquired whether, if 
the gourd should be spared to 
shelter his head, the suspension 
of the divine judgment upon Ni¬ 
neveh should not give rise tc very 
different emotions in the prophet’s 
mind from those of displeasure 
and grief? 

GOVERNOR. (Matt.xxvii. 
2.) After Judea became a pro- 



GOZ 

vince of the Roman ampire, go¬ 
vernors or procurators were ap¬ 
pointed and sent thither from 
Rome. This was the office held 
by Pontius Pilate at the time of 
our Saviour’s crucifixion. Some¬ 
times the word governor is used 
as a general title for ruler. (Gen. 
xlii. 6. See Feast.) 

GOZAN. (1 Chron. v. 26.) A 
river, which probably rises in Me¬ 
dia, to the vicinity of which the 
captive Israelites were transport¬ 
ed. (2 Kings xvii. 6.) This river 
is now known as the Kizzil Ozan, 
and empties into the Caspian sea. 
There was also a province, and 
perhaps a city, of the same name, 
(Isa. xxxvii. 12) now 
called Gausania, lying 
between the Caspian 
sea and the mountains 
which separate Media 
from Assyria. Through 
this province the river 
Gozan or Kizzil Ozan 
runs. 

GRACE. (1 Tim. i. 

2.) The theological use 
of this word denotes the 
free favour of God, be¬ 
stowed upon men with¬ 
out any merit or claim 
on their part. Hence 
the New Testament, 
which reveals the plan 
by which this grace is 
bestowed consistently 
with the divine attri¬ 
butes, (viz. the atone¬ 
ment, mediation and 
intercession of the Lord Jesus 
Christ, in and through whom 
alone *he free, rich and eternal 
fulness of God’s favour is dis¬ 
pensed,) is called the gospel of the 
grace of God. (Acts xx. 24.) 

GRAFF. (Rom. xi. 17.) To 
graff or graft is to insert a shoot 


GRA 

or bud of one tree into tho branch 
of another ; the stock of the latter 
being usually inferior, and the 
graft very valuable. The sap of 
the natural tree being conveyed 
into the graft is, by a peculiar pro¬ 
cess, changed into the natural sap 
of the graft; and hence the fruit 
of the graft will be of its own 
kind, and the fruit of the natural 
tree of another kind. The force 
and beauty of the apostle’s figure 
in the passage above cited are 
sufficiently obvious. 

GRAIN. (See Corn.) 

GRAPES. (Gen.xlix.il.) The 
fruit of the vine. When fully ripe 
and dried, they are called raisins. 


(1 Sam. xxv. 18 ; xxx. 12 ; 2 Sam. 
x\i. l.j 1 Chron. xii. 40.) 

The soil and climate of Judea 
were well suited to the growth 
of the vine; and it was among 
tho principal productions of the 
country. 

Particular districts of Judea 
295 



Grapes. 


























GR A 

were famed for the excellency of 
their grapes; as Engedi, and the 
vales of Eshcol, and Sorelc. The 
word Sorek is not only the name 
of a region in the tribe of Judah, 
but also signifies the noblest va¬ 
riety of the vine and its clusters, 
which there abounded. This grape 
was white, with delicious juice, 
and with seeds so small and soft 
as to be almost imperceptible. 
In Persia, the best raisins are 
made of this grape. It is of this 
that the celebrated Kishmish wine 
of Shiraz is made. Very fine 
grapes were in old times, as at 
present, produced on mount Le¬ 
banon, and Helbon or Aleppo. 
Travellers agree in relating that 
Palestine, even in its present state 
of subjugation to the Mussulmans, 
who are forbidden to use wine, 
produces clusters of twelve pounds 
weight each, the single grapes of 
which are as large as plums. They 
tell us that the clusters of Judea, 
a few miles westward from Jeru¬ 
salem, are larger than any in Eu¬ 
rope ; and that they have often 
seen clusters of such size that it 
was impossible for a single man 
to carry one of them uninjured for 
any distance. It is satisfactory 
to find this corroboration of the 
scriptural account. (Num. xiii. 23. 
See Eshcol.) Brocard informs us 
in his travels, that the best vines 
grow in the environs of Bethle¬ 
hem, in the vale of llephaim, (be¬ 
tween Bethlehem and Jerusalem,) 
and in the vale of Eshcol. 

The grapes of the Holy Land, 
with the exception of the Sorek , 
above mentioned, are mostly red 
or black. Hence the juice is 
called the blood of the grape; 
translated, in our version, red 
wine. (Isa. xxvii. 2.) 

The vines of the east attain a 
296 


GRA 

very great size, reaching the tops 
of the highest trees, and are some¬ 
times much thicker in the trunk 
than a man’s body. (See Winf,, 
Wine-press, Vines, Vineyards.! 

The Jews were expressly re¬ 
quired by their law not to gathei 
the grapes until the vine was 
three years old, (Lev. xix. 23,) and 
to leave some on the vines and 
some on the ground, (Lev. xix. 
10;) and it was the privilege of 
the poor and dependent to gather 
these for their own use, provided 
they were eaten on the ground. 
They were not allowed to take 
any away. (Deut. xxiii. 24; xxiv. 
21.) The grapes thus left were 
called the gleanings, and, as they 
hung, here and there one, on the 
vines, or scattered on the ground, 
they were strikingly emblematical 
of the depopulation of a city or 
country. (Isa. xvii. 6; xxiv. 13; 
Jer. vi. 9; xlix. 9; Obad. 5.) 

The proverb to which reference 
is made in Jer. xxxi. 29, is ex¬ 
plained in the whole of Ezek. xviii. 
The Jews complained that they 
suffered because of the iniquity of 
their fathers. The prophet shows 
them their error and delusion, 
and triumphantly vindicates the 
divine proceedings. 

So in Isa. v. 2, before cited, tho 
Jewish nation is represented to 
us under the figure of a vineyard 
favourably planted, and cultivated 
with the utmost skill and labour, 
and every preparation made for 
the vintage, and yet the husband¬ 
man’s hopes are all blasted; for 
instead of a full crop of genuine 
fruit, he finds upon the vines a 
bitter, poisonous, wild fruit, en¬ 
tirely unfit for use. A more strik¬ 
ing illustration of the perverse¬ 
ness and ingratitude of the Israel 
ites, cannot be conceived. 



GRA 

GRASS. (Isa. li. 12.) This 
word is frequently applied in the 
Scriptures to herbage generally, 
(Isa. xv 6,) though sometimes a 
distinction is made between such 
herbs as are used by man, as grain 
and vegetables, and such as are 
used chiefly by cattle. (Ps. civ. 14.) 

The quick growth and tender¬ 
ness of this species of vegetation 
furnish several of the most strik¬ 
ing illustrations of the Scriptures. 
(Ps. xc. 5, 6; xcii. 7; ciii. 15, 16. 
Isa. xl. 6-8; li. 12; James i. 10; 
1 Pet. i. 24.) 

The passage in Prov. xxvii. 25, 
would be more accurately ren¬ 
dered thus: “ The grass {hay) ap- 
peareth, and the green herb {ten¬ 
der grass) showeth itself, and the 
plants {herbs) of the mountains 
are gathered.” So in Isa. xv. 6: 
“ The grass {hay) withereth, the 
green herb {grass) faileth, there 
is no green thing.” 

Nothing can exceed in beauty 
and appropriateness the gradation 
of images employed by the pro¬ 
phet, 2 Kings xix. 26; the weak¬ 
ness and tenderness of the first 
shoots of any green herb; the 
frailty of the few spires of grass 
that sometimes spring up in the 
vegetable mould or shallow earth 
upon the housetop, or the withered 
and wilted blade of corn, blast id 
before it rises into a stalk. 

The dry stalks of herbs were 
often used, as faggots are now, 
for the purpose of heating ovens. 
(Matt. vi. 30; xiii. 30; Luke 
xii. 28.) 

GRASSHOPPER. (Eccl. xii. 
5.) Aninsectof the locust species, 
often mentioned in the sacred 
writings. The word rendered 
grasshopper in the above-cited 
passage is rendered loci st in 2 
Chron. vii 13. 


GRE 

The grasshopper was allowable 
food under the Jewish law. (Lev. 
xi. 22.) Their timidity is prover¬ 
bial. (Job xxxix. 20.) They are 
often found in great multitudes, 
(hence the figurative language, 
Judg. vi. 5, and vii. 12 ; Jer. xlvi. 
23,) and prove destructive to ve¬ 
getation, especially in its early 
stages. (Amos vii. 1.) 

The allusion in Nah. iii. 15-17, 
is to a common habit of this in¬ 
sect. When benumbed with the 
cold, they assemble in vast num¬ 
bers upon the hedges or other 
shrubbery; and such is their mul¬ 
titude, that the places they occupy 
are darkened, and resemble the 
encamping ground of a great 
army. As soon, however, as they 
are revived by the warmth of the 
sun, they fly aivay no one knows 
whither. 

The grasshopper is used to il¬ 
lustrate comparative insignifi¬ 
cance, (Num. xiii. 33. Isa. xl. 22 ;) 
and in the passage from Ecclesi¬ 
astes, first cited, reference is pro¬ 
bably made to that degree of weak¬ 
ness and infirmity in old age which 
makes the weight, or even the 
chirping of a grasshopper, bur¬ 
densome. 

GRATE, brazen. (See Altar.) 

GRAVE. (See Burial, En¬ 
grave, Hell.) 

GREAT SEA (Num. xxxiv. 6) 
is the same with the Mediterra¬ 
nean, and constitutes that large 
mass of waters between Europe, 
Asia and Africa, which receives 
its name {midland) from its posi¬ 
tion, and has its only communica¬ 
tion with the ocean by the straits 
of Gibraltar. It is also called the 
utmost sea, (Joel ii. 20,) the hinder 
sea, (Zech. xiv. 8,) and was the 
western boundary of the promised 
land. 


297 



GRE 

GREAVES. (Se6 Armour.) 

GREECE, (Zech. ix. 13,) or 
GRECIA, (Dan. viii. 21,) was 
known to the Hebrews by the 
name of Javan . (Isa. lxvi. 19; 
Ezek. xxvii. 13, 19.) As used in 
the New Testament, it more gene¬ 
rally comprehends Greece proper, 
Ionia, and Asia Minor. In the 
time of Alexander, the Greeks 
were masters of Egypt, Syria, and 
the countries and provinces be¬ 
yond the Euphrates, and hence 
the name Greek became somewhat 
indefinite, and was applied by the 
Jews to all Gentiles who were 
subject to Grecian power. In¬ 
deed, as some hold, the word 
Greek was to the Jews synony¬ 
mous with Gentile, (Mark vii. 26;) 
that the world was divided by 
them between Jews and Greeks. 
All that were not Jews were 
Greeks. (Acts xx. 21; Rom. i. 
16; 1 Cor. i. 22, 24.) The New 
Testament was written originally 
(with the exception, perhaps of 
Matthew) in Greek. The inva¬ 
sion and conquest of the Eastern 
nations by Alexander the Great, 
which took place about three cen¬ 
turies before the Christian era, 
led to a general use of the Greek 
language. And it is probable 
that a book designed for the world, 
as it then was and was likely to 
be, would find more readers in 
that language than in any other. 
The prevailing language of our 
Saviour and his apostles, and pro¬ 
bably of the people of Judea, was 
Syriac, though the commercial in¬ 
tercourse of the Jews made them 
familiar with the Greek; and a 
version of the New Testament in 
the Syriac language was extant, 
as is generally believed, during 
the apostolic age, which all admit 
to have been made as early as the 
29R 


GRO 

second century. When Greeks 
are opposed to barbarians, as in 
Rom. i. 14, the former term im¬ 
plies the learned, and the latte, 
the illiterate class, or such as do 
not speak the language of the 
country where they reside. (See 
Barbarian.) 

GREYHOUND. (Prov. xxx. 
31.) The motion of the animal 
known in modern times by this 
name, is both graceful and fleet. 
It is by many supposed that the 
original word refers to some en¬ 
tirely different animal; but there 
appears to be no satisfactory rea¬ 
son for the opinion. 

GRIND. (Job xxxi. 10.) This 
expression here denotes not only 
the lowest menial service, but also 
that the person of the patriarch’s 
wife may be at the disposal of 
another, as female slaves in the 
east are at the present day. (See 
Mills.) . 

GRINDERS. (Eccl. xii. 3.) 
The grinders ceasing because they 
are few, in Solomon’s allegorical 
exhibition of the decline of life, 
is supposed to represent the loss 
of the teeth, or their failure to 
perform their office in mastica¬ 
ting or grinding one’s food. 

GRIZZLED. (Gen. xxxi. 10; 
Zech. vi. 3, 6.) Black and white 
intermingled in small spots. 

GltOA^E. (Judg. iii. 7.) The 
idolatrous heathen worshipped 
their gods on the tops of hills and 
mountains, and in groves of trees. 
(Deut. xii. 2, 3; llos. iv. 13.) The 
use of groves as places for religi¬ 
ous worship seems to have been 
very early, (Gen. xxi. 33;) and 
the selection of such places origi¬ 
nated probably either in a de¬ 
sire to make the service more 
agreeable to the worshippers, and 
more inviting to the gods; or be- 



GRO 

cause the gloom of the forest is 
calculated to excite awe; or be¬ 
cause the concealment of these 
odious rites and impurities was 
moro effectual; or probably be¬ 
cause it was supposed that the 
spirits of the departed often ho¬ 
vered over the place where their 
bodies are buried; and, as it was 
very common to bury under trees, 
(Gen. xxxv. 8 ; 1 Sam. xxxi. 13,) 
the erection of altars or places of 
devotion to their spirits, or to 
other spirits, good or evil, in or 


GTIE 

near such trees, was very natural. 
Hence it became common to plant 
groves (Deut. xvi. 21) with a view 
to idolatrous worship; and as these 
were constantly furnished with 
the images of the gods, the terms 
grove and idol became convertible. 
(2 Kings xxiii. 6.) 

GUARDCHAMBER. (1 Kings 
xiv. 28.) The apartment occu¬ 
pied by the king’s guard. 
GUEST. (See Feast.) 
GUEST-CHAMBER. (See 
Chamber.) 


HAB 

ABAKKUK. One of the 
twelve minor prophets, of 
whose birth we know neither the 
time nor place. He lived in the 
reign of Jehoiakim, and was of 
course contemporary with Jere¬ 
miah ; and it is generally sup¬ 
posed he remained in Judea, and 
died there. 

Prophecy of, is the thirty-fifth 
in the order of the books of the 
Old Testament. It was uttered 
about six hundred years before 
Christ, and relates chiefly to the 
invasion of Judea by the Chalde¬ 
ans, the overthrow of the Baby¬ 
lonish empire, and the final de¬ 
liverance of God’s faithful people. 
Some passages of this prophecy 
are not surpassed in sublimity 
and simplicity of style, nor in the 
strength and fervour of piety 
which they express. 

The dedication with which the 
prophecy closes has reference pro¬ 
bably to the ode or prayer which 
constitutes the third chapter. 
The word neginoth (stringed in¬ 
struments) signifies an instrument 
which was played by friction or 
pulsation, (as violins, harps, &c.,) 


HAD 

in contradistinction from wind in¬ 
struments; and the composition 
was directed, as several of the 
psalms are, (Ps. iv. vi. liv. lxi. 
lxvii. lxxvi. title,) to the leader 
of some particular department of 
the temple music. 

HABERGEON. (See Armour.) 

IIABOR. (2 Kings xvii. 6.) 
A city or country of Media, on 
the river Gozan, and one of the 
places to which Tiglath-Pileser 
first transported apart,and Shal¬ 
maneser, afterwards, tho whole 
of the ten tribes of Israel. Habor, 
or Chabor, is thought by some to 
be the mountainous region call¬ 
ed Chaboras by Ptolemy. But 
others, with greater precision, fix 
upon the modern town of Abhar, 
near the river Kizzil Ozan, or 
Gozan, as the more probable site 
of ancient Habor. 

HACHILAII, hill of. (1 Sam. 
xxiii. 19.) A stronghold at the 
southern extremity of the wilder¬ 
ness of Judea, where David con¬ 
cealed himself from his perse¬ 
cutors. 

HADAD. (1 Kings xi. 14.) A 
descendant of the royal family of 
299 







HAD 

Elom. When David conquered 
that country, (2 Sam. viii. 14,) and 
cut off its male population, certain 
of the king’s household escaped 
the general massacre, and fled, 
taking with them Hadad, then a 
little child. After a time, they 
went into Egypt, and young Ha¬ 
dad was presented to the king, 
and probably his royal descent 
was made known. The king re¬ 
ceived him with great favour, and 
in process of time he married the 
queen’s sister, and the families 
were afterwards on terms of the 
closest intimacy. After David’s 
death, Hadad requested Pharaoh 
to let him return to Edom. And 
this he probably did, as we find 
him mentioned as Hadad the 
Edomite, and the adversary of 
Solomon, 1 Kings xi. 14-22. 

HADADEZER, (2 Sam. viii. 3,) 
or HADAREZER. (2 Sam. x.16; 
1 Chron. xviii. 3.) A Syrian king, 
with whom David had several 
contests. In one of them he took 
twenty thousand footmen and se¬ 
ven hundred horsemen of Hada- 
dezer’s army prisoners, besides 
chariots of war. On another oc¬ 
casion, when Hadadezer had form¬ 
ed an alliance with a neighbouring 
province, David again defeated 
him, and took twenty-two thou¬ 
sand of his army prisoners. Among 
the spoils were gold shields, and 
a great quantity of brass or copper. 

Some years afterwards, Hada¬ 
dezer and three other Syrian 
princes formed an alliance to as¬ 
sist the Amm onites against David; 
but tho whfle Syrian army was 
defeated on the east bank of the 
Jordan, by the Israelites, under 
tne command of Joab. B jtween 
forty and fifty thousand of the 
enemy wore killed, including their 
principal general; and they 
300 


HAG 

I thenceforth became tributary i 
David. (1 Chron. xix.) 

HADAD-RIMMON. (Zech. 
xii. 11.) From comparing this 
passage with 2 Chron. xxxv. 22- 
25, we infer that Iladad-rimmon 
was a city or village in the valley 
of Megiddo; and that such was 
the lamentation of the people for 
Josiah, that the expression used 
by the prophet had become pro¬ 
verbial, to denote general conster¬ 
nation and mourning. 

HADASSAH. (See Esther.) 

HADRACH, land of. (Zech, 
ix. 1.) A district in the vicinity 
of Damascus. 

HAGAR. (Gen. xvi. 1.) An 
Egyptian woman who lived in the 
family of Abraham as a servant 
or bond-woman. Sarah being 
childless, she proposed to Abra¬ 
ham that he should receive Hagar 
as his wife: and when Hagar 
found herself about to receive the 
blessing which was denied to her 
mistress, she was very much elat¬ 
ed, and treated Sarah disdainful¬ 
ly. Provoked by this conduct in 
her handmaid, Sarah used her 
with great severity; so that she 
was compelled to flee from the 
house. She made her way towards 
Egypt, her native country, as far 
as the wilderness of Shur, a»na 
while resting herself near a foun¬ 
tain by the wayside, she was in¬ 
formed by an angel that the child 
which she was to have should be 
a son, and his name should be 
Ishmael; that he should be a 
wild man, that he should be hos¬ 
tile to every body and every body 
hostile to him, and yet that he 
should dwell in the presence of 
his brethren, and that his poste¬ 
rity should be innumerable. The 
angel at the same time directed 
her to return home, and submit 




HAG 

herself to her mistress. This ex¬ 
traordinary interview happened 
at a watering-place south of Ju¬ 
dea; which was hence called Beer- 
lahai-roi, (meaning the well of him 
that liveth and seeth me.) 

When Ishmael was four years 
old, God re-assured Abraham that 
the divine blessing should rest on 
the lad, and that he should be the 
founder of a great nation. 

In process of time Isaac was 
born, Ishmael being then fourteen 
years of age. At the age of two 
or three years, the child was 
weaned, and Abraham celebrated 
the event by a great feast, (which 
ii still the custom in Persia, when 
a male child is weaned,) and on 
that occasion Sarah saw Ishmael 
mocking or making sport of her 
child, and, perhaps, ill-treating 
him. She immediately requested 
Abraham to banish Ishmael and 
his mother from their home. 
Abraham, who seems to have been 
a stranger to the proud and re¬ 
vengeful feelings of his wife, was 
grieved at her request; but, being 
divinely admonished to comply, 
he rose up early in the morning, 
and, supplying Hagar with bread 
and a bottle of water, sent her and 
her child away. She found her 
way to the wilderness of Beer- 
aheba; but her supply of water 
was exhausted, and she saw no¬ 
thing before her and her orphan 
boy but famine and death. The 
.ad, fatigued and hungry, lay 
down under a shrub, and his mo¬ 
ther withdrew from him a little 
way, and lifted up her voice and 
wept. The cries of the lad also, 
in this hour of his suffering and 
distress, came up before God. A 
fountain of water was disclosed to 
Hagar, at which she supplied her 
wants and those of her son, and 
26 


HAG 

there also Bhe received from God 
a promise that he would make of 
Ishmael a great nation. 

The lad grew up in the wilder¬ 
ness, became an archer, and mar¬ 
ried an Egyptian woman. (See 
Abraham, Ishmael, and Nota¬ 
ble Women of Olden Time.) 

IIAGARENES, (Ps. lxxxiii. 6,) 
or HAGARITES, (1 Chron. v. 10, 
20,) are the descendants of Ha- 
gar, and are, of course, the same 
with the Ishmaelites or Arabians. 
They are sometimes joined with 
the Moabites, as in the first pas¬ 
sage above cited. 

HAGGAI. Haggai was a He¬ 
brew prophet, and supposed to 
have been born during the capti¬ 
vity, and to have returned with 
Zerubbabel. (Hag. ii. 2.) 

Prophecy of, is the thirty-se¬ 
venth in the order of the books 
of the Old Testament. It was ut¬ 
tered five hundred and twenty 
years before Christ, and, of course, 
after the return of the Jews to 
their own land. It is principally 
composed of keen reproof, and of 
affecting exhortations respecting 
the building of the second temple, 
which they had abandoned for 
fourteen or fifteen years, because 
of the opposition and intrigue of 
their enemies; and it also con¬ 
tains predictions of Christ and the 
universal establishment of his 
kingdom. 

It is supposed that the glory of 
the temple, which is predicted 
with great clearness, (Hag. ii. 7- 
9,) was to be occasioned by the 
coming of Christ; and, though 
Herod made important alterations 
in it, still the temple of Zerubba¬ 
bel was always regarded as tho 
second temple, and Christ, the 
desire of all nations, did appear 
and teach in it. It is known, 
301 



HAi 

moreover, that the Jews expected 
the true Messiah would appear in 
this temple, even until it was de¬ 
stroyed by Vespasian; and, to 
make their rejection of Jesus 
Christ consistent, they forced 
themselves to believo that a third 
temple is tc be erected, of which 
their expected deliverer is to be 
the glory. 

HAIL. 1. (Luke i. 28.) This 
word was used by way of saluta¬ 
tion, and imported a wish for the 
health and universal prosperity 
of the individual addressed. 

2. (Rev. viii. 7.) A storm of 
hailstones was one of the plagues 
of Egypt, and is described, Ex. ix. 
2.3-32; Ps. lxxviii. 47 ; cv. 32, 33. 
It was employed for the destruc¬ 
tion of Joshua’s enemies. (Josh, 
x. 11.) Hence it is figuratively 
used to represent terrible judg¬ 
ments. (Isa. xxviii. 2; Rev. xvi. 
21 .) 

HAIR. (Num. vi. 5.) The 
Hebrews were accustomed to cut 
the hair very much as we do, ex¬ 
cept that they used a razor or 
knife, and not scissors, )Isa. vii. 
20; Ezek. v. 1;) and excepting 
also in the case of a vow or reli¬ 
gious obligation to let it grow, as 
in the case of the Nazarites. 
(Judg. xiii. 5. See Nazarites.) 
The precept (Ezek. xliv. 20) re¬ 
quires an avoidance of extremes; 
so that the Israelites should nei¬ 
ther resemble the priests of the 
heathen gods who sha red their 
hair close, nor yet the Nazarites, 
who did not cut the hair at all. It 
was prohibited (Lev. xix. 27) to 
round the corners of the head; 
that is, (as it is generally under¬ 
stood,) to shave off the hair about 
the temples. The hair (especially 
black or dark hair) was doubtless 
considered an ornament, and it 
302 


HAM 

was anointed with aromatic tnl, 
particularly on festivals and other 
joyous occasions, (Ps. xxiii. 5; 
xcii. 10; Eccl. ix. 8,) and per¬ 
haps daily, (Ruth iii. 3;) and de¬ 
corated with jewels and precious 
stones. (1 Tim. ii. 9; 1 Pet. iii. 3.) 
Some Eastern travellers of mo¬ 
dern days tell us, that for men tc 
wear long hair is regarded as ef¬ 
feminate, and even infamous. 
(1 Cor. xi. 14. See Baldness.) 

The hair is spoken of by the 
apostle as a natural veil or cover¬ 
ing to women, which it is a shame 
to put off. (1 Cor. xi. li>.) It wag 
plaited or braided, as is the cus¬ 
tom at this day among the Asiatic 
women. In India tho hair is 
never cut off by the women, except 
as a sign of widowhood. 

The practice of shaving the 
head, in token of great affliction 
and humiliation for sin, was com¬ 
mon among the Hebrews even as 
early as Job’s day. (Job i. 20.) 
So that the exhortation to cut off 
the hair is equivalent to an ex¬ 
hortation to begin a course of 
deep mourning and sorrow. (Jer. 
vii. 29.) 

A change in the colour of the 
hair was one of the earliest indi¬ 
cations of the leprosy ; and hence 
the removal of the hair, as the 
seat of disease, was particularly 
enjoined. (Lev. xiii. 4,10,31, 32 
xiv. 8, 9.) 

HAL AH. (2 Kings xvii. 6; 
xviii. 11.) A province of Assyria, 
supposed by some to be the same 
with Calah, (Gen. x. 12.) and with 
Ilolwan or Cholwan of the mo¬ 
dern Arabs. 

II A M. (Gen. ix. 22.) Tho 
youngest son of Noah. Ho had 
four sons, one of whom was the 
ancestor of the Canaanites. The 
empires of Assyria and Egypt 



HAM 

were founded by the descendants 
of Ham, and the republics of Tyre, 
Zidon and Carthage were for ages 
the monuments of their commer¬ 
cial enterprise and prosperity. 
(See Canaan.) Africa in gene¬ 
ral, and Egypt in particular, are 
called the land of Ham. (Ps. 
lxxviii. 51; cv. 23; cvi. 22.) A 
place east of the Jordan, called 
Ham, is mentioned, (Gen. xiv. 5,) 
which may be the same with Ha¬ 
math; and the descendants of 
Ham are mentioned as having 
once occupied the southern border 
of the prQvince of Canaan, assigned 
to the tribe of Simeon. (1 Chron. 
iv. 40.) 

II AM AN. (Esth. iii. 1.) A 
wicked and ambitious courtier, 
who became prime minister of 
Ahasuerus, a Persian monarch. 
Because Mordecai, a Jew, in an 
humble station at court, refused 
to pay him the homage which his 
pride and vain-glory craved, Ha- 
man resolved on his destruction; 
and to accomplish it, was willing 
to sacrifice the whole body of 
Jews who were then scattered 
throughout the Persian domin¬ 
ions. He succeeded, by falsehood 
and intrigue, in obtaining a de¬ 
cree for this cruel purpose; but 
the queen, through the influence 
of Mordecai, was prompted to in¬ 
terpose for their deliverance, 
which she accomplished; and Ha- 
man ended bis career on the very 
gibbet which he had caused to be 
prepared for the execution of Mor¬ 
decai. (See Hammedatha. For 
an interesting history of Haman’s 
life and character, with illustra- 
tiv. engravings, reflections, <tc. 
see Hadassah.) 

HAMATH, (Num. xiii. 21,) 
(called Hamath the Great, Amos 
vi. 2,) was a province of Syria, 


HAM 

having a capital city m the same 
name on the Orontes. It was ori¬ 
ginally the residence of Canaan- 
ites, (Gen. x. 18,) and is frequent¬ 
ly mentioned as the extreme limit 
of the Holy Land towards the 
north. (Num. xxxiv. 8 ; Judg. iii. 
3.) Toi was its king in the days 
of David, (2 Sam. viii. 9,) but in 
Ilezekiah’s reign (b. c. 753) it feV 
into the hands of the Assyrians. 
(2 Kings xvii. 24; xviii. 34; Isa. 
x. 9.) It was called Epiphania 
for some time, but has long since 
resumed, and now retains, its an¬ 
cient name. It was the residence 
of the celebrated Abulfeda, an 
Arabian prince and geographer. 
It is built on both sides of the 
river, and contains a population 
of about 30,000. The principal 
trade of Hamath is with the Arabs, 
who buy here their tent furniture 
and clothes. The government of 
Hamath comprises about one hun¬ 
dred and twenty inhabited vil¬ 
lages, and seventy or eighty which 
have been abandoned. The west¬ 
ern part of its territory is the gra¬ 
nary of northern Syria; though 
the harvest never yields more than 
ten for one, chiefly in consequence 
of the immense numbers of mice, 
which sometimes wholly destroy 
the crops. 

By the phrase, the entering in 
of Hamath, (Judg. iii. 3 ; 2 Kings 
xiv. 25,) is meant the narrow pass 
leading from the land of Canaan 
nto Syria, which constitutes the 
northern boundary of Palestine. 
It is supposed to be the same wit! 
Hammath-dor, (Josh. xxi. 32 
and some have supposed they are 
both the same with Tiberiat. 

HAMMEDATHA. (Esth. iii. 
1.) Haman’s father. He is called 
the Agagite; and Josephus says 
he was a descendant from Aina 
303 



HAN 

lek, and probably of the family or 
stock of Agag. If Agag was the 
common name of their kings, it is 
not improbable that an Amalekite 
would be called an Agagite, as 
one of the people of Agag. 

HAMOR. (See Dinah.) 

HAN AN I AH. (See Abed- 

NEGO.) 

HANDS, LAYING ON of. (Ileb. 
vi. 2.) Both the hands cf the 
high-priest were laid on the head 
of the scape-goat when the sins 
of the people were publicly con¬ 
fessed. It was also a ceremony by 
which persons were inducted into 
a sacred office, or were made the 
recipients of divine gifts. (Num. 
viii. 10; xxvii. 18 ; Acts vi. 6 ; viii. 
14-19 ; xiii. 3; xix. 1-6; 1 Tim. iv. 
14.) The various figurative uses 
of the word hand, by the sacred 
writers, are too obvious to require 
explanation. 

HANDBREADTH. (See 
Measures.) 

HANDKERCHIEF. (See 
Clothes.) 

HANDSTAVES. (Ezek. 
xxxix. 9.) These were weapons 
of war, resembling javelins. They 
were cast with the hand. 

HA&ES. (Isa. xxx. 4.) Sup¬ 
posed to be a royal city south of 
Memphis, upon an island of the 
Nile, a few remains of which are 
still to be seen. 

HANG. (Deut. xxi. 22.) Hang¬ 
ing on a tree or gibbet seems to 
have been a mark of infamy, in¬ 
flicted on the dead bodies of cri¬ 
minals, rather than a punishment, 
—as modern nations employ it. 
It implies that the offender is ac- 
mrsed of God, and an abomina¬ 
tion in his sight. (Deut. xxi. 23.) 
Yot such a curse, deserved by us 
as transgressors of the divine law, 
Christ bore fir us in his own 
304 


HAR 

body. (Acts v. 30; Gal. iii. 13; 
1 Pet. ii. 24.) 

HANNAH. (lSam.i.2.) One 
of the wives of Elkanah, and the 
mother of the prophet Samuel. 

HAN UN. (2 Sam. x. 2.) A 
king of the Ammonites. We are 
informed that David had received 
tokens of kindness from Nahash, 
the father and predecessor of Ha- 
nun. After the death of Nahash, 
David sent messengers to Hanun 
to comfort him, and to express his 
respect for the memory of the de¬ 
ceased king. But Hanun thought, 
or protended to think, that David 
sent them as spies; so he took 
them and shaved off one half their 
beards, and cut off their garments 
in the middle, and in this condi¬ 
tion sent them home. David 
heard of their situation, and sent 
to meet them, with directions to 
stay at Jericho until their beards 
were grown. This ungenerous 
conduct of Hanun was the occa¬ 
sion of a long war, in which mul¬ 
titudes of the Ammonites and 
their allies—Syrians and others— 
were slain. 

HARAN. 1. A person. (Gen. 
xi. 26.) The brother of Abraham 
and the father of Lot. 

2. A place. (Gen. xi. 31.) 
Situated in the northeast of Me¬ 
sopotamia, and between the Eu¬ 
phrates and the Chebar, where 
Terah died, and was buried, (Acts 
vii. 4;) in which passSge it is call¬ 
ed Charran. It was also the resi¬ 
dence of Laban, Rebecca’s brother. 
(Gen. xxvii. 43; xxviii. 10.) It 
had commercial intercourse with 
Tyre, (Ezek. xxvii. 23,) and was 
subdued by the Assyrian army. 
(2 Kings xix. 12; Isa. xxxvii. 12.) 
It is still known by its ancient 
name, and is inhabited principally 
by wandering Arabs. 



HAR 


HAR 



HARE. (Deut. xiv. 7.) The 
6are, known in this country as the 
/abbit, is also a common animal 
in Syria, and was declared un- 
tlean by the Jewish law, (Lev. xi. 
6,) because it divides not the hoof, 
though it chews the cud. This 
last is probably the fact respecting 
some species of the animal, though 
it is said not to be so generally. 

HARLOT. (Prov. xxix. 3.) 
This term, though generally ap¬ 
plied to an abandoned woman, is 
used figuratively by the sacred 
writers to denote the wicked and 
unchaste conduct of the Israelites, 
\n forsaking their covenant with 
God, and giving themselves up to 
idolatry and impurity. (Isa. i. 21.) 

HARASS. (1 Kings xx. 11.) 
In this passage,and some others 
the word denotes armour. It 
might be supposed that the con¬ 
venience of modern travelling, 
.known as harness, was of very 
rude construction in the time of 
Solomon; but it would seem, from 
the figures on Egyptian monu¬ 
ments, that considerable taste and 
skill were displayed in this de¬ 
partment. The phrase made ready 
his chariot (Ex. xiv. 6) literally 
means, in modern phraseology, 
26* U 


tackled , or put to, ni* 
horses. 

That bridles with bite 
were very early known 
as part of the harness 
of a horse is obvious 
from Isa. xxxvii. 29, 
and James iii. 3. The 
word harnessed, (Ex. 
xiii. 18,) probably 
means furnished, ar¬ 
ranged and governed 
according to the esta¬ 
blished usages and cus¬ 
toms of caravans oi 
travelling companies. 

IIAROD, well of. (Judg. vii. 
1.) A fountain or watering-place 
in Jezreel, near the foot of mount 
Gilboa, (1 Sain. xxix. 1,) and pro¬ 
bably the native village of two of 
David’s valiant men. (2 Sam. 
xxiii. 25.) 

HAROSHETH. (Judg. iv. 2, 
13, 16.) The city of Sisera, the 
captain of Jabin’s host, who was 
defeated by Deborah and Barak. 
It was in Naphtali, afterwards 
Galilee of the Gentiles, not fai 
from Hazor. 

HARP. (Gen. iv. 21.) A mu¬ 
sical instrument, invented by Ju- 
bal, and used by the Jews when 
mirth and joy were expressed. 
(Gen. xxxi. 27; Ps. lxxxi. 2; 
cxxxvii. 1, 2; Isa. xxiv. 8.) Da- 


Lyrc. 


305 
















HAR 

vid was particularly skilful in the 
use of it. (1 Sam. xvi. 16, 23. See 
Psaltery.) The simplest form 
of the harp or lyre is given in the 
praceding cut, (p. 305;) the bones 
of animals forming the two sides 
and the upper connecting piece, 
and a tortoise-shell being used for 
the foot. 

Another harp (perhaps the same 
with the psaltery and instrument 
with ten strings, Ps. xcii. 3) was 
made in the form of a human ear, 
and is represented in the follow¬ 
ing cut, which is copied from a 
tomb at Thebes. It closely re¬ 
sembles, in every respect, the 
Burmese harp of the present day. 

The strings of the ancient harp 
were stretched over an oval sound¬ 
ing-board, and played with a key. 



strings, and, as some suppose, 
was then called sheminiih. (1 
Chron. xv. 21; Ps. vi. xii. title.) 
It was light and portable, or it 
tould not be used, as it doubtless 
often was, in the act of dancing. 
(Ex. xv. 20 ; 1 Sam. xviii. 6.) The 
instrument used by David was 
more properly a lyre, and might 
have been played with the hand 
or with a key. (1 Sam. xvi. 23. 
See Musical Instruments.) 

306 


fiAR 

HARROW. (1 Chron. xx. 3.j 
The harrow was a rude imple¬ 
ment of Jewish husbandry; being, 
as is generally supposed, a rnera 
plank or log of wood, upon which 
stones were heaped and the la¬ 
bourer sat, and which was drawn 
over the ground by oxen, to break 
in pieces the clods, and level the 
surface, (Isa. xxviii. 24, 25;) or, 
perhaps, one or more branches of 
trees might be used in the same 
way. We know, however, that 
an implement of the kind was 
used for some purposes, which was 
wholly or in part of iron. (2 Sam. 
xii. 31.) 

HART. (Ps. xlii. 1.) Deer is 
a general name of a class of qua¬ 
drupeds, as the stag, fallow-deer, 
reindeer, elk, «fcc.; but the animal 
is never mentioned by this gene¬ 
ric name in the Bible. 

The falloxo-deer (1 Kings iv 
23) was a clean animal I>y the 
Levitical law. (Dcut. xiv. 5.) It 
is supposed to have resembled our 
red deer, or hart, in size and co¬ 
lour; whence the name of fallow, 
(pale red or pale yellow.) Some 
have supposed the butfalo of mo¬ 
dern times is intended in the above 
passages. 

The hart is the male stag, 
and is one of the most graceful 
and beautiful of all animals. It 
was clean by the Levitical law, 
(Deut. xii. 15; xiv. 5;) and the 
grace and agility of its motions 
are alluded to in Sol. Song ii. 9; 
Isa. xxxv. 6. The stag lolls, or 
pants, like the dog, and is soon 
exhausted by hunger. (Jer. xiv 
5; Lam. i. 6.) 

The roe, or roe-buck, is another 
name for the hart; and its swift¬ 
ness of foot and elegant form are 
often alluded to in the Bible 
(2 Sam. ii. 18.) 





















HAR 


IIAT 




The roe of the Scriptures (1 
Chron. xxi. 8) is almost always 
mentioned in connection with the 
hart, as an emblem both of beauty 
and swiftness. It is generally 
supposed to be the gazelle of later 
times, which is still found chiefly 
in Asia and Africa. It was a 
clean animal by the Levitical 
law, (Deut. xii. 15,) and a fa¬ 
vourite of the chase. 


Hind. 

The hind is the female stag. 
She is smaller and weaker than 


Hart. 

tier mate, the hart, and has no 
horns. She is sure and swift of 
foot, and leaps fearlessly among 
the rocks and precipices. (2 Sam. 


xxii. 34; Ps. xviii. 33; Hab. liL 
19.) The instinctive affection of 
the hart and hind are alluded to, 
Prov. v. 18, 19, and Sol. Song ii. 

7; iii. 5. 

The figurative prediction of 
Jacob, respecting Naphtali, (Gen. 
xlix. 21,) would be more appro¬ 
priately rendered, “ Naphtali is a 
deer roaming at large, he shoot- 
eth forth noble antlers.” Tho 
antlers or horns indicate the 
strength and health of the stag, 
and the whole metaphor express¬ 
es the increase of the tribe, and 
the fertility of their portion in 
Judea. 

HARVEST. (See Seasons.) 

HATE, (Gen. xxiv. 60,) HA¬ 
TRED, (Eccl. ix. 1,) HATEFUL. 
(Ps. xxxvi. 2.) To hate is to ab¬ 
hor, to abominate, or to regard 
with a passion contrary to love. 
(Jer. xliv. 4.) God’s hatred is 
towards all sinful thoughts and 
ways. It is a feeling of which all 
holy beings are conscious in view 
of sin, and is wholly unlike the 
hatred which is men¬ 
tioned in the Scripture 
among the works of 
the flesh. (Gal. v. 20.) 
To hate sometimes 
means to love in a less 
degree. When our Sa¬ 
viour says that he who 
would follow him must 
hate father and mother, 
he means that even 
these dearest earthly 
friends must be loved 
in a subordinate de¬ 
gree; and in the same 
sense the follower of 
Christ is to hate his 
own life, or bo willing to sacrifice 
it for the love and service of tV 
Redeemer. A careful examination 
of the passages and the connection 
307 




HAV 

in which these words occur, will 
best show their true force and 
moaning. 

HAVILAH, land op. (Gen. ii. 
11 j) where the sacred historian 
uses the tame which was after¬ 
wards applied to this land, and 
which was probably derived from 
Havilah the son of Cush, (Gen. x. 
7,) whose descendants peopled it. 
It is supposed to be the same with 
Colchis, between the Black Sea 
and the Caspian. Another country 
of this name lay between the Eu¬ 
phrates and Tigris, towards the 
Persian gulf, where Chavelsei (or 
Chavilah) of later times is found. 
One of these provinces may have 
been settled by Havilah, the de¬ 
scendant of Joktan. (Gen. x. 29.) 

A third Havilah is supposed to 
be intended in Gen. xxv. 18, 
though that passage may also de¬ 
scribe the vast region last men¬ 
tioned, between the Persian Gulf 
on the east, and Shur by the Red 
Sea on the west. 

The phrase from Havilah unto 
Shur, in Gen. xxv. 18, and 1 Sam. 
xv. 7, and many other passages, 
seems to be used to designate the 
opposite oxtremes of Arabia; in 
which sense, Havilah may be re¬ 
garded as the eastern border of 
the country inhabited by the Ish- 
maelites and Amalekites. 

HAVOTH-JAIR. (Nun 
xxxii.41.) The general name of 
thirty villages in the land of Gi¬ 
lead, owned by the thirty sons of 
Jair, one of the judges of Israel. 
(Judg. x. 4.) 

IIAURAN, (Ezek. xlvii. 16, 
18,) (in the Greek, Auranitis.) 
A district of country east of the 
Jordan, supposed by some to be 
the same with Iturea, and to have 
extended from a point opposite 
tlio sea of Tiberias, as far north 
308 


HAY 

as Damascus. In modern times 
its limits have been extended 
southwardly as far as Bozrah, and 
the whole tract is represented as 
volcanic and porous, with here 
and there a spot of vegetation fo* 
the Arab’s pasturage. 

HAWK. (Job xxxix. 26.) A 
fierce and rapacious bird of the 
falcon tribe, unclean by the Le- 
vitical law, (Lev. xi. 16; Deut. 

xiv. 15,) but so sacred among the 
Greeks and Egyptians, that to 
kill one, even unintentionally, 
was a capital crime. The allu¬ 
sion, in the passage first cited, is 
to God’s providential care of birds 
of passage; providing them with 
instinct to determine the time and 
course of their flight, to reach a 
warmer climate. 

HAY. (Prov. xxvii. 25.) We 
are not to suppose that this word, 
as used in the Bible, denotes dried 
grass, as it does with us. The 
management of grass by the He¬ 
brews, as food for cattle, was en¬ 
tirely different from ours. It 
was cut green, as it was wanted; 
and the phrase mown grass (Ps. 
lxxii. 6) would be more properly 
rendered grass that has just been 
fed off. So in Prov. xxvii. 25, 
the word translated hay means 
the first shoots of the grass; and 
the whole passage might properly 
be rendered, “The grass appear- 
eth, and the green herb showeth 
itself, and the plants of the moun¬ 
tains are gathered.” And in Isa. 

xv. 6, hay is put for grass, and 
grass is put for the green herb. 
The tenderness of grass, the ra¬ 
pidity of its growth, and the early 
period at which it is cut down and 
consumed, afford the sacred wri¬ 
ters some striking and beautiful 
illustrations. (Ps. ciii. 15; Isa. 
xl. 6 James i. 11. See Mowings.) 




HAZ 

HAZAEL. (1 Kingi xix. 15.) 
An officer in the court of Syria, 
whom Elijah was commanded to 
Anoint as successor to Benhadad, 
and at the same time to anoint 
Jehu to he king of Israel. The 
latter commission he did not exe¬ 
cute, (2 Kings i£ 1-10,) nor are 
wo informed whether he executed 
the first. It is, however, sup¬ 
posed that the word anoint, in 
this connection, may denote only 
a special designation to the office. 
About eleven years after this, 
Benhadad, residing at Damascus, 
and being taken sick, instructed 
Hazael to take a princely present 
to the prophet Elisha, (who hap¬ 
pened to be at Damascus,) and 
consult him as to the issue of his 
sickness. The prophet informed 
Hazael that his royal master’s 
disease would not prove mortal, 
but still that he would not live; 
and he proceeded to predict the 
elevation of Hazael to tho throno 
of Syria, and a series of the most 
horrible cruelties of which he 
would be guilty towards tho chil¬ 
dren of Israel. Hazael expressed 
the utmost abhorrence of such 
conduct; but the very noxt day 
he stifled Benhadad to death, took 
the throne, and in process of time 
perpetrated all the barbarities 
that the prophet had described. 
(2 Kings x. 32, 33; xii. 17, 18; 
xiii. 3, 7, 22; 2 Chron. xxir. 23.) 

HAZAZAN-T AM AR. (See 
Engedi.) 

HAZEL. (Hen. xxx. 37.) It 
Is generally supposed that the 
almond tree is intended in this 
passage. The original word is 
thought to be susceptible of this 
rendering. 

IIAZOR. (Josh. xi. 10.) A capi¬ 
tal city of the Canaanites, whore 
Jabin dwelt, and which was sub- 


HEA 

dued and burnt by Joshua. (Josh, 
xi. 1-13.) It was, however, re¬ 
built and governed by a king of 
the same name, whose army was 
routed by Barak. (Judg. iv. 2-16.) 
It was fortified by Solomon, (1 
Kings ix. 15,) and in the general 
invasion of the country by Tig- 
lath-Pileser, fell into his hands, 
(2 Kings xv. 29,) and its inhabit¬ 
ants were carried into Assyria. 
Some recent travellers define its 
locality, but not with much pre¬ 
cision or authority. 

There is a remarkable prophecy 
respecting Hazor in Jer. xlix. 28 
-33. Tho connection shows it to 
have been in Arabia, and the 
whole scope of the prophecy de¬ 
notes a place of great importance. 
It is, however, completely blotted 
out, though some have conjectured 
that it is another name for Petra. 

HEAL, (Eccl. iii. 3,) HEAL¬ 
ING, (Mai. iv. 2,) HEALTH. 
(Gen. xliii. 28.) To heal all man¬ 
ner of sickness and diseaso by the 
word of his own power was the 
divine prerogative of our Re¬ 
deemer, (Matt. iv. 23;) and the 
power to heal was among the gifts 
conferred on his early apostles. 
(1 Cor. xii. 28.) The various 
figurative uses of these words aro 
sufficiently explained by their 
connection. 

HEAP. (See Stones.) 

HEART. (Acts. xvi. 14.) The 
seat of the affections, desires and 
motives ; though, as it often em¬ 
ployed by the sacred writers, it 
embraces all the powers and fa¬ 
culties of man, as a moral, intel¬ 
lectual, and accountable being. 
(Matt. xv. 19.) Thus, when God 
is said to shine into the hearts of 
men to give the light of the know¬ 
ledge of his glory in the face of 
Jesus Christ, (2 Cor. iv. 6,) the 




HEA 

term is used in an enlarged sense 
and the whole passage teaches uj 
that God causes tbe understand¬ 
ings of men to be enlightened or 
informed by the Holy Spirit in 
the knowledge of his glory as it 
is made known in Jesus Christ; 
and that the will and affections 
thus come under the influence of 
spiritual knowledge, and the soul 
is transformed into the divine 
image. 

The prophet says, the heart is 
deceitful above all things, and des¬ 
perately wicked; toho can knoioit? 
(Jer. xvii. 9.) And, as if in re¬ 
ply to this emphatic question, God 
immediately declares his prero¬ 
gative : I the Lord search the 
heart; I try the reins, (ver. 10.) 

HEATH. (Jer. xvii. 6.) A 
plant peculiar to wild and barren 
wastes. It is used in some coun¬ 
tries as fuel, and also to stuff beds 
and thatch houses. Its place in 
the desert, in parched and uncul¬ 
tivated ground, is alluded to in 
the above passage, and makes but 
a part of the beautiful figure by 
which the opposite conditions of 
the righteous and wicked are il¬ 
lustrated. (Jer. xvii. 5-8.) The 
same word is used, Jer. xlviii. 6 ; 
and whether it denotes in this 
passage the plant, or some blasted 
naked tree, or an animal of the 
iesert, the idea conveyed is the 
same, viz. that the Moabites 
should seek the solitude of the 
desert, to elude the pursuit of 
their enemies. 

HEATHEN. (Ps. ii. 1.) This 
term is applied by the sacred 
writers, sometimes to those who 
were infidels or unbelievers, (Jei\ 
x. 25,) but generally in the same 
sense with Gentiles. (See Gen¬ 
tile.) In inoderh times it de¬ 
putes all those who are without 
310 


HEA 

the knowledge of the gospel, and 
embraces upwards of three-fourtha 
of the human race. 

HEAVEN. (Gen. xlix. 25.) 
The Jews considered the region 
of the air, dew, clouds, and wind, 
as the first heaven, (Job xxxv 
11;) the place which the heaven¬ 
ly bodies occupy, as the second 
heaven ; and the place where God, 
and Christ, and angels dwell, as 
the third heaven, and invisible to 
mortal eyes. (2 Cor. xii. 2, 4.) 

The opinion has always pre¬ 
vailed among Jews and Chris¬ 
tians, Greeks and Romans, and 
seems to be fully confirmed by 
the Scriptures, (Luke i. 19,) that 
there is a place in the universe 
where God’s presence is made 
manifest by some visible display 
of his transcendent glory in view 
of the holy company that are ad¬ 
mitted to dwell there. To such a 
place Paul was admitted, (2 Cor. 
xii. 2;) and thither Jesus ascended, 
(Luke xxiv. 51; Eph. iv. 10; 
Ileb. viii. 1,) and there he now 
sits upon his throne (Heb. x. 12) 
as King of Zion, and there he 
continually officiates as our advo¬ 
cate and intercessor, (Heb. ix. 15, 
24—28;) there is his father’s house, 
in which are many mansions pre¬ 
pared for Christ’s friends and fol¬ 
lowers to inhabit, when the earth¬ 
ly house of this tabernacle shall 
be dissolved. And there will be 
gathered together, in one blessed 
indissoluble society, all the re¬ 
deemed of the Lord, out of every 
kingdom, and people, and tongue, 
and nation, whose endless and 
rapturous employment it will be 
to admire and adore the riches of 
the divine grace and glory. 

The heaven of heavens (2 Chron 
vi. 18) is the highest heaven; at 
the long of songs is the most ex 



HEA 

fc* Sent «ong; the God of gods, or 
fcj s< L ‘rd of lords, the greatest of 
g is, ov the supreme of lords. 

The third heaven (2 Cor. xii. 
2) is tho same as the highest 
hop,von; and both are used to ex¬ 
press the idea of the highest ex¬ 
altation and glory, (Luke ii. 15;) 
that is, God dwells not only in 
heaven, but above £he heavens, 
in the third or very highest hea¬ 
ven.* So the rabbin- and the 
Mohammedans make, in the same 
way, seven heaveus- (Comp. 2 
Cor. xii. 2; Eph. iv. 10; Heb. 
vii. 26.) 

Kingdom of IIeavisn. (See 
Kingdom.) 

HEAVE-OFFERING. (See 
Offerings.) 

HEBER (Judg. iv. 17-21,) was 
of the family of Jethro, and was 
distinguished as the husband of 
Jael, who killed Sisera. (See 
Hebrews.) 

HEBREWS. (Gen. xiv. 13.) 
This term is used to denote the 
people who descended from Abra¬ 
ham. The derivation of it is 
either from Ileber, one of the an¬ 
cestors of Abraham, or from the 
Hebrew word Eber, which signi¬ 
fies from the other side. The peo¬ 
ple who are known by tho name 
Hebrews, came “ from the other 
side,” as we say of a foreigner, 
that he is from beyond sea; and 
hence the Canaanites might very 
naturally call them Hebrews, or 
people from the other side. They 
were not called Jews until a much 
later period of their history; aid 
this name was derived from Judah. 

In the present article, we can 
give but a very general outline 
of the history of this extraerdi- 
nary people. 

1. Their origin. A man ot 
wealth wisdom, and integrity 


HEB 

was selected by God to be the 
father and founder of the Hebrew 
nation; and was favoured with 
many visions and revelations, 
promises and covenants, all tend¬ 
ing to show him the greatness 
and glory of his posterity. (See 
Abraham.) Among other things, 
he was told that his descendants 
should subdue and possess a most 
fertile and beautiful country. 

2. Their government. About 
two hundred years after Abra¬ 
ham was appointed to this dis¬ 
tinction, we find Joseph, his great- 
grandson, holding one of the prin¬ 
cipal offices in the government of 
Egypt; and, by a train of re¬ 
markable providences, his father 
Jacob, together with his eleven 
brethren, also become inhabitants 
that country. (See Joseph.) 

T he great increase of their 
i-umber and wealth soon provoked 
the jealousy of the government, 
and led to a royal decree that all 
their male children should bo de¬ 
stroyed at the birth. While this 
decree was in force, (a. c. 1571,) 
Moses was born; and, being con¬ 
cealed by his mother, he escaped 
the general slaughter, and was 
preserved to be the leader and 
deliverer of the poople. Being 
instructed particularly in the re¬ 
ligion and expectation of his fore¬ 
fathers, he early become inte¬ 
rested in their oppressed condi¬ 
tion; and, happening to see an 
Egyptian ill-treat an Israelite, he 
took part with the latter, and 
slew the former. Fearing the 
vengeance of the king, he escaped 
to a distant land, where he re¬ 
mained forty years. He was there 
divinely directed to return to 
Egypt; and God was pleased to 
accomplish, by his instrumen¬ 
tality, the deliverance of Israel 
311 



HEB 

from their bondage, ani ;o lead 
them, by a journey of forty years 
through the wilderness, into the 
rich and fertile land of Canaan. 
fSee Moses.) 

Up to this period they had 
lived under a patriarchal form of 
government, some traces of which 
remained through succeeding 
ages, (see Patriarchs,-) but in 
the progress of this eventful jour¬ 
ney, God established a govern¬ 
ment for them—the elements or 
grand principles of which are 
found in the law of the ten com¬ 
mandments, promulgated from 
mount Sinai. This most perfect 
and admirable constitution or 
code, embracing as it did all that 
pertains to the civil as well as the 
religious rights and obligations 
of the people, was formed by God 
himself, and by him administered, 
as emphatically law-giver and 
judge and king of Israel; and 
hence it is called a theocracy. 
This theocratic form of govern¬ 
ment, under va rious modifications, 
existed even to the coming of the 
Messiah. The Jewish kings were 
mere viceroys, bound to govern 
by certain laws, and fearfully 
punished for disobedience. They 
were raised up and displaced by 
the immediate and frequently 
visible direction of God, (Hos. 
xiii. 11;) they were subject to his 
authority, (Deut. xvii. 14—20;) 
and the prophets, in their long 
and glorious succession, were ap¬ 
pointed to maintain the inter¬ 
course between God and his pe¬ 
culiar people, and to reprove and 
rebuke the kings of Judah and 
Israel for all their rebellion 
against him. Hence it is justly 
inferred that the shocks and re¬ 
volutions in the Jewish govern¬ 
ment, however they might inter- 
312 


JIEB 

rupt or modify, could never de¬ 
stroy the theocratic relation sub¬ 
sisting between God and the 
seed of Abraham, until the light 
of the glorious gospel arose, ana 
salvation for all, Jews and Gen¬ 
tiles, was proclaimed through the 
blood of Christ. 

In due time they entered the 
land of Canaan, and, after a 
series of severe contests, in which 
God displayed his power in theii 
behalf, they expelled the original 
possessors of the soil, and undei 
a long succession of judges and 
kings, occupied the country as 
their promised inheritance. 

3. Their religion. It was evi 
dently the design of God, that 
the Hebrews should be entirely 
separated and distinguished from 
all other nations ; and to this end 
their religion and laws were most 
wisely adapted. And, besides 
this, the rites and ceremonies 
which they were required to ob¬ 
serve were of the most significant 
import, and perfectly fitted to en¬ 
gage the attention of such a peo¬ 
ple. There was a body of men 
set apart, to whom was commit¬ 
ted all matters relating to reli¬ 
gion and law, which, under this 
singular government, were one 
and the same thing. To these 
persons, who officiated as priests, 
judges, advocates, <fcc., was al¬ 
lowed one-tenth of all the pro¬ 
duce of the land. The Levitea, 
which were a subdivision of thi 
first class of these officers, had a 
portion of the lands assigned 
them; and thus formed a con¬ 
necting link between the priests 
and the cultivators of the soil. 
Commerce was necessarily very 
limited; as, by the very nature 
of their institutions, all connection 
with other nations and societies 





















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HEB 

was in a great measure made im¬ 
practicable. And yet the feasts 
and festivals, which were peri¬ 
odically celobrated—and upon the 
most important of which the 
whole nation was required to at¬ 
tend in a body—effectually pre¬ 
served their social character and 
habits. (See Feasts.) This con¬ 
stitution and these laws were 
given chiefly at or near mount 
Sinai. And thus, in the wastes 
of Arabia, and long before any 
law-giver arose, of which the 
world has now any knowledge, a 
system of laws and a form of go¬ 
vernment were prescribed for the 
children of Israel, which has been 
the wonder of succeeding ages, 
and has exerted a boundless in¬ 
fluence on the minds and institu¬ 
tions of all succeeding generations 
of mankind. 

4. Their political history. Af¬ 
ter forty years’ continuance in 
the wilderness, (during which 
time every individual but two of 
the race that left Egypt had died, 
and given place to their children,) 
they were brought into the land 
of Canaan. 

After the death of Joshua, the 
administration of the government 
was committed to a body of men 
called judges. This was a species 
of aristocracy; but it would seem 
that these judges were appointed 
only for extraordinary occasions 
and for specific purposes. (Judg. 
iii. 8-10, 14, 15; vi. 33, 36.) 
Their power was very great, how¬ 
ever. (Judg. viii.) Of these judges 
there were in all fifteen, from 
Othniel to Samuel, in whose time 
the government was changed. 
When the Hebrews had fallen 
into idolatrous practices, God suf¬ 
fered their enemies to prevail 
against them; and as they came 


HEB 

to 1 •; involved in waut with the 
neighbouring nations, they felt 
the necessity of a military leader, 
or some more efficient govern, 
ment; and they asked for a king. 
Saul was given to them in thii 
relation; but, though victorious 
in many battles, he displeased 
God, and David, the son of Jesse, 
was appointed to the throne in 
his place. Under his reign, Jeru- 
salem was adorned and fortified, 
and made the seat of governments 
the empire was greatly extended, 
and fhe prospects of the nation 
were never more glorious. He 
was succeeded by his son Solo¬ 
mon, whose reign forms tne most 
splendid period of tho Jewish 
history, and was di&wnguished 
by the erection of the temple at 
Jerusalem. His costly palace and 
magnificent court could not be 
maintained without having con¬ 
tributions from the people; and 
upon his death, and the succession 
of his son Rehoboam, they de¬ 
manded some relief from these 
heavy burdens. This being re¬ 
fused in a very offensive manner, 
ten of the twelve tribes revolted 
under Jeroboam, and constituted 
what was called the kingdom of Is¬ 
rael. Judah and Benjamin ad¬ 
hered to Rehoboam, and formed 
the kingdom of Judah. The sub¬ 
jects of the kingdom of Judah 
were probably called Jews from 
this time till the kingdom of Is¬ 
rael, as such, was destroyed; and 
then the word Jews became the 
common name for all the descend¬ 
ants of Jacob. After a series 
of wars between Judah and Israel, 
and between them and other na¬ 
tions, for a period of two hundred 
and fifty years, the kingdom of 
Israel was at lengm subverted, 
the territory fell into the bauda 
313 



HEB 

of BtrangerSt. and the people of the 
ten revolted tribes which com¬ 
posed it were carried captive into 
Assyria, never to return. (2 
Kings xvii.) The kingdom of 
Judah, too, soon after met a simi¬ 
lar fate, her people being carried 
Into Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar. 

Seventy long years of bondage 
passed away before any relief 
wmo to them; but then Cyrus, 
king of Persia, subdued Babylon, 
and permitted the Jews, then in 
captivity, to return to their coun¬ 
try ; but they went back carrying 
with them the foreign and idola¬ 
trous customs and endless dogmas 
with which they had become fami¬ 
liar in the time of their exile. 
The lofty aspirations, the simple 
piety and pure morality of their 
better days, were gone; the sub¬ 
tle and self-righteous Pharisee, 
and worldly-minded Sadducee, 
and a variety of other sects, 
sprang up; and error, corruption, 
and superstition prevailed in every 
form. For three hundred years 
after their return from Babylon, 
the .Jews were favoured with al¬ 
most uninterrupted tranquillity; 
but, at the end of that period, the 
Romans, seizing a favourable oc¬ 
casion, reduced Judea to the con¬ 
dition of a province of that em¬ 
pire ; and Antipater was appointed 
by Julius Cesar, the emperor, to 
its government. Soon after An¬ 
tipater’s death, the kingdom fell 
into the hands of Herod, who, 
after a cruel reign which termina¬ 
ted in the first year of our Sa¬ 
viour’s life, divided it by will be¬ 
tween his three sons, Archeiaus, 
4ntipas, and Philip. In a little 
more than forty years, however, 
this dynasty came to an end, 
Judea sunk to a minor province, 
and thenceforward governors were 
‘-H4 


HEB 

sect from Rome until the destruc¬ 
tion of their once holy and beau¬ 
tiful city, Jerusalem. After this 
mournful event, the Jews re¬ 
mained subject to the Roman go¬ 
vernment until Adrian became 
emperor of Rome, A. d. 76, when 
they rebelled, and were entirely 
dispersed, and so remain to this 
day. 

It has been well said, that to 
the eye of mere philosophy no¬ 
thing can appear more striking 
than the effects produced upon 
the World at large by the opinions 
and events which originated 
among the Jewish people. A pas¬ 
toral family, neither so numerous, 
so warlike, nor so well instructed 
in the arts of civilized life, as 
many others in the same quarter 
of the globe, gradually increased 
into a powerful community, be¬ 
came distinguished by a system 
of doctrines and usages different 
from those of all tho surrounding 
tribes; retaining it, too, amid the 
numerous changes of condition to 
which thoy wero subjected, and 
finally impressing its leading 
principles upon the most enlight¬ 
ened nations of Asia and of Eu¬ 
rope. At a remote era Abraham 
crosses the Euphrates, a solitary 
traveller, not knowing whither he 
went, but obeying a divine voice, 
which called him from among 
idolaters to become the father of 
a new people and of a purer faith, 
at a distance from his nativo 
country. His grandson Jacob, a 
“Syrian ready to perish/’ goes 
down in to Egypt with a few in¬ 
dividuals, where his descendants 
—although evil entreated and af¬ 
flicted—became a “nation, great, 
mighty and populous,” and 
whence they were delivered by th# 
special interposition of Heaven. 



HEB 

In prosperity and adversity they 
are still the objects of the same 
vigilant Providence which re¬ 
served them for a great purpose 
to be accomplished in the latter 
days; while the Israelites them¬ 
selves, as if conscious that their 
election was to be crowned with 
momentous results, still kept their 
thoughts fixed on Palestine,as the 
theatre of their glor 3 r ,not less than 
as the possession of their tribes. 

The land promised, to the seed 
of Abraham was from Egypt on 
the south to the Euphrates on 
the north. (Gen. xv. 18.) But 
the conditions of the promise 
were not fulfilled. (Ex. xxiii. 
22-31; Judges xi. 20-23. Comp. 
Josh, xxiii. 13-16.) 

We accordingly see them at 
one period in bondage, the victims 
of a rolentless tyranny, and me¬ 
naced with complete extirpation; 
but the hope of enjoying the 
land promised to their fathers 
never ceased to animate their 
hearts; for they trusted that God 
would surely visit them in the 
bouse of their affliction, and, in 
his appointed time, carry them 
into the inheritance of peace and 
rest. At a later epoch we be¬ 
hold them swept away as captives 
by the hands of idolaters, who 
used all the motives which spring 
from fear and from interest to se¬ 
cure their compliance with the 
rites and ceremonies of a foreign 
worship; but, rejecting all such 
inducements, they still continued 
a separate people, steadily re¬ 
sisting the operation of those 
causes which, in almost every 
other instance, have been found 
sufficient to constrain a van¬ 
quished horde to adopt the senti¬ 
ments and habits of their victors. 
At longth they appear a? the in- I 


HEB 

etruments of a dispensation which 
embraces the dearest interests of 
all the sous of Adam ; and which, 
in happier circumstances than 
ever fell to their own lot, has al¬ 
ready essentially modified and 
greatly exalted the character, 
the Institutions, and the prospect* 
of the most improved portion of 
mankind, in both hemispheres. 

Connected with Christianity, 
indeed, the history of the He¬ 
brews rises before the reflecting 
mind in a very singular point of 
view; for, in opposition to their 
own wishes, they laid the foun¬ 
dations of a religion which hag 
not only superseded their pecu¬ 
liar rites, but is rapidly advancing 
towards that universal accepta¬ 
tion which they were wont to an¬ 
ticipate in favour of their own 
ancient law. In spite of them¬ 
selves, they have acted as the 
little leaven which was destined to 
leaven the whole lump; and in 
performing this office, they have 
proceeded with nearly the same 
absence of intention and conscious¬ 
ness as the latent principle of 
fermentation to which the meta¬ 
phor bears allusion. They aimed 
at one thing, and have accom¬ 
plished another; but, while wo 
compare the means with the ends, 
whether in their physical or moral 
relations, it must be admitted that 
we therein examine one of the 
most remarkable events recorded 
in the annals of the human race. 
(See Canaan, Captivity, Jews, 
Tribes. See also Biblical An¬ 
tiquities, vol. ii. ch. i., for a full 
history, plan, Ac. of the Jewish 
commonwealth; 

Hebrew op the ‘Hebrews 
(Phil. iii. 5) has been supposed 
by some to denote that the indi¬ 
vidual so called had both a Hp- 
315 



HEB 

brew father and mother; hut 
others take it to mean that he 
was a Hebrew both by nation 
and language,—which many of 
Abraham’s descendants were not, 
—or a Hebrew Jew performing 
worship in the original Hebrew 
tongue, and of course more truly 
honourable in a Jew’s eyes than 
one born out of Judea, and speak¬ 
ing the Greek or any other than 
the Hebrew language. 

Epistle to the Hebrews. 
There is probable evidence that 
this epistle was written by Paul 
about the year 62-3, in the Greek 
language, and that it was ad¬ 
dressed to the believing Jews of 
Palestine. 

This important portion of the 
New Testament is designed to 
show the divine character and 
offices of the Redeemer, the su¬ 
periority of the gospel to the law, 
and the true design and import 
of the Mosaic institutions; the 
fortitude and perseverance to 
which the gospel promises were 
calculated to excite the Hebrew 
converts, and the course of life to 
which such hopes and promises 
as the gospel reveals, should lead. 
It has been said of this epistle, 
that whether it is considered in 
reference to Christian doctrine or 
to Christian practice; whether it 
be applied to for instruction, or 
comfort or reproof, it will be 
found eminently calculated to en¬ 
large our minds, to strengthen 
our faith, to encourage our confi¬ 
dence and to animate our hopes. 
It carries the believer on from 
the first elements of the doctrine 
of Christ to perfection. It ex¬ 
hibits the divine character of the 
Redeomer in all its glory, esta¬ 
blishes his infinite superiority to 
Moses as an apostle, and to the 
316 


HEB 

Aaronic family as a priest. It 
contrasts the grandeur, the effi¬ 
cacy, and the perpetuity of new- 
covenant privileges, worship and 
promises, with the earthliness, 
the feebleness and the temporary 
nature of the figurative economy ( 
and it enforces the awful respon* 
sibility which attaches to the pro 
fession of Christianity by consi¬ 
derations derived from all that is 
fitted to elevate hope and to give 
energy to godly fear. It is the 
key to the ritual of Moses, which 
unlocks its most intricate and 
mysterious and apparently trivial 
arrangements. It brings to view 
the soul that animated the whole 
body of its ceremonies, and which 
gives them all their importance, 
and by the light it affords, we are 
enabled to enter into the darkest 
places of that extraordinary edi¬ 
fice, and to see the wisdom of its 
proportions, and the admirable 
adaptation of all its parts to their 
design. It was calculated to re¬ 
concile the Jew to the destruction 
of his temple, the loss of his priest¬ 
hood, the abolition of his sacri¬ 
fices, the devastation of his coun¬ 
try and the extinction of his 
name; because it exhibits a no¬ 
bler temple, a better priesthood, 
a more perfect sacrifice, a hea¬ 
venly inheritance and a more 
durable memorial. And as the 
distinguished honours and pri¬ 
vileges which it makes known are 
equally the portion of the Gentile 
believer, they are no less fitted to 
wean his mind from the beggarly 
elements of this world, and to re¬ 
concile him to the lot of a stranger 
and sojourner on the earth. 

HEBRON, (Num. xiii. 22,) so 
called after a son of Caleb, was 
one of the most ancient cities of 
Judea, and was originally called 



HEB 

Kirjath-Arba, or the city of Arba, 
from its being the residence of a 
famous giant of that name. (Josh, 
xiv. 15.) Moses calls it Mamre, 
Gen. xxiii. 19, and xxxv. 27. It 
was situated on an eminence from 
twenty to thirty miles south of 
Jerusalem, and nearly a hundred 
from Nazareth, (Luke i. 39,) and 
is still known as the flourishing 
town of Habroun, or El-khalil — 
which means the friend or the be¬ 
loved, (2 Chron. xx. 7.)—celebrat¬ 
ed for the manufacture of glass. 

One of our American mission¬ 
aries, who was at Hebron, says the 
place is called Haleel of Klialeel- 
Eahmdn , or the beloved of the mer¬ 
ciful, and that Haleel and Abra¬ 
ham are used interchangeably as 
the name of the same person. 
The number of houses he states 
at four hundred. 

Another American missionary 
visited Hebron in April, 1835, and 
describes the vineyards and olive- 
yards, that cover the valleys, as 
by far the best he saw in any part 
of the country. 

He visited what is regarded as 
the field of Maclipelah, situated 
on the side of a high hill, sloping 
westward; from the summit of 
which is a beautiful view of the 
plains of Mamre, where has been 
erected a splendid temple by the 
mother of Constantine, or, as ths 
Moslems say, by Solomon, which 
neither Jews nor Christians are al¬ 
lowed to enter. A reliable traveller 
says that the Jews are allowed to 
come to a place at the side of a 
certain gate, and there read and 
weep, and repeat their prayers in 
honour of their ancestors. One 
read in Arabic, to some Moslems 
who were there, the twenty-third 
chapter of Genesis. About four 
hundred families of Arabs dwell 
27* 


HED 

in Hebron, and about one hundred 
and twenty families of Jews; ths 
latter having been greatly reduced 
in number by a bloody cattle in 
1834, between them and the 
troops of Ibrahim Pasha. 

A mile or two north of HebroD 
is a quadrangular spot, enclosed 
by the foundations of a very an¬ 
cient wall, the stones of which 
are composed chiefly of shells. 
This is pointed out to the travel¬ 
ler as the place where Abraham 
received the angels. (Gen. xviii.) 

Hebron is associated with some 
of the most interesting passage 
of sacred history. The valley of 
Eschol (Num. xiii. 24, 25) is sup¬ 
posed to have been in its vicinity; 
and the vale of Hebron was at one 
time the residence of Jacob. (Gen. 
xxxvii. 14.) Abraham’s abode 
was also here, (Gen. xiii. 18,) and 
his family burying place. (Gen. 
xxiii. 2, 3,19 ; xxv. 10; xlix. 29- 
33; 1. 12, 13.) Upon the con¬ 
quest of Canaan, Hebron was as¬ 
signed to Caleb as part of his por¬ 
tion, (Num. xiii. 30-33; xiv. 5, 
24; Josh. xiv. 6-14,) though it 
was finally a city of refuge, and 
among the possessions of tin 
priests. (Josh. xx. 7; xxi. 11, 
13.) It is supposed by many that 
Zaeharias and Elisabeth lived at 
Hebron, and that it was the birth¬ 
place of John the Baptist. He¬ 
bron was the residence of David 
until Jerusalem was made the 
capital, (2 Sam. ii. 1; v. 4-9;) 
but we find it among the cities of 
Judah at the time of the revolt. 
(2 Chron. xi. 10.) 

HEDGE. (Hos. ii. 6.) Travel 
lers tell us that such hedges as 
are mentioned in this passage are 
often found in eastern countries 
at this day, and that they are 
| especially useful as defences 
317 




HEI 

against the neursioni af the Arabs 
on horseback. The hedge is 
sometimes figuratively used to 
denote protection. (Comp. Job 
i. 10 ; Ps. xxxiv. 7.) 

HEIFER. (Hos. x. 11.) The 
figurative allusions of the sacred 
writers to the wildness, sportive¬ 
ness, and indocility of this animal, 
especially when well-fed, are very 
striking. (Jer. xlvi. 20; 1. 11; 
Hos. iv. 16.) In Isa. xv. 5, allu¬ 
sion is probably made to the low¬ 
ing of a heifer—a mournful sound 
that can be heard at a great dis¬ 
tance: so should the lamentation 
of the Moabites be in the day of 
their visitation. 

The heifer was used in sacrifice 
on a particular occasion, (Num. 
xix. 1-10. Comp. Heb. ix. 13, 
14,) the manner and design of 
which are fully stated in the 
passage cited. (For a full and 
interesting exposition of the 
whole subject of the water of 
separation, see Biblical Anti¬ 
quities, vol. ii. ch. vii., and Omar, 
p. 174. 

HELBON. (Ezek. xxvii. 18.) 
A Syrian city of great opulence 
and antiquity, celebrated for its 
wines; and probably the same 
with Aleppo, (or as the Arabs say, 
Alep or Halab,) which is now one 
of the most flourishing citiei of 
Turkey. Its buildings are of hewn 
stone, and its streets paved with 
the same. It was once deeply in¬ 
terested in the India trade, and 
is still a place of commercial in¬ 
tercourse and manufacturing en¬ 
terprise. This city was almost 
entirely destroyed, in 1822, by 
an earthquake, and its population 
reduced from 250,000 to less than 
100,000; one-sixth of whom are 
regarded as nominal Christians. 

IIELL. (Dent. xxxiL 22.) 
318 


HEL 

This word is used by the sacred 
writers in several senses, which 
it is important to distinguish. 
The original word, from which 
hell is derived, means to hide or 
conceal. The Hebrew word, trans¬ 
lated hell in our Bible, sometimes 
means simply the grave, the re¬ 
ceptacle of the dead, or the place 
of departed spirits, as in Job xi. 
7-9; Ps. xvi. 10; cxxxix. 8; Isa. 
v. 14; xiv. 9 ; Amos ix. 2, 3; Acts 
ii. 31; Rev. xx. 14. In other 
passages it denotes the place of 
future punishment, as in Ps. ix. 
17; Prov. v. 5; ix. 18; xxiii. 14. 
One of the Greek words, which 
is translated hell in the New 
Testament, generally means the 
grave; and another Greek word, 
which is also translated hell, 
literally means the valley of Hin- 
nom, (2 Chron. xxxiii. 6,) where 
the most abominable idolatries 
were practised; called also To- 
pheth, (2 Kings xxiii. 10,) from 
toph, (a drum,) because that in¬ 
strument was used there to drown 
the cries of victims. Hinnorn or 
Topheth thus became a fit em¬ 
blem of hell. (See Selumiel, 
ch. ix.) 

It is generally easy to see from 
the connection, in any given case, 
in what sense the word is used. 
Thus, in Ps. ix. 17; Matt, xxiii. 
33; Mark ix. 43-48; 2 Pet. ii. 4, 
the word hell evidently denotes 
the place of the future and ever¬ 
lasting misery of the ungodly; 
consisting, in part at least, in the 
eternal separation of the soul 
from God and from the presence 
of his glory, and in the suffering 
of inconceivable anguish and re¬ 
morse forever and ever. These 
sufferings are described witn all 
the force and vividness which 
language or imagination can sup- 



riExM 

ply. And whether material sub¬ 
stances are actually employed or 
not in ministering to the torments 
of the prison of despair, it is suf¬ 
ficient for us that the most ex¬ 
cruciating suffering we can endure 
in the flesh is used to represent, 
j.s far as it can be represented, 
the suffering of the lost soul. 

Gates of Hell. (Matt. xvi. 
IS.) A figurative expression, de¬ 
noting the power of wicked 
spirits. (See Gate.) 

HEMLOCK. (Hos. x. 4.) A 
well-known bitter and poisonous 
herb, a species of which is com¬ 
mon in the United States. The 
word rendered hemlock in the 
above passage, and in Amos vi. 
12, is elsewhere rendered gall. 
The figurative use of it is ex¬ 
plained by comparing the above 
passage with Deut. xxix. 18; 
Amos v. 7; Heb. xii. 15. The 
evils of perverted judgment re¬ 
semble the springing up of use¬ 
less and poisonous plants, where 
we look for and expect valuable 
and nutritious vegetation. 

HERESY, (Acts xxiv. 14,) 
HERETIC. (Tit. iii. 10.) These 
terms, as they are generally used 
by the sacred writers, imply no 
judgment respecting the truth or 
error of religious sentiments, but 
simply sects, or a peculiar system 
of opinions; so that when the 
word sect is used, the word heresy 
would be equally appropriate, as 
in Acts v. 17; xxiv. 5; xxvi. 5; 
and xxviii. 22. In the epistles, 
where the word is usually em¬ 
ployed without reference to any 
particular class by name, it im¬ 
ports either differences which led 
to divisions in the Christian 
ehurch—and which were greatly 
to the reproach of the faith—or 
aoruptions of the true faith, (1 


HER 

Cor. xi. 19;) and it is in this lust 
sense that the term is commonly 
applied at the present day. 

HERMON. (Deut. iii. 8.) A 
mountain, branching off south* 
eastwardly from Anti-Lebanon, 
and running between Damascus 
and the sea of Tiberias, called by 
the Sidonians, Sin on; and by the 
Amorites, Shenir, and also Sion. 
(Deut. iii. 9; iv. 48.) 

It is not a conical mountain 
like Tabor, with one high sum 
mit, and a base distinctly marked 
It is a whole cluster of mountains, 
many days’ journey in circum¬ 
ference, with a broad ridge of 
summits, the highest in the Holy 
Land. According to the survey 
of the English engineers, they 
rise 9376 feet above the sea. 
These peaks are surrounded by 
extensive ranges of mountain 
ridges, in whose deep, gloomy 
valleys the largest rivers of the 
land have their sources, and on 
whose slopes of incomparable love¬ 
liness once lay large cities, such 
as Baal-Gad, Baal-Hermon, Beth- 
Rechob, and others. Thus Her- 
mon is not a mountain, but a 
mountain chain. 

“ The blessing” is compared to 
“ the dew of Hermon,” which de¬ 
scended upon the mountains of 
Sion. “ Sitting at the foot of 
Mount Hermon,” says a lato 
traveller, “I see how, from its 
woody crags and ravines, whero 
the snow lies nearly the whole 
year round, the watery mists must 
ascend in much greater abun¬ 
dance than those from other 
mountains, whose bare tops do 
not rise to such a height. The 
waters, drawn up by the sun’s 
warm rays, are reduced to va- 
poxir, which is diffused through 
the atmosphere, and descends at 
319 



HER 

night in cool, refreshing dews on 
;ho lower hills that branch out on 
every side around. The Psalmist 
compares the spiritual blessings to 
the most excellent dew, like that 
which falls in the regions around 
Hermon, and is to be found no¬ 
where else in the country. You 
must see Ilermon yourself, to re¬ 
alize the figure.” 

Behind the first dark green 
range are seen the peaks of higher 
mountains; and here the pine 
woods are sprinkled with silver 
by tb» snow, giving a wonderful 
contrast of light and shade. Be- 


HER 

hind these ridges, and high above 
them all, rises one broad summit, 
on which rests deep masses of all 
but eternal snow, transformed by 
the sunlight to a transparent, pale 
gold tint,with intermingled gleams 
of pearly lustre, such as never 
yet have been expressed by paint¬ 
er’s art. This magnificent snowy 
peak, towering up to heaven’s 
own blue, is the source from 
whence descends the dew of Her¬ 
mon, so rich and fruitful. 

HEROD. (Matt. ii. 1,) sur- 
named the Great, was the an¬ 
cestor of several of the same name, 






































































HER 

mentioned in the New Testament. 
He was governor of Judea (then 
a Roman province) at the time of 
our Saviour’s birth. Though he 
was called king, he was subject to 
the Roman emperor, and was dis¬ 
tinguished for his savage cruelty. 

The table on the preceding page 
shows at a glance the chief con¬ 
nections of this family, so far as 
they are mentioned in the sacred 
history. 

In the thirty-third year of the 
reign of Herod the Great, Christ 
was born in Bethlehem. Fearing 
that this event might in some 
way affect his interests, and not 
knowing precisely the age of the 
supposed pretender to his throne, 
and having attempted in vain to 
ascertain the precise period of his 
birth, Herod issued a decree, re¬ 
quiring the indiscriminate mas¬ 
sacre of all the children of Beth¬ 
lehem, of two years’ old and un¬ 
der. This decree was executed. 

Herod died a most dreadful 
death at Jericho; distributing 
the government of the province 
among his three sons; Judea to 
Archelaus; Galilee and Perea to 
Herod Antipas; and the three 
upper districts' v ast of the Jordan 
(Batanea, Auranitis and Tracho- 
nitis) to Philip. (Luke iii. 1.) 

Archelaus held the government 
about nine years, and was then 
banished for high crim.^3: and 
Judea became completely subject 
to Rome, and received its gover¬ 
nors or procurators directly from 
tfa :• emperor, and probabty for lim¬ 
ited periods. Pontius Pilate was 
in this office when John the Bap¬ 
tist appeared. The other sons of 
Herod the Great remained in pos¬ 
session of their provinces as at the 
death of their father. (See Omar, 
pp. 180 and 241.) 

V 


HER 

HERODIANS. (Matt. xxii. 
16.) A Jewish sect or party, ori¬ 
ginating probably in a political 
partiality towards the Roman em¬ 
peror and Herod his deputy. It 
is generally supposed that the 
great body of the Jews, and espe¬ 
cially the Pharisees, held that the 
law of Moses (Deut. xvii. 15) for¬ 
bade their subjection to a foreign 
power; while Herod and his party 
(the Herodians) regarded that law 
as forbidding a voluntary subjec¬ 
tion ; but if they were reduced to 
subjection by force of arms, they 
considered it lawful to avow their 
allegiance and pay tribute; and 
they not only paid it themselves, 
but urged others to pay it, and to 
submit cheerfully to Rome. Hence 
the difficulty of the question pro¬ 
posed to Christ. (Matt. xxii. 17.) 
The Herodians also held, that it 
was .on the same principle lawful 
to comply with the customs and 
adopt the rights of the conquer¬ 
ing nation. This is probably the 
leaven of Herod. (Mark viii. 15.)* 
Some have inferred from a com¬ 
parison of Mark viii. 15, and Matt, 
xvi. 6, that the Herodians were 
chiefly Sadducees. 

HERODIAS. (Matt. xiv. 3.) 
The grand-daughter of Herod the 
Great. She first married her uncle, 
Herod Philip, and afterwards 
Herod Antipas, another uncle, 
and that too during her first hus¬ 
band’s lifetime. For this unlawful 
and scandalous connection, John 
the Baptist faithfully reproved the 
parties; and his fidelity cost him 
his life. (Matt. xiv. 3-10.) 

HERON. (Lev. xi. 19.) An 
unclean bird, but of what species 
is quite uncertain. The original 
word describes the bird known to 
us as the heron, better perhaps 
than any other bird now known. 

321 




HES 

HESHBON. (Num. xxi. 25.) 
A. royal city of the Amorites. It 
was given first to Reuben, (Josh, 
xiii. 17,) then transferred to Gad, 
(Josh. xxi. 39,) and in the time 
of Isaiah and Jeremiah, recover¬ 
ed by the Moabites, to whom it 
had bef^e belonged. (Isa. xv. 4; 
Jer. xlviii. 2.) It exists new un¬ 
der the name of Heshban, and 
lies east of mount Nebo, about 
twenty miles from the Jordan. 
Near it are wells and ponds, hewn 
out of the rock, referred to in Sol. 
Song vii. 4. 

HETH (Gen. x. 15) was the 
eldest son of Canaan, and the an¬ 
cestor of the Hittites. 

IIEZEKIAH, (2 Chron. xxix. 
1,) a distinguished king of Judah, 
was the son and successor of Ahaz. 
He was twenty-five years of age 
when he came to the throne, and 
he immediately toMt measures to 
break up the idolatrous customs 
into which the people had fallen 
during the reign of Ahaz: to bring 
them back to the temple and wor¬ 
ship of their fathers, and to re¬ 
pair the losses and defeats they 
had suffered. Early in his reign, 
the Assyrians invaded the neigh¬ 
bouring kingdom of Israel, and 
carried the ten tribes into bond¬ 
age. 

Notwithstanding this threaten¬ 
ing position of affairs, Hezekiah, 
not willing to acknowledge any 
subjection to Assyria, refused to 
pay the tribute which had been 
imposed and paid during the reign 
of his father. In consequence of 
which, the Assyrian army, under 
Sennacherib, invaded his terri¬ 
tory. This event happened in 
the fourteenth year of Hezekiah’s 
reign, and is described, with all 
the interesting details, in Isa. 
xxxvi. 1-22. The Assyrian army 
322 


HIE 

was so far reduced in a sing!# 
night by the immediate judgment 
of God, as to be obliged to make 
a precipitate retreat. Soon after 
this signal deliveranee, Hezekiah 
was seized with a severe illness, 
the fatal termination of which 
was averted in answer to his 
prayers. Fifteen years longer 
were promised him; and the pro¬ 
mise was confirmed by a miracu¬ 
lous sign. (See Dial.) His grati¬ 
tude is expressed in the most af¬ 
fecting language, (Isa. xxxviii. 
10-20;) and yet we find him af¬ 
terwards greatly elated by a mes¬ 
sage of congratulation from Ba - 
ladan, king of Babylon, before 
whose ambassadors he made a 
vain and pompous display of his 
possessions. To punish this pride 
and vanity, he was informed by 
a special message from God that 
his wealth should, at a future day, 
be transported to Babylon, and his 
own sons become servants in the 
palace of her king. 

The latter years of his life were 
passed in tranquillity, and he was 
succeeded by his son Manasseh. 

HIDDEKEL. (Gen. ii. 14; 
Dan. x. 4.) Generally acknow¬ 
ledged to be the Tigris , which di¬ 
vided Assyria from Mesopotamia, 
and the present names of which, 
Degil, Dihlat and Diklath, are 
manifestly derived from the an¬ 
cients. It rises about fifteen miles 
from the source of the Euphrates. 

IIIERAPOLIS. (Col. iv. 13.) 
A city of Phrygia, in the neigh¬ 
bourhood of Colosse and Laodicea, 
about five miles from the latter. 
It was formerly famous for its hot 
baths. It is supposed to have de¬ 
rived its name (which signifies 
holy city ) from the multitude of 
temples which it contained; the 
ruins of which are still visible 



H1G 

1'he Turks call the place Pambuk- 
Kalasi, from the whiteness of the 
rock on which it stands. Nothing 
but the hot baths could have fur¬ 
nished a motive for building a 
great city on a spot so sterile. 

1IIGGAION (Ps. ix. 16) signi¬ 
fies meditation, and calls for ex- 
trordinary attention and reflec¬ 
tion on the passage; like a 
or N. B. in modern writings. 

HIGH PLACES (1 Sam. ix. 12) 
were places upon hills and moun¬ 
tains, appropriated sometimes to 
the true service of God, but gene¬ 
rally to idolatrous worship. The 
most elevated places seem to have 
been chosen from the earliest pe¬ 
riod for the erection of altars. 
(Gen. xii. 7, 8; xxii. 2; xxxi. 54.) 
Before the temple furnished a fix¬ 
ed place of worship, it seems to 
have been considered proper to 
erect altars on such places. (Judg. 
vi. 25, 26; 1 Sam. ix. 12, 19, 25; 
1 Chron. xvi. 39; xxi. 29.) Af¬ 
ter the temple was built, these 
places became so universally the 
scene of idolatrous worship, that 
the sacred historian says of a par¬ 
ticular king, that he did that 
which Avas right, &c., yet the high 
places were not taken away. (2 
Kings xv. 35.) 

HIGH-PRIEST. (Lev. xxi. 
10.) The head of the Jewish 
priesthood. All the male descend¬ 
ants of Aaron were by divine 
appointment consecrated to the 
priesthood; and the first-born of 
the family, in regular succession, 
was consecrated in the same man¬ 
ner to the office of high-priest. 
The ceremony of consecration 
was alike for both, aad is particu¬ 
larly described in Ex. xxix. 

The dress of the high-priest 
was much more costly and mag¬ 
nificent than that of the inferior 


HIG 

order of priests. It i? described. 
Ex. xxxix. 1-9. In the cut are 
seen the robe and ephod, the lat¬ 
ter of which is outermost of all, 
and is curiously wrought with 
gold-wire, and blue, purple and 
scarlet thread. Upon either shoul¬ 
der is seen an onyx stone, on each 
of which were engraved the names 
of six of the tribes of Israel. The 
breastplate is also seen, with a 
wrought chain of gold attached 
to each corner, and passing under 
the arms and over the shoulder. 
(See Breastplate.) 

The mitre, or head-dress, is 
formed of eight yards of fine linen, 
in circular folds, and inscribed in 
front, upon a plate of pure gold, 
Holiness to the Lord. The 
fringe, or hem of the robe, and 
the bells suspended from it, are 
also seen. 

The dress of the high-priest 
on the day of expiation was very 
plain and simple; consisting only 
of plain linen, with a sash or gir¬ 
dle. Hence these were called by 
the Jews, the priest’s 11 white gar¬ 
ments,” &c .; the former, “gar¬ 
ments of gold.” 

The office of the high-priest 
was originally held for life; but 
this, as well as the right of the 
first-born, were disregarded in th 3 
latter ages of that dispensation; 
and the sacred place was occupied 
by the worst of men, among whom 
was Caiaphas. The high-priest’s 
most solemn, peculiar and exclu¬ 
sive duty was to officiate in the 
most holy place on the great day 
of atonement. In Lev. xvi. we 
have a full account of this most 
interesting service, and the im¬ 
posing ceremonies which preceded 
it. The high-priest might, at any 
time, perform the duties assigned 
to the ordinary priests. The high- 
32? 



HIL 


HIG 



priest h opposed to have had an 
assistant to occupy his place in 
case of his incompetency from 
eicknass, defilement or otherwise. 
(2 Kings xxv. 18; Jer. lii. 24.) For 
a more full account of this office, 
and the duties, &c. appertaining 
to it, see Scripture Illustra¬ 
tions, part ii. pp. 75-82, and Bib¬ 
lical Antiquities, vol. ii. ch. iv. 
$ 3, and ch. ri. £ 5. 

324 


HIGHWAYS, (Lev. xxvi. 22,1 
sometimes simply t cays, (Ps. 
lxxxiv. 5; Prov. xvi. 17, meta¬ 
phorically,) means any public way 
or high-road, in distinction from 
a private walk or footpath. (See 
Causeway.) 

HILL-COUNTRY. (Lukei. 39.) 
This term was applied to the coun¬ 
try in the vicinity of Jerusalem. 

HILL OF ZION, (P B . ii. 6.) 












hIN 

and HOLY HILL, (Ps. iii. 4,) 
both refer to the eminence on 
which the temple of Jerusalem 
was erected, and in which God 
was supposed to manifest his pre- 
eenoe in a peculiar manner. 
(Comp. Ps. xlviii. 1, 2.) 

HIN. (See Measures.) 

HIND. (See Hart.) 

HINGES. (See Dwellings.) 
^HINNOM. (See Hell. See 
also Selumiel, ch. ix.) 

HIRAM. 1. (2 Sam. v. 11,12.) 
A distinguished king of Tyre. 
He was contemporary with David 
and Solomon, and on terms of the 
strictest political and personal 
friendship with them, tinder his 
reign, the city of Tyre became 
celebrated for its wealth and mag¬ 
nificence : and the vast supplies 
he furnished to the kings of Is¬ 
rael show the greatness of his re¬ 
sources. (1 Kings ix. 14; x. 22.) 

2. (1 Kings vii. 13.) An emi¬ 
nent artificer of Tyre, who was 
employed by Solomon on some of 
the most difficult of the fixtures 
and furniture of the temple. 

HIRELING. (Job vii. 1.) One 
who is employed on hire for a 
limited time, as a day or year. 
By the Levitical law, such a one 
was to be paid his wages daily. 
(Lev. xix. 13.) The circumstance 
that the time is limited suggests 
the figurative language in the 
above passage, and in Job xiv. 6: 
and the little interest which would 
be felt by such a temporary la¬ 
bourer, compared with that of the 
shepherd or permanent keeper of 
the flock, furnishes a striking il¬ 
lustration in one of our Lord’s 
discourses. (John x. 12, 13.) 

HISS. (1 Kings ix. 8.) To 
hiss at one is an expression of in¬ 
sult and contempt, (Jer. xix. 8 ; 
Ezek. xxvii. 36; Mic. vi. 16;) and 
28 


HOL 

to call any o ne with a hiss denotes 
power and authority over him, 
(Isa. v. 26; vii. 18; Zech. x. 8 ;) as 
if it should be said “ he will come 
at my beck or go at my nod.” 

HITTITES. (1 Kings xi. 1.) 
The posterity of Heth, the second 
son of Canaan. Their settle¬ 
ments were in the southern part 
of Judea, near Hebron. (Gen. 
xxiii. 3.) They are also spoken 
of as inhabiting the mountains of 
Judah, (Num. xiii. 29;) and again 
as in the neigbourhood of Bethel. 
(Judg. i. 26.) Probably they main¬ 
tained a sort of independence, 
(1 Kings x. 29 ; 2 Kings vii. 6;) 
and they seem to have retained 
their distinctive name to a late 
period. (Ezra ix. 1, 2.) 

HIVITES. (Gen. x. 17.) A 
horde of the Canaanites, else¬ 
where called Avims. (Deut. ii. 23. 
See Avim.) They seem to have 
been settled in various parts of 
the land. (Gen. xxxiv. 2; Josh, 
xi. 3, 19.) 

HOBAB. (Num. x. 29-32.) The 
son of Jethro, and brother-in-law 
of Moses. 

II 0 B A II. (Gen. xiv. 15.) A 
place north of Damascus, where 
a hill is still shown to travellers, 
bearing the same name, and al¬ 
leged to occupy the same site. 

HOLY, HOLINESS. (Ex.xv. 
11; Lev. xxvii. 14.) Holiness, 
or perfect freedom from sin, and 
infinite purity, is one of the dis¬ 
tinguishing attributes of the di¬ 
vine nature. (Isa. vi. 3.) These 
words (which in their primitive 
meaning imply a separation or 
setting apart) are sometimes used 
to denote the purity of the angelic 
nature, (Matt. xxv. 31,) the com¬ 
parative freedom from sin which 
results from the sanctification of 
the human heart—as in tL> 'sase 
325 



HOL 

<»f prophets, (Rev. xxii. 6,) apos¬ 
tles^ Rev. xviii. 20,) ministers,(Ti¬ 
tus i. 8,) Christians, (lleb. iii. 1,)— 
and the consecrated character of 
things, (Ex. xxx. 25; Lev. xvi. 4,) 
and places. (2 Pet. i. 18.) 

HOLY CITY. (See Jerusa¬ 
lem. 

HOLY DAY. (See Feasts.) 

HOLY GHOST, HOLY SPI¬ 
RIT. (See Spirit.) 

HOLY LAND. (See Canaan.) 

HOME-BORN SLAVE. (See 
Servant.) 

IIOMER. (See Measures.) 

HONEY, HONEYCOMB. (Ps. 
xix. 10.) The abundance of ho¬ 
ney in the land of Judea may be 
inferred from a variety of pas¬ 
sages in the Bible, as well as from 
the accounts of modern travellers. 
It was, almost without metaphor, 
a land flowing with milk and ho¬ 
ney. (Ex. iii. 8, 17.) The wild 
honey on which John the Baptist 
lived was, perhaps, euch as he 
could gather from rocks and hol¬ 
low trees. 

The syrup obtained from dates 
is supposed to be sometimes in¬ 
tended by the word honey. (2 
Chron. xxxi. 5.) And we are told 
of a tree, found in some parts of 
the east, upon the leaves and twigs 
of which a sweet substance col¬ 
lects, and is gathered and used by 
1 'he Arabs, which at first strongly 
resembles honey. The figurative 
allusions of the sacred writers to 
honey and the honeycomb are 
Striking and beautiful. (Ps. xix. 
10 ; Prov. v. 3 ; xxvii. 7.) Milk 
and honey were the chief dainties 
of the earlier ages, as they are 
now of the Bedouins; and butter 
and honey are also mentioned 
among articles *of food (2 Sam. 
xvii. 29 ; Isa. vii. 15.) In South 
Africa bees deposit their honey on 
328 


HOR 

tbtf surface of the cliffs of rocks-,' 
and for its protection cover it with 
a dark-coloured wax. This, by 
the action of the weather, becomes 
hard, and of the complexion cf 
the rock. The traveller makes 
an incision in this wax-covering, 
and by applying his mouth to the 
aperture, sucks out as much honey 
as he wants. (Deut. xxxii. 13.; 
They also cover trees in the same 
manner. 

HOOD. (See Clothes.) 

HOPIINI. (See Eli.) 

HOR. (Num. xx. 22, 25.) A 
celebrated mountain on the bor¬ 
der of Ld umea > about half-way 
between the Dead and Red Seas, 
where Aaron was buried. (See 
Seir.) A northeastern branch 
of mount Lebanon is also called 
mount Hor. (Num. xxxiv. 7, 8.) 
It constituted part of the northern 
boundary of the land of Israel. 

HOREB. (Ex. iii. 1.) To un¬ 
derstand the relative situation of 
the interesting group of moun¬ 
tains to which both Horeb and Si¬ 
nai belong, or the scenes which 
were witnessed upon them, it is 
necessary to go into some detail, 
as it respects the face of the coun¬ 
try. 

The peninsula formed by the 
two branches, in which the gulf 
called the Red Sea terminates, 
constitutes part of a wild and de¬ 
solate region. It has been called 
“ a sea of desolation.” It would 
seem as if it had once been an 
ocean of lava, and that, while its 
waves were literally running 
mountain-high, it was command¬ 
ed suddenly to stand still. The 
whole of this region is composed 
of bare rocks and craggy preci¬ 
pices, among which narrow defiles 
and sandy valleys are interspers¬ 
ed. There is little vegetation. 




HOR 

Many of the plains are covered 
with loose flints and pebbles, and 
-thers are sandy. The few plants 
and shrubs that are to be found 
are such as love a dry, sandy soil, 
or such as contrive to draw nour¬ 
ishment from the ’fissures of the 
rocks, or from a thin mixture of 
clay, which may be found in some 
parts of the soil. Rain rarely 
falls in this wilderness, and foun¬ 
tains or springs of water are ex¬ 
ceedingly rare; and, when found, 
the water is exceedingly brackish 
or sulphurous, though not un¬ 
wholesome. 

In the central part of this pe¬ 
ninsula, stands the group of the 
Sinai mountains, to which great 
celebrity has been given by its 
coi nection with several important 
circumstances in the migration of 
the Israelites from Egypt to Ca¬ 
naan. This group is composed 
almost entirely of granite, and 
forms a rocky wilderness of an 
irregular circular shape, inter¬ 
sected by many narrow valleys, 
and is from thirty to forty miles 
in diameter. It contains the high¬ 
est mountains of the peninsula, 
whose craggy and pointed peaks, 
and steep and shattered sides, ren¬ 
der it clearly distinguishable from 
all the rest of the country in view. 
It is upon this region of the pe¬ 
ninsula that the fertile valleys are 
found which produce fruit-trees. 
Water is found in plenty in this 
district; on which account it is 
the place of refuge to all the Be¬ 
douins when the low country is 
parched up. Its advantage in this 
respect may have operated in the 
selection of the spot for the en¬ 
campment of the Israelites, who 
remained here nearly a year; for 
there seems little doubt that this 
upper country or wildi rness formed 


HOR 

exclusively the desert of Sinai, sc 
often mentioned in the account of 
their wanderings. It is perhaps 
impossible to Ascertain with dis¬ 
tinctness which of the different 
elevations comprised in this chain 
forms the Horeb, where Moses re 
ceived the call to his great work, 
or the Sinai, where the tables of 
the law^were committed to his 
hands. There has been a good 
deal of discussion on this point, 
into which we do not feel it ne¬ 
cessary to enter, contenting our¬ 
selves with an account of the part 
of the group to which that distinc¬ 
tion is restricted by local tradi¬ 
tions and religious associations, 
and to which the descriptions of 
travellers more particularly re¬ 
fer. The interesting part of the 
Sinai group consists of two ad¬ 
joining elevations, or, perhaps we 
should say, one mountain with 
two summits, respectively known 
as Djebel Mousa (mount Moses) 
and Djebel Katerin,(mount Cathe¬ 
rine;) the former being in com¬ 
mon opinion Sinai; and the latter, 
Horeb. Without attempting to 
decide the point, we must observe 
that some authorities incline to 
reverse this arrangement; con¬ 
sidering Djebel Mousa as Iloreb, 
and Djebel Katerin as Sinai; 
while others question whether 
either of the two has any just 
claim to be considered as Sinai or 
Horeb. A more elevated summit 
with five peaks, to the westward, 
called mount Serbal, seems to 
have been at some early time con¬ 
sidered as the “ mount of Moses;” 
a comprehensive term, implying 
both Sinai and Horeb. 

A very discriminating modern 
traveller expresses the opinion 
that mount Serbal was at one 
time the chief place of pilgrimage 
327 



HOR 

in the peninsula, and that it was 
then considered as the mountain 
where Moses received the tables 
of the law; though he is equally 
convinced, from a perusal of the 
Scriptures, that the Israelites en¬ 
camped in the upper Sinai, and 
that either Djebel Mousa or mount 
St. Catherine is the real Horeb. 

Between Sinai and Horeb is 
the valley of El Ledja, in which 
is the small convent of El Erbayn, 
which is in good repair, and af¬ 
fords a convenient resting-place 
to travellers descending from the 
barren mountains above. This 
valley, though narrow and en¬ 
cumbered with blocks of stone 
rolled down from the mountains, 
is, upon the whole, very pleasant 
and agreeable. 

It presents many objects of 
veneration, particularly the sup¬ 
posed rock which Moses struck 
for a supply of water. This lies 
quite insulated by the side of 
the path, and is about twelve feet 
in height, of an irregular shape, 
approaching to a cube. There 
are some apertures on its surface, 
through which the water is said 
to have burst out; they are for 
the most part ten or twelve 
inches long, two or three broad, 
and not more than from one to 
two inches deep; but a few may 
be as deep as four inches. Most 
of these fissures are evidently the 
work of art; but three or four of 
the twenty may be natural; and 
these probably first drew the at¬ 
tention of the monks to the stone. 
That it is really the rock of Meri- 
bah seems to be sincerely believed 
by the present monks of Sinai, as 
well as by the Bedouins, who put 
grass into the fissures as offerings 
to the memory of Moses, in the 
same manner as they place grass 
326 


HOR 

upon the tombs of their saints; 
because grass is to them the most 
precious gift of nature, and that 
upon which their existence de¬ 
pends. They also bring hither theii 
female camels, believing that by 
making the animal crouch down 
before the rock, while they recite 
some prayers and renew the grass 
in the fissures of the stone, their 
camels will become fertile, and 
yield their milk in abundance! 
That this is not the real rock of 
Meribah, nor the vale the “ val¬ 
ley of Rephidim” of the Bible, is 
clear from the fact, that here and 
elsewhere, in the upper Sinai, 
perennial springs are so numerous 
as to supersede all occasion for a 
miraculous supply of water. Not 
far from this is shown a small 
and apparently natural excava¬ 
tion in a granite rock, resembling 
a chair, where it is said that Mo¬ 
ses often sat! Near this is shown 
the petrified pot or kettle of Mo¬ 
ses, as they call it, being a circu¬ 
lar projecting knob in a rock, re¬ 
sembling the lid of a tea-kettle in 
size and shape. The Arabs have 
often in vain endeavoured to 
break this rock, supposing it to 
conceal great treasures! (See 
Sinai.) 

‘ HORIMS. (Deut. ii. 1, 22.) A 
general name for dwellers in 
caves, and perhaps the same with 
the Horite8. 

HORITES. (Gen. xiv. 6.) An 
ancient and powerful people, who 
dwelt in mount Seir. (Gen. 
xxxvi. 20-30.) 

HORN. (1 Sam. ii. 1, 10.; 
This word is employed in th« 
Old Testament as an emblem of 
power, honour or glory. (Deut 
xxxiii. 17; Job xvi. 15; Luke i 
69.) Hence it is frequently em 
ployed in prophetic visions, in 



noR 

Stead of kings and kingdoms. 
(Dan. vii. 20-24.1 Horns were 
used as vessels for liquids, espe¬ 
cially oil and perfumes, (1 Sam. 
xvi. 1 ; 1 Kings i. 39,) and also 
for trumpets. (Josh. vi. 8, 13.) 
The horn being the chief defence 
and strengtn of many beasts, to 
break or cut otf the horn of a 
king or people is to abridge or 
destroy their power; and to raise 
or exalt the horn is to establish 
or increase power and prosperity. 
So also among the aborigines of 
this country a like custom pre¬ 
vailed. The chief of the council 
which negotiated the treaty with 
William Penn opened the busi¬ 
ness by placing on his own head 
a crown with a horn in it, signi¬ 
ficant of supreme authority, by 
which the covenants of the treaty 
were made binding. 

Some have supposed that in 
those passages, Ps. lxxv. 5, 10, 
allusion is made to a hollow silver 



horn, four or five inches in dia¬ 
meter at the root, and rising ob¬ 
liquely from the forehead, which 
was worn as an ornament by 
oriental women, warriors and | 
28* 


HOR 

distinguished men. (1 Sam 
ii. 1.) 

They are noticed by travellers 
as worn by Abyssinian chiefs, and 
on the military caps of the sepoys 
of India. 

Horns of the Altar. (See 
A.LTA.R ) 

HORNET. (Deut. vii. 20.) A 
very large, strong and bold spe¬ 
cies of the wasp, remarkable for 
their irritability, and for the se¬ 
verity of their sting. Hornets 
were employed as instruments of 
the divine judgments upon the 
enemies of Israel. (Comp. Ex. 
xxiii. 28, and Josh. xxiv. 12.) 

HORSE. (Gen. xlix. 17.) In 
the early periods of the world, the 
labouring beasts were chiefly oxen 
and asses, while horses were used 
by kings and warriors, either 
mounted or harnessed to chariots. 
(Ex. xiv. 9, 23 ; Esth. vi. 8.) The 
use of horses by the Israelites was 
discouraged. (Deut. xvii. 16; 
Josh. xi. 6.) The reason is per¬ 
haps explained in Isa. xxxi. 1, 3. 
In Solomon’s time, however, 
horses were common among them, 
and he probably imported them 
from Syria and Egypt. (1 Kings 
iv. 26; x. 26, 29; 2 Chron. i.. 14— 
17; ix. 25.) Horses were conse¬ 
crated to idol-gods, (2 Kings xxiii. 
11,) and are often employed by 
the prophets, under different co¬ 
lours, to denote the character of 
future dispensations, (2cch. i. 8; 
vi. 2-6;) and so also are angels 
represented under the figure of 
horses, (2 Kings ii. 11; vi. 15- 
17;) because of the characteristic 
strength, fleetness and courage 
of that animal. (Job xxxix. 19-25.) 

HORSE-LEECH. (Prov. xxx. 
15.) A well-known insect of the 
water, resembling a worm, and 
remarkable for its thirst for blood, 







nos 

whicb is never satisfied until its 
body is completely filled. The 
figure in the above passage may 
illustrate the insatiable craving 
of lust, avarice and cruelty. 

HOSANNA (Matt. xxi. 9) is 
used either as a form of blessing 
or an ascription of praise. Thus, 
when Hosanna was cried, in the 
passage just cited, it was as if the 
people had shouted in joyful ac¬ 
clamations on every side, Lord, 
pre erve this Son of David; heap 
fav urs and blessings upon him. 
Tbv same exclamation is supposed 
to 1 ave been used in the proces¬ 
sion at the feast of tabernacles. 

EOSEA, prophecy of, is sup- 
post d to have been uttered about 
sevi n or eight hundred years be¬ 
fore Christ. This prophet was a 
son »f Beeri, and lived in Sama¬ 
ria; and if we construe the title 
of the prophecy literally, (Hos. 
i. 1,) we should infer that his pro¬ 
phecy embraced a period of at 
least eighty years. It is probable, 
however, that the work of Hosea 
begins with the second verse. 
The design of the prophecy is to 
reprove the people of Israel for 
their heinous sins and gross idol¬ 
atry, and to wa.-n Judah against 
falling into the same courses. 

The divine directions (Hos. i. 
2; iii. 1) have occasioned much 
speculation. The general idea 
seems to be, that at that time (as 
at the present day in many east¬ 
ern countries) it was common to 
form temporary marriagjs; dur¬ 
ing the continuance of which, 
strict fidelity and propriety were 
maintained on bvth sides, as when 
the contract was for a permanent 
union. So that, however revolt¬ 
ing it must seem to us, it was not 
scandalous in the prophet, but 
might possibly expose and re- 
339 


HOU 

prove the peculiar iniquity of the 

Tcrqpi i I'pq 

HOSHEA. 1. (Deut. xxxii.44.) 
The same with Joshua. 

2. (2 Kings xv. 30.) The son 
of Elah, and the last of the kings 
of Israel. In the ninth year of 
his reign, the Assyrian king, pro¬ 
voked by an attempt which Ho- 
shea made to form an alliance 
with Egypt, and so throw off" the 
Assyrian yoke, marched against 
Samaria, and, after a siege of 
three years, took it, and carried 
the people away into Assyria. 
(2 Kings xvii. 1-6; Hos. xiii. 16; 
Mic. i. 6.) 

HOUGH. (Josh. xi. 6, 9.) To 
disable by cutting the sinews of 
the ham, ( hamstrings .) 

HOUR. (Matt. xxv. 13.) A 
division of time known among us 
as the twenty-fourth part of a 
day. One of the earliest divi¬ 
sions of the day was into morn¬ 
ing, heat of the day, mid-day and 
evening; and the night, into first, 
second and third watches. The 
first use of the word hour by the 
sacred writers occurs, Dan. iii. 6; 
but the length of the time de¬ 
noted by it varied with the seasons 
of the year. The third, sixth 
and ninth hours of the day, count¬ 
ing from 6 a. m., were especially 
hours of prayer. 

HOUSE. (See Dwellings.) 
The word house is also used to de¬ 
note a family, (Gen. xii. 17; 1 
Tim. v. 8,) a race, or lineage, 
(Luke ii. 4,) and property, (1 
Kings xiii. 8.) 

House, in the New Testament, 
as some suppose, signifies the im¬ 
mediate family of the householder; 
while household includes all who 
dwell under his roof. 

House of the Rolls, (Ezra 
vi. 1,) ani 





HUM 

Treasure House, (Ezra v. 17,) I 
are both expressions supposed to ' 
refer to the same apartment, and 
denote the public depository of 
books. 

HUMILITY (Prov. xv. 33) is 
the opposite of pride, and one of 
the cardinal graces of the re¬ 
newed heart. It consists in a 
man’s not thinking* of himself 
more highly than he ought to 
think ; and is urged with great 
force upon all who profess to be 
Christ's disciples. (1 Pet. v. 5.) 
In this as in all other respects, 
our divine Saviour’s life furnishes 
us with a perfect example, (Phil, 
ii. 5-8;) and the .sacred Scrip¬ 
tures abound with pro¬ 
mises of grace and fa¬ 
vour to the humble, 
and threatenings of 
sorrow and punish¬ 
ment to the proud. 

II U R. (Ex. xvii. 

10.) The son of Caleb, 
and one of the chief 
men of the Israelites. 

(Ex. xxiv. 14.) 

HUSBAND. (See 
Marriage.) (Matt. i. 

16.) A married man, 
ami, as some derive it, 
the house-band, or one 
who connects the fami¬ 
ly and keeps it together. 

A man betrothed, but 
not married, was call¬ 
ed a husband, as the es¬ 
pousals were considered 
sacred aud inviolable. 

The husband is the 
head of the wife, (Eph. 
v. 23,) inasmuch as he 
is the headof the house-, 
hold, (though she is 
associated with him,) 
and, as such, he is entitled to the 
respect and affection of all. 


HUS 

HUSBANDMAN. (John xv. 1.) 
One whose profession and labuui 
is to cultivate the ground. It io 
among the most ancient and ho¬ 
nourable occupations. (Gen. ix. 
20 ; Isa. xxviii. 24-28.) All the 
Jews who were not consecrated 
to religious offices were agricultu¬ 
rists. The force and appropri¬ 
ateness of the figurative use of this 
term by the sacred writers ar? 
sufficiently obvious from their 
connection. 

IIUSUAL (2 Sam. xv. 32.) 
An Archite, (Josh. xvi. 2,) and 
a particular and faithful friend of 
David. (2 Sam. xvi. 16.) 

HUSKS (Luke xv. 16) means 


Carob Tree. 

either shells—as of peas or beans 
—or the fiuit of the carob tree, 
331 





HYM 

which is common in Palestiie, and 
is used for food by the poor and 
for the fattening of cattle and 
swine. 

It is supposed by some that it 
was on the fruit of this tree that 
John the Baptist subsisted, and 
hence it is often called St. John’s 
bread-tree, and also the Locust 
tree. The idea is not authorized, 
however. 

HYMENEUS, (2 Tim. ii. 17.) 
This name is mentioned once with 
Alexander and once with Philetus. 
He denied the doctrine of a future 
resurrection, and was given up 
to Satan. (1 Tim. i. 20. Comp. 
1 Cor. v. 5.) 

HYSSOP. (John xix. 29.) A 
plant of which there are many 
varieties, some of which may have 
possessed detergent properties, 
which led to its use in the cere- 


IDD 

monies of purification. The pas¬ 
sage first above cited, and the 
parallel passages, Matt, xxvii. 48 
and Mark xv. 36, are easily recon 
ciled by considering that the 
stick on which the sponge was 
fastened was a branch of hyssop. 



Hyssop. 


ICE 

CE. (See Crystal.) 
ICHABOD. (1 Sam. iv. 21, 
22.) The son of Phinehas, and 
grandson of Eli the high-priest. 
He was born just after his mother 
received the sad tidings that her 
husband and father-in-law were 
dead, and the ark of God taken 
by the Philistines. Such was the 
effect of these tidings upon her, 
that she died immediately upon 
the birth of her child; giving him 
the significant name fchabod, or 
the glory is departing. 

ICONIUM. (Acts xiii 51.) J 
city of ancient Lycaonia, in Asia 
Minor, at the foot of mount Taurus, 
now called Conia, or Cogni, the 
capital of Caramania, and resi¬ 
dence of a pasha. It contains at 
present about 15,000 inhabitants. 
It was visited by Paul and Bar- 
332 


IDD 

nabas, who preached the gospel 
there, and were so persecuted in 
consequence of it as to be obliged 
to leave the place. (Acts xiv. 1-6.) 
Iconium is mentioned by several 
ancient historians. 

IDDO. (2 Chron. ix. 29.) In 
this passage are mentioned the 
visions of Iddo the seer against 
Jeroboam, <fcc.; and in 2 Chron. 
xii. 15, is mentioned the book of 
Iddo the seer concerning genea¬ 
logies: and again, it is said, (2 
Chron. xiii. 22,) that the rest of 
the acts of Abijah, and his ways 
and his sayings, are written in the 
story (or commentary) of the pro¬ 
phet Iddo. These expressions 
may all refer to one and the same 
volume. He was probably a pro¬ 
phet and annalist of some distine. 
tion, and .is supposed oy many 







IDL 

hftvt neen the person who was 
slain by a lion, as recorded 1 
Kings xiiL Several others of the 
same name are mentioned, of 
whose history we know nothing. 

IDLE, (Matt. xii. 36,) in this 
connection, means pernicious, 
false or calumnious words. 

IDOL, (1 Kings xv. 13,) IDO¬ 
LATRY. (Acts xvii. 16.) What¬ 
ever receives the worship which 
is due only to God is an idol. In 
a figurative sense, the word de¬ 
notes any thing which draws the 
affections from God, (Col. iii. 5;) 
and in a restricted sense, it de¬ 
notes any visible image or figure 
to which religious worship is paid. 
(Deut. xxix. 17.) 

Idolatry consists, (1.) In wor¬ 
shipping, as the true God, some 
other person or thing besides Je¬ 
hovah; and, (2.) Worshipping 
the true God under some image, 
as the golden calf. (Ex. xxxii. 
4, 5.) 

When the worship of idols com¬ 
menced is uncertain. It was pre¬ 
valent at a very early period of 
the world; and, as some suppose, 
was no inconsiderable part of the 
general corruption which called 
down the judgment of the deluge. 
(Gen. vi. 12.) The pagans wor¬ 
shipped universal nature, the soul 
of the world; angels, demons and 
the souls of departed men, either 
separate and alone, or in union 
with some star or other body. 
They worshipped the heavens, 
and in them both particular lu¬ 
minaries and constellations; the 
atmosphere, and in it the meteors 
and fowls of the air; the earth, 
and in it beasts, birds, insects, 
plants, graves and hills, together 
with divers fossils, and fire. 
They worshipped the water, and 
in it the sea and rivers; and in 


I Dv 

them fishes, serpents and insects, 
together with such creatures aa 
live in either element. They 
worshipped men, both living and 
dead, and in them the faculties 
and endowments of the soul, as 
well as the several accidents and 
conditions of life. Nay, they wor¬ 
shipped the images of animals, 
oven the most hateful, such as 
dragons, crocodiles, <&c.; and at 
last descended so low as to pay 
a religious regard to things in¬ 
animate, herbs and plants and 
the most offensive vegetables. 

No wonder that the command¬ 
ment which tquehes this point 
should so particularly specify the 
objects which should not be re¬ 
presented in the form of graven 
images. (Ex. xx. 4.) 

Usefulness was the common, 
but it was not the only quality 
that determined the object of 
idolatry; for we may find, that 
whatever delighted with its tran¬ 
scendent beauty, whatever af¬ 
frighted with its malignant power, 
whatever astonished with its un¬ 
common greatness; whatever, in 
short, was beautiful, hurtful or ma¬ 
jestic, became a deity, as well as 
what was profitable for its use. The 
sun, it was soon perceived, had 
ail these powers and properties 
united in it: its beauty was glo¬ 
rious to behold; its motion won¬ 
derful to consider; its heat occa¬ 
sioned different effects, barreness 
in some places and fruitfulness 
in others; and the immense globe 
of its light appeared highly ex¬ 
alted and riding in triumph, as it 
were, round the world. The moon, 
it was seen, supplied the absence 
of the sun by night, gave a friend¬ 
ly light to the earth, and besides 
the great variety of its phases, 
had a wonderful influence over 

m 



IDO 

the sea and other humid bodies. 
The stars were admired for their 
height and magnitude, the order 
of their positions, and celerity of 
their motions; and thence the 
people were persuaded, either that 
some celestial vigour or other re¬ 
sided in them, or that the souls 
ot their heroes and great men 
were translated into them when 
they died; and upon these and 
similar presumptions, they be¬ 
lieved all celestial bodies to be 
deities. The force of fire, the se¬ 
renity of air, the usefulness of 
water, as well as the terror and 
dreadfulness of thunder and light¬ 
ning, gave rise to the consecration 
of the meteors and elements. The 
sea, swelling with its proud sur¬ 
face, and roaring with its mighty 
billows, was such an awful sight, 
and the earth, bedecked with all 
its plants, flowers and fruits, such 
a lovely one, as might naturally 
draw forth a pagan’s veneration ; 
when, for similar motives, viz. 
their beneficial, hurtful delight¬ 
ful or astonishing properties, 
beasts, birds, fishes, insects and 
even vegetables themselves, came 
to be adored. 

The pride And pomp of the 
great, and the abject spirits of the 
mean, occasioned first the flattery, 
and then the worship of kings and 
princes as gods upon earth. Men 
famous for their adventures and 
exploits, the founders of nations 
or cities, or the inventors of use¬ 
ful arts and sciences, were rever¬ 
enced while they lived, and, af¬ 
ter death, canonized. The pre¬ 
vailing notion of the soul’s im¬ 
mortality made them imagine, 
that the spirits of such excellent 
persons either immediately as¬ 
cended up into heaven and set¬ 
tled there in some orb or other, or 
234 


IDO 

that they hovered in the air; 
whence by solemn invocations, 
and by making some statue or 
image to resemble them, they 
might be prevailed upon to come 
down and inhabit it. 

Whether the idolatry of image- 
worship originated in Chaldea or 
in Egypt we have no data from 
history to determine; but wher¬ 
ever it had its origin, the apostle 
Paul has sufficiently accounted 
for the grounds and reasons of it, 
when he says that men profess¬ 
ing themselves to be wise, became 
fools, and changed the glory of 
the incorruptible God into an 
image made like to corruptible 
man, and to birds, and four-footed 
beasts, and creeping things. (E om. 
i. 22, 23.) 

Such is the strong tendency of 
depraved nature to fall into this 
sin, that the Israelites, the chosen 
people of God, were subjected to 
a twofold restraint. God was 
their king, and hence idolatry 
with them was not only impiety, 
but treason. The positive pre¬ 
cepts, and severe punishments 
with which the Jewish law met 
every approach to idolatry, and 
the rigorous prohibition of all in¬ 
tercourse with the idolatrous na¬ 
tions which surrounded them, 
show plainly how abominable the 
sin of idolatry is in the sight of 
God : so that customs which might 
excite or entice to idolatrous prac¬ 
tices, and which in any other 
view might seem perfectly inno¬ 
cent, were strictly forbidden. 
(Deut. xii. xiii.) Probably many 
peculiar provisions of the Jewish 
law, which appear to us arbitrary 
or trifling, may have originated 
in this very circumstance. Not¬ 
withstanding all that was done to 
guard them against it, the people 



IDO 

of Israel fell into some of tho 
most cruel and shocking practices 
of idolatry. Even the sacrifice 
of children, forbidden as it was 
under the most severe and sum¬ 
mary penalties, (Lev. xx. 2,) was 
very common. Jeremiah and Eze¬ 
kiel both speak of it as a practice 
prevailing in or near their time. 
(Jer. vii. 31; Ezek. xvi. 21.) 

The rites of idolatry were gene¬ 
rally impure and obscene in the 
highest degree. The priests and 
the gods were alike the slaves and 
the patrons of the most scandal¬ 
ous and filthy practices; and 
hence the word whoredom is of¬ 
ten used as synonymous with 
idolatry. Indeed, the present 
state of the heathen world, as it 
is represented by our own mis¬ 
sionaries, who have seen and 
heard with their own senses, 
shows conclusively that debase¬ 
ment of mind, utter alienation of 
the heart from every thing pure 
and holy, the grossest immorali¬ 
ties and the most licentious 
practices, are inseparable from 
idolatry. 

Papists deny the charge of idol¬ 
atry, and justify their use of 
images, by saying that they mere¬ 
ly serve to remind them of the 
objects represented. They say, 
that by casting their eyes on the 
images or pictures of beings, their 
thoughts are raised to the beings 
themselves. They assert, how¬ 
ever, that saints are to be honour¬ 
ed and vindicated, and their relics 
respected, and that the images of 
Christ, the Virgin Mary and the 
saints, ought to receive due honour 
and veneration. How far these 
practices are distinguishable from 
idolatry, this is not the place to 
inquire. The history of mankind 
shows us that those who are ac- 


IMA 

customed to behold allegorical 
and symbolical figures in theil 
places of religious worship, soon 
forget the invisible object of ado¬ 
ration in the emblem by which it 
is set forth, and very naturally 
sink into that superstition which 
is so congenial to the gross con¬ 
ceptions and depraved inclina¬ 
tions of man. 

It is estimated that more than 
600,000,000, or about two-thirds 
of the human family, are worship¬ 
pers of idols. 

Sometimes idol-temples were 
the repositories of treasure, (Judg. 
ix. 4,) and were protected by a 
tower. (Judg. ix. 46.) 

IDUMEA. (See Edom.) 

IJE-ABARIM. (See Abarim.) 

ILLYRICUM. (Rom. xv. 19.) 
A province northwest of Mace¬ 
donia, lying along the Adriatic 
Sea, having Italy and Germany 
on the north, and Macedonia on 
the east. Its southern portion 
was tho Dalmatia which Titus 
visited. (2 Tim. iv. 10.) Taking 
Jerusalem as a centre, it will ap¬ 
pear that Illyricum was nearly 
the extreme northwestern pro¬ 
vince of what was then no small 
part of the known world. Perhaps 
Paul went into Illyricum ; but he 
speaks here only of having preach¬ 
ed the gospel unto its borders.. 

IMAGE. (Gen. i. 26, 27.) We 
are told that God created man in 
his own image; and Christ is said 
to be the image of God. (Col. i. 
15; Heb. i. 3.) The term im¬ 
ports a complete and exact like¬ 
ness, like that which exists be¬ 
tween a seal and its impression, 
when the original is perfectly pre¬ 
served in the representation. The 
word is usually employed to de. 
note an object of idolatrous wor 
ship. (See Man, Idol.) 

335 



IMM 

IMMANUEL. (Isa. vii. 14.) A 
Hebrew word, signifying “ God 
with us,” and used as one of the 
distinctive titles of the Messiah. 
(See Ahaz, Christ.) 

IMMORTAL, IMMORTAL¬ 
ITY. (1 Cor. xv. 53 y 1 Tim. i. 
17.) A state of being not subject 
to death. It is one of the attri¬ 
butes of the Supreme Being. 

The bodies which we inhabit 
while in this world are corruptible, 
exposed to sickness, pain and 
death; but the soul can never 
die as the body dies. Its very 
nature is immortal. There is a 
Bense in which the state of being, 
on which the souls of all men en¬ 
ter at death, is immortal. But 
the Scriptures speak of the future 
existence of the righteous as a 
state of immortality or eternal 
life, in distinction from the state 
of the wicked, (Matt. xxv. 46; 
Rom. ii. 7 ;) and it is obvious that 
the phrase immortal or eternal 
death, might be employed to ex¬ 
press forcibly the nature of the 
punishment to which the wicked 
will be doomed in the world to 
come. 

IMPUTE. (Rom. v. 13.) By 
comparing ver. 18 of the Epistle 
to Philemon, with Rom. iv. 5-13, 
we shall see the force of this term. 
The words translated put that on 
mine account in the former pas¬ 
sage, and that which is considered 
by the words counted, impute and 
imputed, in the other, have a com¬ 
mon origin and meaning. The 
plain Christian sees and feels the 
force of the expression; and though 
he may be ignorant of technical 
distinctions, yet while he believes 
on One that justifieth the ungod¬ 
ly, he feels the blessedness of him 
to whom the Lord will not impute 
sin. The great principle involved 
336 


INI) 

is, that the sinner who accepts 
Christ is delivered from the guilt, 
power and punishment of sin, and 
is justified in or by a righteous¬ 
ness which is not his own, but the 
gift of God through Jesus Christ 
His sins are put to the account of 
another, and another’s righteous¬ 
ness is put to his account. 

INCENSE (Ex. xxx. 8) was a 
compound of frankincense and 
other gums or spices; the mate¬ 
rials and manufacture of which 
are particularly prescribed, Ex. 
xxx. 34-36. (See Frankincense.) 
It was the business of the priest 
to burn it morning and evening, 
upon an altar specially erected for 
this purpose; and thence called 
the altar of incense. The prepa¬ 
ration of it for common use was 
positively forbidden; neither could 
any other composition be offered 
as incense on this altar, nor could 
this be offered by any but the 
priest. (See Censer. See Bib¬ 
lical Antiquities, vol. ii. pp. 
46, 49.) 

INCHANTERS, ENCHANT¬ 
MENTS. (Ex. vii. 11; Deut. 
xviii. 10.) Inchanters were per¬ 
sons who pretended to possess the 
power of charming animals, <fec. 
The practice of inchantment is al¬ 
lied to witchcraft and sorcery; 
and both the practice and prac¬ 
tises are decidedly condemned 
by God’s law. (Deut. xviii. 9-12.) 
It is unquestionably true that per¬ 
sons have sometimes obtained a 
wonderful influence, particularly 
over serpents of the most deadly 
species; instances of which are 
often stated by eastern travellers. 

INDIA. (Esth. i. 1; viii. 9.) 
The southern section of the con¬ 
tinent of Asia. It is only men¬ 
tioned as the eastern boundary of 
the dominions of Ahasuerus. 




I NG 

INGATHERING, feast of. 
(See Feasts./ 

INHERITANCE. (Gen. xxxi. 
14.) In the modern us6 of this 
word, it denotes the estate to 
which one succeeds on the death 
of the present possessor, and who 
is hence called his heir. In east¬ 
ern countries, however, the por¬ 
tions of children were distributed 
to them by the father during his 
lifetime. Among the Hindoos, 
the father is bound to make an 
equal distribution of his property 
whenever his children, in a body, 
apply for it. Hence the legiti¬ 
macy of the application which the 
prodigal son and his brother made, 
and whjch resulted in the father’s 
dividing unto them his living. 
(Luke xv. 12.) 

The word inheritance is also 
used, in a more general sense, to 
denote property, or participation. 
(Comp. Ezek. xxxiii. 24, with Acts 
vii. 5.) 

INIQUITY. (Gen. xv. 16.) 
Whatever is done regardless of 
the law of God. Sin is the trans¬ 
gression of the law: iniquity is 
a contempt or disregard of the 
law. (Ps. li. 2, 9; ciii. 10.) To 
hear the iniquity of the congrega¬ 
tion (Lev. x. 17) is to make that 
expiation or atonement which is 
a prerequisite to their forgive¬ 
ness. (Isa. liii. 6.) 

INK, INKIIORN, (Jer. xxxvi. 
18 ; Ezok. ix. 2.) It is supposed 
that the common ink of early 
ages was made of water and pul¬ 
verized charcoal, or the black of 
burnt ivory, with the addition of 
some kind of gum. Other sub¬ 
stances were doubtless used both 
for writing and colouring matter. 
The Romans used a dark purple 
liquid, which was obtained from 
a species of fish for this purpose. 

29 W 


INS 

The ink in common use at this 
day has been known for several 
centuries in European countries, 
and is usually made of nutgalls, 
vitriol and gum. Ancient ink waa 
more caustic, and less liable to 
fade or decay. Chinese ink is of 
the same quality. The professed 
writers or scrips carried with 
them, as they do at the present 
day in eastern countries, the im¬ 
plements of their business; and 
among these was an inkhorn , 
thrust into the girdle at the side. 

INN. (Luke x. 34.) In the 
earliest ages, an inn was nothing 
more than the well or other con¬ 
venient place where the company 
of travellers and their weary 
beasts reposed for rest and re¬ 
freshment. At a later period it 
was the caravansary, a very com¬ 
fortless, temporary enclosure, 
without rooms or doors. After¬ 
wards the inns became what the 
caravansaries of Persia are at the 
present day—a place where tra¬ 
vellers may buy lodging, food and 
fuel. This was perhaps such an 
inn as accommodated the poor 
wounded man, in the beautiful 
story of the good Samaritan; and 
it was to the stable or out-build¬ 
ing of such an inn that Mary was 
obliged to resort with the infant 
Saviour, because the general en¬ 
rolment had brought so many 
strangers to the place as to fill the 
house before they arrived. 

INSPIRATION (2 Tim. iii. 16) 
is a supernatural divine influence 
exerted upon the human mind, by 
means of which the individual is 
made to know r certainly, and to 
speak truly what could not have 
been so known in the ordinary 
exercise of the faculties, and with¬ 
out any such influence. When 
this influence is so exerted as ab- 
337 



INS 

eolutaly to exclude uncertainty 
and all mixture of error in a de¬ 
claration of doctrines or facts, it is 
called a plenary or full inspiration. 
And the book written under such 
an influence, though it may con¬ 
tain many things which the author 
might have known and recorded 
by his natural faculties, is properly 
said to be an inspired book. Nor 
is it necessary that the particular 
style and method of the writer 
should be abandoned. God may 
have wise purposes to answer in 
preserving this, while he secures, 
through its agency, an infallible 
declaration of his will. So that 
style, manner, <fcc. may be of the 
author’s own choice, provided 
the facts stated and the doctrines 
taught as of divine authority, are 
stated and taught under an imme¬ 
diate divine influence, without the 
possibility of error. And even if 
it should appear that the copies of 
Buch a book now in the world 
have suffered from the injuries of 
time, and the carelessness of 
transcribers and printers, so that 
inaccuracies and discrepancies of 
unessential importance might be 
detected, still if the substance of 
the book, if the grand system of 
truth or duty revealed, is evident¬ 
ly, as a whole, the result of such 
divine inspiration,*it is to be re¬ 
ceived and may be entirely cre¬ 
dited as an inspired book. 

Theological writers speak of the 
inspiratiom of elevation, by which 
the natural faculties are endued 
with supernatural power, and rise 
to those sublime conceptions of 
divine things, which by their na¬ 
tural force they could not attain; 
and also the inspiration of sug¬ 
gestion, by which the truth is sug¬ 
gested directly to the mind by the 
Spirit of God, and also the lan- 
338 


IRO 

guage in which it is to be declared 
to others. Such was the revela¬ 
tion to John in the isle of Pat- 
mos. All these various degrees 
or kinds of inspiration are sup¬ 
posed to occur in our Scriptures. 
And sometimes they are combin¬ 
ed. (See The Mine Exploiied, 
Part i. ch. i. 2 3; Scripture.) 

INSTRUMENTS OF MUSIC. 
(See Music.) 

INTERCESSION, INTER¬ 
CESSOR. (Isa. liii. 12; lix. 16.) 
To intercede for another is to ap¬ 
pear for him or interpose in his 
behalf, and to plead for him. (1 
Tim. ii. 1.) It usually implies 
guilt or obligation ; and the ob¬ 
ject of the intercessor is tQ recon¬ 
cile or satisfy the offended party, 
and procure the release and par¬ 
don of the offender. It sometimes 
denotes the reverse of this. (Rom. 
xi. 2.) 

The Spirit is said to make in¬ 
tercession for us. (Rom. viii. 26.) 
This is to be understood as refer¬ 
ring to that peculiar influence of 
the Spirit upon the heart, by 
which it is taught, and guided, 
and enabled to cherish and breathe 
forth holy desires, which God will 
graciously accept through the 
complete and effectual mediation 
of Him who ever liveth to make 
intercession for us. As to the 
fact of Christ’s intercession, see 
Rom. viii. 34 ; 1 Tim. ii. 5; 1 John 
ii. 1; and the manner of it is il¬ 
lustrated, Heb. vii.-x., in which 
chapters the continued interces¬ 
sion of Christ, and the sacrifice of 
himself as the ground of his in¬ 
tercession, are presented to the 
mind as a most affecting evidence 
of the nature and effect of sin. 

IRON. (Prov. xxvii. 17.) Some 
of the uses of this well-known and 
most valuable metal were probably 




ISA 

understood at a very early j eriod. 
(Gen. iv. 22.) We find it men¬ 
tioned as the material for tools, 
(Deut. xxvii. 5; 2 Kings vi. 6;) 
weapons of war, (1 Sam. xvii. 7;) 
furniture, (Deut.iii.il;) imple¬ 
ments of husbandry, (2 Sam. xii. 
31; Jer. xxviii. 14 ;) and chariots 
of war, (Josh. xvii. 16, <fcc. Ac.) 
By northern iron (Jer. xv. 12) pro¬ 
bably is intended a species of iron 
ore or manufacture remarkable for 
its hardness, found in a region 
bordering on the Euxine Sea, and 
of course north of Judea. 

It is naturally supposed from 
the connection, that by the ex¬ 
pression, a land whose stones are 
iron, (Deut. viii. 9,) is intended 
an abundance of iron ore; and a 
passage of like import occurs in 
the description of the lot of Asher, 
(Deut. xxxiii. 25,) where the read¬ 
ing might be, under thy shoes are 
iron and brass. 

ISAAC, (Gen. xxi. 3,) the son 
of Abraham and Sarah, was born 
a.m. 2108. The origin of the 
name, which signifies laughter, is 
given in Gen. xvii. 17; xviii. 12; 
and xxi. 6. 

Abraham’s laughter was that of 
joy; Sarah’s, that of incredulity. 
Isaac’s birth was the subject of 
many remarkable prophecies; and 
he was made, by express covenant 
with Abraham, the ancestor of the 
promised Messiah. (Gen. xxi. 12.) 
When he had arrived at mature 
years, his father was required to 
offer him up in sacrifice; and his 
conduct on this occasion as re¬ 
markably illustrated his docility 
and submission and filial confi¬ 
dence, as the course of Abraham 
did his obedience and taith. (See 
Abraham.) He married Rebe- 
kah, the daughter of Bethuel, and 
by her became the father of Jacob 


ISA 

and Esau. His possessions were 
very great,(Gen. xxvi. 12,13;) but 
his old age was embittered by do¬ 
mestic trials. (Gen. xxvi. 35, 
xxvii.) He died at Hebron, at the 
advanced period of one hundred 
and eighty years. (Gen. xxxv. 28^ 
29.) For a particular history ol 
Isaac, see Jacob and his son Jo¬ 
seph. 

ISAIAH. (2 Kings xx. 1.) 
Very little is known of the per 
sonal history of this eminent pro 
phet. We know that he was tht 
son of Amoz, and the Jews say 
that Amoz was the brother of Ama- 
ziah king of Judah. Isaiah lived 
and prophesied between the year 
of the world 3164 and 3305 ; for 
the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz 
and Hezelciah embrace that period, 
and his prophecy was uttered in 
their successive reigns. The his¬ 
tory of these reigns is in 2 Kings 
xv.-xx.; 2 Chron. xxvi.-xxxii. 
Some passages of it are given by 
Isaiah, as in ch. vii. viii. xxxvi.- 
xxxix. Uzziah or Azariah reigned 
fifty-two years, Jotham and Ahaz 
each sixteen, and Hezekiah twen¬ 
ty-nine, making in all one hundred 
and thirteen: though of course 
Isaiah did not live throughout the 
whole of their reigns. The period 
of the four reigns extends from 
the year of the world 3194 to 3306, 
being before Christ 810 to 698. 
The city of Rome was founded in 
the time of Isaiah, namely in the 
year before Christ 753. 

Isaiah was nearly contemporary 
with Hosea, Joel, Amos and Mi- 
cah; and tradition says that ho 
was one of the faithful who were 
sawn asunder, (Heb. xi. 37,) and 
that the event happened about 
698 years before Christ. There is 
no evidence, however, as to the 
time or manner of his death. 

339 



ISH 

Prophecy of, is regarded as 
one of the most complete and sub¬ 
lime of all the prophetical writ¬ 
ings. Its references to the ad¬ 
vent, offices and kingdom of the 
Messiah are so numerous and ex¬ 
act as to have obtained for its au¬ 
thor the title of the evangelical 
prophet; and the name Isaiah 
f the salvation of Jehovah) indi- 
lates the same characteristic of 
this sublime book. 

The first thirty-nine chapters 
of the prophecy relate to subjects 
and events unconnected with each 
other, and embrace the period dur¬ 
ing which the prophet was more 
actively and openly employed as 
a minister. The residue of the 
bock relates chiefly to two events, 
—the end of the Babylonish cap¬ 
tivity, and the coming of the Mes¬ 
siah ; the latter of which he seems 
to have contemplated with a very 
distinct and elevated conception, 
not only of the circumstances of 
its commencement, but of its pro¬ 
gress, glory and ultimate triumph. 

ISHBOSHETH, (2 Sam. ii. 8,) 
son and successor of Saul, was per¬ 
suaded by Abner to go up to Ma- 
hanaim and assume the govern¬ 
ment, while David reigned at He¬ 
bron, (2 Sam. ii. 11;) and a ma¬ 
jority of the nation of Israel ac¬ 
knowledged him as king. A se¬ 
vere battle soon after occurred at 
Gibeon, between the army of Da¬ 
vid under Joab, and the army of 
Ishbosheth under Abner; in which 
the latter was utterly defeated. 

Soon after this, Ishbosheth of¬ 
fended Abner, so tnat he forsook 
Sis interest, and became the ally 
of David; and at length Ishbo- 
eheth was assassinated at noon¬ 
day, while he lay on his bed. (2 
Sam. iv. 5-7.; 

IS III, (Hos. ii. 16,) signifying 

340 


ISR 

my husband, and BAALI, in the 
same passage, signifying my Lord, 
are figuratively used to denote the 
contrast between the affections 
and relations of Israel towards 
God, at two different periods of 
their history. The latter having 
been used in idol-worship, the 
very name was to become obso¬ 
lete. (Hos. ii. 17.) 

ISHMAEL. (Gen.xvi.il.) 
The son of Abraham by Hagar. 
Previous to his birth, his mother, 
being ill-treated by Sarah, fled 
from the house, and while in the 
wilderness was informed by an 
angel what would be the charac¬ 
ter of her child, and that his pos¬ 
terity would be innumerable. The 
birth of Ishmael was in A. m. 2094 ; 
and as Abraham supposed that 
the promises of God respecting 
his seed were to be fulfilled in Ish¬ 
mael, he nurtured him with much 
care. (Gen. xvii. 18.) 

When Isaac was weaned, Ish¬ 
mael was about seventeen years 
of age, and having offended Sarah 
by his treatment of her child, she 
insisted upon it that both he and 
his mother Hagar should be ban¬ 
ished from the family. 

Hagar probably made up her 
mind to return to her kindred in 
Egypt; but when she had reached 
the wilderness of Beersheba, her 
stock of water was exhausted, and 
the lad, overcome with fatigue 
and thirst, sunk down, apparently 
to die. God appeared for their 
deliverance, directed Hagar to a 
fountain of water, and renewed 
his promise to make of him a great 
nation. (See Notable Women of 
Olden Time.) They remained in 
the wilderness, and he sustained 
himself and his mother by hunting. 
(Gen. xxi. 13-20.) At length he 
married an Egyptian woman; and 



ISH 

60 rapidly did his progeny multi¬ 
ply, that in a few years afterwards 
they are spoken of as a trading 
nation. (Gen. xxxvii. 25.) 

The prophecy that he should bo 
a wild man, or literally a wild ass 
man, or as wild as a wild ass, has 
been wonderfully verified in the 
history of the Arabs, who are a 
branch of his posterity. They 
are universally known as robbers 
and pirates; and all who pass 
through their country do it in ca¬ 
ravans, and with arms. They 
have never been driven from their 
territory, but have maintained 
their independence and peculiar¬ 
ity of manners and customs up 
to the present day, though they 
have lived in the midst of influ¬ 
ences and events, and have been 
themselves instrumental in their 
occurrence, by which the relations 
of all the other kingdoms of the 
earth have been essentially modi¬ 
fied, if not completely subverted. 

The wild man still spurns the 
chains of a foreign conqueror, still 
waylays the traveller by the foun¬ 
tain, and maintains himself, as in 
the days of old, by violence and 
plunder, sweeping his troop of 
fierce bandits across the path of 
the merchant and the pilgrim. 
The parcelling of the natives into 
independent tribes impaired their 
common strength. No necessity 
ever summoned them to combine 
for their mutual defence; no mo¬ 
tives of external advantage jould 
prevail with them to suspend 
their domestic feuds; and n*lead¬ 
er, till Mohammed arose, seems 
tc have possessed the genius or 
address to concentrate their im¬ 
petuous energies with a view to 
national aggrandizement. 

ISHMAELITES. (Gen. 
xxxvii. 25.) The descendants of 
29* 


1SR 

Ishmael. The company of Ish 
maelites to whom Joseph was sold, 
are elsewhere called Midianites 
(Gen. xxxvii. 28.) Probably the} 
were Ishmaelites who dwelt in 
Midian. It is evident, however, 
that the two names were some¬ 
times a'pplied to the same people, 
(Judg. viii. 22, 24,) though we 
know the descendants of Midian 
were not Ishmaelites, for Midian 
was a son of Abraham by Keturah. 

ISLANDS, ISLES, &c. (Isa. 
xlii. 12.) These words, as used 
in our version, import either, (1.) 
A settlement or colony, as distin¬ 
guished from an uninhabited 
country, or from seas and rivers, 
(as in Gen. x. 5; Job xxii. 30, 
and Isa. xlii. 15;) so at this day, 
small districts of cultivated and 
settled country, surrounded by 
immense wastes, are, in the same 
sense, called islands; or, (2.) Coast 
or country adjacent to water or 
maritime places, (as Isa. xx. 6, 
and xxiii. 2, 6, and Ezek. xxvii. 
7;) or, (3.) Distant lands beyond 
the sea, or places which were 
reached by sea, whether coasts or 
islands, and especially the regions 
west of Palestine, whether islands 
or not, (as Isa. xxiv. 15; xl. 15 : 
and xlii. 4,10,12 ;) or,(4.) Islands, 
properly so called, (as Esth. x. 1,) 
where it is expressly used in dis¬ 
tinction from the continent or 
main land. 

Isles op the Gentiles, oi 
Heathen, (Gen. x. 5; Zeph. ii. 
11,) mean generally the parts of 
Europe most known to the ancient 
Asiatics. 

ISRAEL. (Gen. xxxv. 10.) 
The surname of Jacob, given to 
him fcy the angel at Mahanaim. 
(Gen. xxxii. 28; Hos. xii. 3 ) It 
signifies the prince that pr^v+l* 
with God. 


34J 



ISK 

We find it used, however, for 
the whole race of Jacob’s poster¬ 
ity, (1 Oor. x. 18;) also for the 
kingdom of the ten tribes, as dis- 
tinguisned from Judah, (2 Kings 
xiv. 12;) and again for all true 
believers. (Isa. xlv. 17 ; Rom. ix. 
6; xi. 26.) 

Land op. (See Canaan.) 

Kingdom of. (See Israelites.) 

ISRAELITES. (Josh. iii. 17.) 
This was the usual name of the 
twelve tribes, from the time of 
their leaving Egypt until their 
revolt under Jeroboam, when the 
ten tribes constituted the kingdom 
of Israel , and the remaining two 
the kingdom of Judah. (See He¬ 
brews.) 

ISSACHAR (Gen. xxx. 18) was 
the fifth son of Jacob and Leah. 
The prophetical description of 
him, uttered by his father, (Gen. 
xlix. 14, 15,) was fulfilled in the 
fact that the posterity of Issachar 
were a laborious people, and ad¬ 
dicted to rural employments; 
hardy and patient to bear the bur¬ 
dens both of labour and war. 
(Judg. v. 15; 1 Chron. vii.* 1-5.) 

Tribe of, had its portion in one 
of the most fertile tracts of the 
country. It was a triangular sec¬ 
tion on the Jordan, between Zebu- 
Ion and Ephraim, including the 
rich valley of Jezreel; thus ful¬ 
filling the prediction of his father 
in this respect. (Gen. xlix. 14, 15.) 

ITALY. (Acts xviii. 2 ; xxvii. 
I, 6; Heb. xiii. 24.) This coun¬ 
try, of which Rome was the capi¬ 
tal in the days of Christ and his 
aposdes, is too well known to need 
description. It stretches out into 
the Mediterranean Sea, having 
the Adriatic on the northeast, the 
Tuscan Sea on the southwest, and 
France, Switzerland and Germany 
sn the north. 

342 


IVO 

ITIIAMAR. (See Eleazar.) 

IT UREA. (Luke iii. 1.) A 
province of Syria, which derived 
its name from Jetur, a son of Ish- 
mael, (Gen. xxv. 15; 1 Chron. i. 
31,) whose posterity inhabited it 
It was south of Trachonitis, be¬ 
yond Jordan, and probably in¬ 
cluded Auranitis and Batanea. It 
was overrun by a party of the Is¬ 
raelites in the time of Jotham 
king of Judah, and a vast quan¬ 
tity of spoil taken. (1 Chron. v. 19, 
22.) It is now called Djedour. 

IVORY. (1 Kings x. 18.) The 
substance of the tusk of the ele¬ 
phant That which is brought 



from Ceylon is regarded as most 
valuable. It was among the mer¬ 
chandise of Tyre (Ezek. xxvii. 15) 
and Tarshish. (1 Kings x. 22.) 
Solomon’s throne was built of it, 
(2 Chron. ix. 17, 21;) and so la¬ 
vishly was it used in architecture 
of various kinds, and cabinet 
work, as to justify the expressions 
found in Amos iii. 15; vi. 4, and 
Ezek. xxvii. 6. In the last of 
these passages ivory shrines are 
meant, used as little images are 
in modern times for superstitious 
purposes. 

The term ivory palaces (Ps xlv. 
8) is-*supposed to refer either to 
the country whence the perfume 
was obtained, or to boxes richly 
wrought, or inlaid with ivory, in 
which it was kept. 



JAB 

ABBOK. (Gen. xxxii. 22.) A 
brook rising in the mountains 
southeast of Gilead, and running 
in a rocky channel, through a 
deep ravine, about fifty miles west¬ 
ward, to the Jordan, separating 
the Amorites from the Ammonites. 
(Num. xxi. 24.) Jacob crossed it 
on his return from Mesopotamia. 
(Gen. xxxii. 22.) It is now called 
Zerka, (blue river;) and travellers 
speak of cliffs on either side of 
five hundred feet perpendicular 
height, with a breadth, from cliff 
to cliff, of not more than one hun¬ 
dred feet. In some places the 
stream is not more than thirty 
feet wide. 

J A B E S H, (1 Sam. xi. 5,) or 
JABESII-GILEAD, (Judg. xxi. 
8 ,) was situated at the foot of 
mount Gilead, within the terri¬ 
tory of Manasseh, on a small 
brook which is still called Tabes. 
In the days of the judges, this 
place was sacked by the Israelites, 
and nearly all the inhabitants cut 
off, because they refused their aid 
in a war upon the tribe of Ben¬ 
jamin. (Judg. xxi. 10.) After¬ 
wards it was besieged by the Am¬ 
monites, who refused to spare the 
citizens, unless they would con¬ 
sent to have their right eyes 
plucked out. (1 Sam xi. 2.) Hav¬ 
ing obtained a suspension of hos¬ 
tilities for a week, they took ad¬ 
vantage of the interval to secure 
the aid of Saul, who marched an 
army to their rescue, and sur¬ 
prised and defeated the Ammon¬ 
ites with great slaughter; a ser¬ 
vice for which the inhabitants of 
the city evinced their gratitude. 
(1 Sam. xxxi. 11, 12; 2 Sam. ii. 5.) 

JABIN. 1. (Josh. xi. 1.) King 
of Hazor, a northern district of 
Canaan. He attempted, by a for¬ 
midable alliance, to oppose the 


JAC 

progress of Joshua. He and his 
allies were utterly defeated in a 
battle at Merom, the city of Ha¬ 
zor was taken, and Jabin Dut to 
death. 

2 . (Judg. iv. 2.) Another king 
of the same name and place, who 
had great wealth and power, and 
was guilty of oppressing the chil¬ 
dren of Israel for twenty years. 
His army was defeated by De¬ 
borah and Barak, and Sisera, his 
principal general, put to death. 

JABNEEL, (Josh. xv. 11,) or 
JABNEH, (2 Chron. xxvi. 6,) 
was a city of the Philistines, situ¬ 
ated twelve miles south of Joppa. 
It was called Jamnia by the 
Greeks and Romans, and is now 
called Gebni, or Yebna. 

JACINTH. (Rev. ix. 17.) A 
precious stone, of a reddish-yellow 
or hyacinth colour, resembling 
the amethyst. 

JACOB, (Gen. xxv. 26,) the 
son of Isaac and Rebekah, and 
twin brother to Esau, received 
his name, which signifies sup- 
planter, from the circumstance 
which occurred at his birth. (Gen. 
xxv.) When these brothers grew 
up, Esau devoted himself to hunt¬ 
ing, and often gratified his aged 
father with savoury meat which 
he prepared from the fruits of the 
chase. By this means he became 
very much the favourite of Isaac ; 
while Jacob who was a plain, do¬ 
mestic man, was no less the fa¬ 
vourite of his mother. (Gen. xxv. 
27.) Isaac, apprehending that 
his end was drawing near, was 
desirous, before his departure, of 
pronouncing a solemn, paternal 
benediction on his eldest son. And 
that his mind might be excited to 
the lively exercise of affection, 
ho requested Esau to go out to 
the field and take some venison, 
343 



JAG . ^ 

and make him savour^'meat, such 
as he loved, and bring it t( him, 
that he might eat and bless him 
before he died. Previous to this 
Jacob had, for a mess of pottage, 
purchased from Esau his birth¬ 
right, which included the blessing 
bow about to be given. (Gen. 
xxv. 34.) Rebekah, having over¬ 
heard Isaac’s request to Esau, and 
no doubt being acquainted with 
the circumstance of the sale of 
the birthright, immediately con¬ 
ceived a plan of securing the pa¬ 
triarchal blessing, which was pro¬ 
phetic in its nature, for her fa¬ 
vourite; for, while Esau was in 
the pursuit of venison in the field, 
she induced Jacob to personate 
his brother, and to carry to his 
father savoury meat, prepared by 
herself from a tender kid. As 
Isaac’s eyes were so dim that he 
was unable to distinguish between 
his sons by their appearance, all 
that was necessary was to guard 
against detection, in case he 
should be led to feel the hands and 
face of Jacob; for Esau being 
very hairy, and Jacob smooth, 
it readily occurred to the latter 
that his father might resort to 
this method of identifying him. 
To prevent detection in this way, 
Rebekah covered the neck and 
bands of Jacob with the skin of 
the kid. Thus prepared, he ven¬ 
tured into his father’s presence, 
and by means of liev and fraud 
obtained the chief blessing, which 
was intended for the first-born. 
When Esau returned,the deception 
was rendered manifest; but Isaac, 
though deeply distressed on ac¬ 
count of his mistake, and though 
importunately and with tears en¬ 
treated by Esau, would not con¬ 
sent to change any thing which 
had gone out of his mouth; and , 
344 


JAC 

Esau received, indeed, a bene¬ 
diction, but not that of the first¬ 
born, which was already given to 
Jacob. By this fraud and injury, 
the enmity of Esau to his brother 
was excited to the highest degree, 
(Gen. xxvii. 41;) and he threat¬ 
ened to take away his life, as 
soon as his father’s funeral should 
be over. Rebekah, hearing of 
these threats, persuaded Isaac to 
send Jacob away to Haran, to her 
brother Laban, until his brother’s 
anger should subside. Accord¬ 
ingly, Jacob having again received 
his father’s blessing, and a charge 
not to take a wife of the daughters 
of Canaan, (as Esau had done, to 
the sore grief of his parents,) set 
off on his journey to Padan-aram. 
(Gen. xxviii. 5.) As he journeyed, 
he came to a certain place and re¬ 
solved to lodge there; and taking 
some stones of the place for a pil¬ 
low, he lay down to sleep. As he 
slept God made known to him, in 
a remarkable dream, that his pos¬ 
terity should be very numerous; 
that they should one day possess 
the soil on which he was then re¬ 
posing; that he should be person¬ 
ally protected and prospered; and 
that in him all the families of the 
earth should be blessed. This 
place was afterwards called Bethel. 
(Gen. xxvii. xxviii.) 

When Jacob came near to thr 
residence of his mother’s kindred, 
he saw in the field a well, where 
were three flocks of sheep, and 
their shepherds with them; and 
on inquiry, he found that they be¬ 
longed to Haran, and that Rachel, 
the daughter of Laban, was thou 
approaching. The meeting be¬ 
tween Jacob and the young and 
beautiful shepherdess, his cousin, 
made an impression on his heart 
which was indelible. Soon aftoi 





JAC 

the young man was domesticated 
in the house of Laban, (for Nahor, 
though living, seems to have been 
superan nuated,) h e ma de proposals 
to Laban to take Rachel in mar¬ 
riage, promising to serve seven 
years for her. But as he had 
been guilty of a gross deception 
towards his father, to the injury 
of his only brother, he himself 
now became the dupe of a de¬ 
signing and unjust relative. In¬ 
stead of his beloved Rachel, Leah, 
her elder sister, was given to him 
deceptively; and when he remon¬ 
strated with his father-in-law, he 
was told that the custom of the 
country required that the oldest 
should be disposed of in marriage 
before a younger sister: but it 
was proposed, that if he would 
serve as much longer, he should 
still have Rachel. It is not to be 
understood that he did not receive 
her until the second seven years 
were ended: a careful attention 
to the history will show, that he 
must have received Rachel im¬ 
mediately, and served for her af¬ 
terwards. With each of his daugh¬ 
ters Laban gave a maid, both of 
whom became the wives of Jacob. 
(Gen. xxix.) 

From all these there were born 
to Jacob while he sojourned in 
Mesopotamia, eleven sons and one 
daughter. Of these, Joseph only 
was the son of Rachel; Benjamin, 
her other son, having been born 
near Bethlehem. (Gen. xxxv. 
18.) Avarice seems to have been 
the ruling passion with Laban ; 
for the gratification of which, he 
was willing to sacrifice even the 
comfort of his own children, and 
to take every advantage of a young 
and inexperienced kinsman. Con¬ 
tinually he seems to have been 
studying an 4 contriving some 


vJAC 

scheme by which he might obtain 
the services of Jacob for less than 
their value; but the providence 
of God prevented him from even¬ 
tually injuring his servant, with 
whom he had entered into cove¬ 
nant at Bethel. Whatever rate 
of wages Laban would fix on, the 
Lord overruled it for the benefU 
of Jacob. (Gen. xxx. 26-43.) 
But at length he resolved to re¬ 
turn to his own country, from 
which he had been so long an 
exile. And lest his father-in-law 
should hinder his purpose, he 
communicated his design to his 
own family; but took the .oppor- 
tunity, when Laban was absent, 
to set off with his wives and chil¬ 
dren, and all his cattle and all 
his goods, to go to Isaac his father, 
in the land of Canaan, for Isaac 
still continued to live, beyond his 
own and the hopes of all his 
friends. This important step, how¬ 
ever, was not taken without the 
direction of his covenant-keeping 
God. On the third day after Ja¬ 
cob’s departure, Laban received 
intelligence of his flight, and he 
immediately pursued after him 
with a company of men, and on 
the seventh day overtook him in 
mount Gilead. There can bo 
no doubt that Laban’s intentions 
were hostile; but on the night 
preceding his overtaking Ja¬ 
cob, he received an admonition 
from the Lord, in a dream, not tc 
attempt any thing against him. 
After a warm expostulation on 
both sides, they agreed to part in 
peace; and accordingly a solemr 
covenant was entered into be¬ 
tween them; as a sign of which, 
they piled up a heap of stones, 
on which they ate together in to 
ken of friendship, and agreeably 
to a custom prevalent in many 
345 



JAC 

ancient nations. The mount on 
which this transaction occurred 
received its name, Gilead, from 
the heap of stones set up for this 
witness. (Gen. xxxi. 47, 48.) 

Soon after Jacob was relieved 
from ali fear from Laban, and 
had the pleasing prospect of 
speedily coming to the end of his 
journey, new fears and troubles 
arose. The danger which now 
threatened him was indeed appal¬ 
ling. His brother Esau was on 
his way to meet him, accompanied 
by four hundred men. No other 
than a hostile attack could be 
meditated, as he supposed, when 
he saw his offended brother ap¬ 
proach with such an army, against 
a company of helpless women and 
children. In this extremity, Ja¬ 
cob had no other resource but to 
look to Heaven for help. Ever 
since God had revealed himself 
to him at Bethel, he had made 
Him his confidence and refuge in 
all his troubles. Now, therefore, 
he cried to Him in his distress. 
(Gen. xxxii. 9, 12.) 

Having thus committed his 
cause by fervent prayer to the 
Almighty, he did not think it un¬ 
necessary to make use of the 
most probable means to avert the 
threatening evil; and therefore 
bo sent messengers to meet his 
brother with a valuable present 
from his flocks and herds, in se¬ 
parate droves. In that night Ja¬ 
cob took his two wives, and his 
two women servants, and his 
eleven sons, and passed over the 
ford Jabbok; and having sent 
them over this stream, together 
with all his property, he remained 
alone on the opposite side. And 
here a very extraordinary scene 
occurred, which is recorded at 
length, Gen. xxxii. 24-30; and 
34* 


JAC 

on this occasion Jacob’s name 
was changed to Israel. 

Esau now approached, but not 
as an enemy. There was revived 
in his bosom a strong feeling ol 
fraternal affection; so that when 
he saw Jacob, he ran to meet 
him, and embraced him, and they 
wept. Thus marvellously did God 
provide for the safety and comfort 
of his servant. Esau inquired 
kindly concerning his brother's 
family, the members of which 
came forward successively, and 
paid their respects to him: and he 
would have declined receiving the 
present which had been sent for¬ 
ward to him, but Jacob insisted on 
his acceptance of it, and he took it. 
After this interview, Esau re¬ 
turned to mount Seir, and Jacob 
journeyed to Succoth, where he 
made booths for his cattle: from 
which circumstance, the place re¬ 
ceived its name, as the word suc¬ 
coth signifies booths. But he 
seems only to have sojourned here 
for a short time ; probably to 
give rest to the women and chil¬ 
dren, and to the flocks and herds, 
which had now been driven a long 
distance, without much cessation. 
But his journey was not terminat¬ 
ed until he came to Shalem, a 
city of Shechem, which is in the 
land of Canaan, where he bought 
a parcel of ground of the children 
of Hamor, for a hundred pieces 
of money, ard erected there an 
altar, and called it El-Elohe-Is¬ 
rael, that is, God, the God of Is¬ 
rael. (Gen. xxxiii.) 

But although Jacob seems to 
have intended this as his place 
of permanent residence, yet events 
occurred which rendered it expe¬ 
dient for him to remove to another 
part of the country. (Gon. xxxiv 
See Dinah ) 




.TAC 

Jacob was greatly grieved at 
the cruel and treacherous cond ict 
of his sons in the affair of Dinah, 
and foresaw that it would render 
him and his family odious to all 
the people in the neighbourhood, 
bo as to expose him to be slain, 
with all his house. 

The same invisible power, how¬ 
ever, which preserved him from 
the hostility of Laban and his 
brother, now also shielded him 
from the resentment of the Ca- 
Haanites, so that they were not 
interrupted nor pursued in their 
journey; for the terror of God 
wets upon the cities that ivere round 
about them, and they did not pur¬ 
sue after the sons of Jacob. Dur¬ 
ing this journey, Jacob purged 
his house from idolatry, and puri¬ 
fied them by some ceremony, 
which has commonly been sup¬ 
posed to have been by washing 
their bodies in water; for they 
were commanded to be clean, and 
change their garments. (Gen. 
xxxv. 2.) 

He now arrived at Bethel, 
where,, in conformity with vows 
and the divine sanction, he built 
an altar, which he called El-Be¬ 
thel, the God of Bethel. Here 
also God appeared unto Jacob 
again, and blessed him; and, un¬ 
der the name of God Almighty, 
renewed the promise respecting 
the multiplication of his seed, and 
the possession of the land of Ca¬ 
naan. 

But the domestic troubles of 
this good man were far from be- 
'ng ended. He was now called 
to endure a bereavement of the 
most afflicting kind which could 
have befallen him. Having com¬ 
pleted his pilgrimage to Bethel, 
he was on his way to Ephratah, 
ind had come near to the place, 


JAC 

when Rachel died, soon after giv¬ 
ing birth to a second son, whom, 
with her expiring breath, sb* 
named Benoni; but his father 
called him Benjamin. After tlf9 
burial of his wife, Jacob continued 
his journey until he came to a 
place beyond the tower of Edar, 
where he spread his tent, and 
fixed his abode; but domestio 
troubles were still allotted to 
him ; for while resident here, his 
oldest son Reuben acted in a 
manner so base and dishonour¬ 
able, that the feelings of his fa¬ 
ther must have been deeply 
wounded. At length, pursuing 
his way, he came to Mamre, which 
had been the favourite residence 
of Abraham, and from which 
Isaac was never absent for any 
considerable time, until the day 
of his death. This peaceable and 
pious patriarch was still alive, 
though at a very advanced age; 
but soon after Jacob’s arrival, he 
died, and icas gathered unto his 
people, being old and full of days : 
and his sons Esau and Jacob bu¬ 
ried him in the cave of Machpe- 
lah, where probably wero the 
ashes of his father and his mo¬ 
ther. Soon after this, the affect¬ 
ing scenes open, in which Joseph 
took so conspicuous a part, and 
which exhibit the still heavier 
trials of Jacob, and the wonder¬ 
ful dealings of a covenant God 
towards him and his house. (Gen. 
xxxvii.-xlv.) These events led 
to his removal to Egypt, (Gen. 
xlvi.,) where, in the land of Go¬ 
shen, he led a prosperous and 
tranquil life for seventeen years, 
and then, after pronouncing a re¬ 
markable prophetic blessing on 
the infant children of Joseph, 
(Gen. xlviii. 8, 22,) he died, a. m. 
2616, aged one hundred and forty- 
347 




JAD 

seven years; and, according to 
his dying request, his remains 
were carried up, attended by the 
chief officers and nobility of 
Egypt, to Canaan, and buried in 
the family vault at Machpelah. 
(Gen. 1, 13.) 

The terms Jacob and the seed 
or children of Jacob are often ap¬ 
plied to the body of true believers 
generally. (Deut. xxxiii. 10 ; Ps. 
xiv. 7; xxii. 23; cv. 6; cxxxv. 
4; Isa. xiv. 1; xliv. 2; Mie. vii. 20.) 

Jacob’s Well. (See Shechem.) 

JADDUA, (Neh. xii. 11,) or 
JADDUS, the son of Jonathan, 
high-priest of the Jews, who offi¬ 
ciated a considerable time after 
the captivity, and is believed to 
be the samo who lived in the time 
of Alexander the Great. Con¬ 
cerning him, Josephus relates 
this remarkable story : that Alex¬ 
ander having sent to him for pro¬ 
visions for his army while besieg¬ 
ing Tyre, he excused himself on 
the ground that he had taken an 
oath of fidelity to Darius, king 
of Persia. The impetuous con¬ 
queror was highly provoked, and 
vowed vengeance against the Jews. 
Accordingly, as soon as Tyre was 
subdued, he put his army in mo¬ 
tion towards Jerusalem ; but be¬ 
fore he reached the place, Jaddus 
and the other priests, clothed in 
their pontifical robes, and a multi¬ 
tude of the principal people, all 
dressed in white garments, met 
him; on which Alexander bowed 
himself to the ground, and seemed 
to worship the high-priest, which 
conduct filled all his followers 
with amazement. And Parme- 
nio, requesting an explanation 
of this extraordinary behaviour, 
was informed, that before he left 
Macedonia, he had seen in a 
dream the appearance of the per- 
348 


JAE 

ton now before him, who promised 
him the empire of the world, and 
that his adoration was not ad¬ 
dressed to the man, but to the 
deity whose sacred name he bore 
on his forehead. Whatever truth 
there may be in this story, we 
know that Alexander, instead of 
inflicting punishment on the Jews, 
granted them great immunities, 
especially exemption from taxa¬ 
tion on every seventh or sabbati¬ 
cal year, and took many of them 
into his own service; and when 
he built the city of Alexandria, in 
Egypt, he invited multitudes of 
this nation to settle there; and 
put them, in regard to privileges, 
on a level with his own Macedo¬ 
nians. 

JAEL. (Judg. iv. 17.) The 
wife of Heber the Kenite. After 
the defeat of Jabin’s army by 
Deborah and Barak, Sisera, the 
general, fled towards the tent of 
Jael. It was not unusual for the 
women to have a tent separate 
from the men, as in Sarah’s case, 
(Gen. xxiv. 67,) and Leah’s. 
(Gen. xxxi. 33.) This was re¬ 
garded as a place of security; for 
then, as now,.among the Arabs, a 
stranger would not venture into 
the women’s tent unasked. Jael 
invited him in, and concealed 
him. Fatigued and thirsty, he 
asked for water, and she gave him 
milk, (see Butter,) as some sup¬ 
pose, to produce sleep the sooner. 
(Judg. v. 25.) After instructing 
Jael to stand at the door of the 
tent, and to deny that he was 
within, if any one should inquire 
for him, he fell into a sound sleep 
She then took a tent-pin, and with 
a hammer drove it through his 
temples into the ground. Un- 
natural and horrid as this act 
seems, wo find that in the song 



JAIl 

'll triumph, which was afterwards 
uttered by Deborah and Barak, 
the tragical circumstances are 
minutely related, and Jael is call¬ 
ed blessed above women. (Judg. 
v. 24-27.) And of course we are 
warranted to suppose that she was 
employed, under divine direction, 
as a mere instrument for accom¬ 
plishing God’s purposes in the 
deliverance of Israel from op¬ 
pression. 

JAH. (Ps. Ixviii. 4.) A con¬ 
traction of the word Jehovah, 
which imports the attribute of 
self-existence. It is part of the 
compound words Adonijah {God 
is my Lord) and Hallelujah, 
(P raise the Lord.) 

JAIIAZ, (Num. xxi. 23,) or 
JAIIAZA, (Josh. xiii. 18,) or JA- 
HAZAH, (Jer. xlviii. 21,) or 
JAIIZAII. (1 Chron. vi. 78.) A 
city on the northern frontier of the 
Moabites, in the vicinity of which, 
Moses defeated the army of Si- 
hon, upon his refusal to permit 
him to pass through it peaceably. 

JAIR. 1. (Num. xxxii. 41.) A 
eon of Manasseh, who dispossessed 
the Amorites, and took several 
small towns; hence called Ha- 
voth-jair. (Judg. x. 4.) 

2. (Judg. x. 3.) A native of 
Gilead, and probably a descend¬ 
ant of the foregoing. For twenty- 
two years he was a judge in Is¬ 
rael ; and he had thirty sons, all 
of whom, it is supposed from the 
language of the sacred historian, 
{they rode on thirty ass-colts,) were 
deputy judges, and rode from 
town to town, administering jus¬ 
tice. (See IIavotu-jair.) The 
fact that they succeeded to the 
paternal inheritance furnishes 
some evidence of their good 
character and habits. 

JAIRUS. (Mark v. 22.) An 
30 


JAM 

officer of the Jewish church, who 
applied to Christ to restore to life 
his daughter, who was at the point 
of death when he left home. He 
evinced very strong faith. Christ 
with his disciples went to the ru¬ 
ler’s house, and his daughter was 
restored. (See Susan Ellmaker, 

p. 80.) 

JAMES. 1. (Matt. iv. 21.) A 
son of Zebedee and Salome, and 
brother of John the Evangelist. 
He was present at several of the 
most interesting scenes in our Sa¬ 
viour’s life, and was put to death 
by Herod, a. d. 42-44, (Acts xii. 
2;) thus fulfilling the prediction 
of our Saviour concerning him. 
(Luke xxi. 16.) 

2. (Mark xv. 40.) A son of 
Cleophas (or Alpheus) and Mary, 
called (either in reference to his 
years or stature) James the less. 
This James is probably intended 
in Gal. i. 19, by the Lord’s brother. 
(See also Matt. xiii. 55; Mark, 
vi. 3.) That he was first cousin 
to our Saviour in the flesh we 
know, for his mother was sister 
to Christ’s mother, (John xix. 26;) 
and the term brother was often 
applied to near kindred, (Gen. 
xiii. 8; 2 Sam. i. 26; Acts vii. 
25, 26; ix. 17.) Some have con¬ 
jectured, that after Joseph’s 
death, Alpheus married his widow, 
and that their offspring was James 
the Less, (hence called the Lord’s 
brother;) but there is no evidence 
to support the opinion. James 
the Less is mentioned with p3cu- 
liar distinction, Acts xii. 17; xv, 
13; xxi. 18; 1 Cor. xv. 7; Gal. i. 
19, and ii. 9, 12. He resided at 
Jerusalem during the labours of 
the apostles; and was present at 
the apostolic council at Jerusalem, 
where he seoms to have presided; 
as ho was the last to give his 
349 



JAN 

Judgment, in which all the other 
members of the council acquiesced. 
(Acts xv. 13-19.) He was put to 
death in the year 62; and tradi¬ 
tion says that he was thrown by 
the Jews from the battlements of 
the temple, and then despatched 
with a fuller’s club, while on his 
knees, and in the act of praying 
for his murderers. 

Epistle of, was written by 
James the Less {seepreceding pa¬ 
ragraph) about the year 61 or 62. 
It was not addressed to any par¬ 
ticular church, but to the whole 
Jewish nation, —the twelve tribes 
scattered abroad, (ch. i. 1,) be¬ 
lievers and unbelievers, (ch. iv. 1- 
10;)—and hence it is called a 
general or catholic epistle. The 
design of the epistle is, (1.) To 
correct errors, both in doctrine 
and practice, into which the Jew¬ 
ish Christians had fallen, espe¬ 
cially relating to justification by 
faith; (2) To animate their hope, 
and strengthen their faith, in 
view of afflictions felt and feared ; 
and, (3.) To excite the unbeliev¬ 
ing Jews to repentance towards 
God, and faith in the rejected 
Messiah. It is remarkable that 
the name of our blessed Lord oc¬ 
curs but twice in this epistle, (ch. 
i. 1; ii. 1,) and that it is without 
the usual apostolical salutation 
and benediction. 

JANNES AND JAMBRES. 
(2 Tim. iii. 8.) Two famous ma¬ 
gicians of Egypt, who are sup¬ 
posed to have used their art to 
deceive Pharaoh. (Ex. vii. 9-13.) 

JAPHETH. (Gen. v. 32.) The 
eldest son of Noah. (Gen. x. 2, 
21.) The prophetic blessing pro¬ 
nounced on Japheth by his father 
(Gen. ix. 27) was accomplished to 
the foil extent of the promise. Be¬ 
sides all Europe and the isles, and 
350 ' 


JAS 

of course most of North America, 
his posterity possessed Asia Mi¬ 
nor, Media, part of Armenia, 
and those vast regions of the 
north, inhabited formerly by the 
Scythians, and then by the Tar¬ 
tars. And as to the other branch 
of the prophecy, he {God) shall 
dwell in the tents of Shcm, it was 
fulfilled when the divine presence 
was manifested in the tabernacle 
and temple; or if we read, he 
{Japheth) shall dwell in the tents 
of Shem, it was fulfilled literally 
when the Greeks and Romans 
(descended from Japheth) sub¬ 
dued Judea, the inheritance of 
Shem; and figuratively, when the 
descendants of Japheth (the Gen¬ 
tiles) received the gospel, which 
the Jews, who were of the seed 
of Shem, rejected. 

Japheth is often mentioned in 
the early histories of Greece, un¬ 
der the name of Japetus, as the 
ancestor of that nation. 

JAPHO. (See Joppa.) 

JASON. (Acts xvii. 5.) A 
resident of Thessalonica, and per¬ 
haps a relative of Paul. (Rom. 
ix. 3. Comp. xvi. 21.) At any 
rate, Paul lodged at his house 
when he visited that city. The 
apostle’s plain scriptural preach¬ 
ing a few Sabbaths (Acts xvii. 2, 
3) resulted in the conversion of a 
great multitude of the citizens, 
and in the excitement and opposi¬ 
tion of the unbelieving Jews, who 
gathered a mob from among the 
idle and worthless of the place, 
and attacked Jason’s house, in 
order to seize the apostle; but not 
finding the man they sought, and 
still determined to vent their 
rage on somebody, they laid vio¬ 
lent hands on Jason and some 
friends who were with him, and 
dragged them before the police, 



JAS 

*ml charged them with treason, 
because they said that there is 
another king, (besides Caesar,) 
one Jesus. (Luke xxiii. 2; John 
xix. 12.) However, as there was 
probably no evidence to support 
the charge, they gave some sort 
of security, either for their own 
future appearance or good con¬ 
duct, or for the appearance of the 
apostle, and were then discharged. 

JASPER. (Rev. iv. 3.) A pre¬ 
cious stone, usually regarded as 
of the quartz species. It is ob¬ 
tained chiefly from Persia, the 
Indies, Syria, Ac., and is chiefly 
used for vases, watch-seals, Ac. 
Its colours are beautifully varie¬ 
gated, and it is susceptible of a 
fine polish. 

JAVAN. (Gen. x. 2.) The 
fourth son of Japheth, and the 
ancestor of the Grecians or Io- 
nians. Hence the word Javan, 
in the Old Testament, denotes 
Greece, or the Greeks. (Isa. lxvi. 
19; Ezek. xxvii. 13.) 

JAVELIN. (See Arms.) 

JAZER, (Josh. xxi. 39,) or 
JAAZER. (Nurn. xxi. 32.) A 
city of the Ammonites, on the river 
Jabbok, the ruins of which are 
still visible about fifteen miles 
from Heshbon. 

Sea of. (Jer. xlviii. 32.) Pro¬ 
bably a lake existing in ancient 
times near the city of Jazer. A 
body of water is now to be seen 
near the city, out of which the 
Debir flows. 

JEALOUSY. (2 Cor. xv. 2.) 
It is most frequently used to de¬ 
note a suspicion of conjugal in¬ 
fidelity. It is sometimes used foi 
anger, or indignation, (Ps. lxxix. 
5; 1 Cor. x. 22,) or an intense 
interest for the honour and pros¬ 
perity of another. (Zecb i. 14; 
*iii. 2.) 


JEA 

When God is said to be a je<p 
lou8 God, or to be moved to jea¬ 
lousy, or when the still stronger 
expression is used, Jehovah, whose 
name is Jealous, (Ex. xxxiv. 14,) 
we are to understand this lan« 
guage as employed to illustrate, 
rather than to represent, tho emo¬ 
tions of the divine mind. The 
same causes operating upon the 
human mind, would produce what 
we call anger, jealousy, repent¬ 
ance, grief, Ac.; and therefore, 
when these emotions are ascribed 
to the mind of God, this language 
is used because such emotions 
can be represented to us by no 
other. 

Thus God is represented as a 
husband, related to his church by 
a marriage covenant that binds 
her to be wholly for him, and not 
for another. The more sincere 
and constant the love, the more 
sensitive is the heart to the ap¬ 
proach of a rival; and the thought 
of such affection being alienated 
or corrupted, fills the soul with 
grief and indignation. So God 
commends the purity, the fer¬ 
vency, and the sincerity of his 
love to his church, by the most 
terrific expressions of jealousy. 

The various significations of the 
word jealousy are denoted ms ually 
by its connection. It is one of the 
strongest passions of our nature. 
(Prov. vi. 34 ; Sol. Song viii. 6.) 

The image of jealousy (Ezek. 
viii. 3, 5) is the same with Tam - 
muz, in ver. 14. (See Tammuz.1 

Jealousy-offering. (Num.i, 
18.) The Jewish law contained a 
singular provision for tho trial of 
the crime of adultery. A man 
who was jealous of his wife with¬ 
out any actual evidence of her in 
fidelity was required to bring her 
to the priest, with an offering 
351 




JEB 

and when they came to the pre- 
Bence of the Lord, a part of the 
water of the temple was taken, 
with certain ceremonies, and pre¬ 
sented to the woman to drink; 
6he at the same time holding the 
offering in her hand. Before 
drinking the water, the most bit¬ 
ter curses were imprecated upon 
her; and if she was guilty, the 
water was to become the cause of 
terrible bodily diseases. 

This imprecation-water, or wa¬ 
ter of curses, is not unlike the or¬ 
deal of later ages; and we are told 
that among the savages of West¬ 
ern Africa, the custom is to make 
the suspected wife drink poison ; 
in which case, innocence can be 
protected only by a miracle; but 
in the administration of the Jew¬ 
ish law, there was nothing in the 
ceremony which could harm the 
accused person, without the di¬ 
rect judgment of God in the in¬ 
fliction of a particular and very 
peculiar disease; and still the 
ceremony was so solemn and im¬ 
posing, t^at a Jewish woman 
must have had the most extraor¬ 
dinary effrontery to have gone 
through it without betraying guilt, 
if it existed. 

JEBUS. (Judg. xix. 10.) The 
Jebusite is mentioned among the 
descendants of Canaan the son of 
Ham, (Gen. x. 16,) and there was 
a warlike race called Jebusites, 
inhabiting the mountainous coun¬ 
try around Jerusalem, and keep¬ 
ing possession of it, (Josh. xv. 63,) 
until it was wrested from them by 
David, and made the capital of 
Judea. (1 Chron. xi. 4-8. See 
Jerus4Lem.) The Jebusites were 
probably permitted to remain on 
the ground after their conquest. 
(2 Sam. xvi. 16,24.) It is supposed 
they were dispossessed for a sea- 
352 


JEH 

son by Joshua, (Josh. x. 23, 40: 
xii. 10,) and afterwards regained 
some districts, while the Israel¬ 
ites possessed others. (Comp. 
Josh. xv. 63; 1 Sam. xvii. 54.; 2 
Sam. v. 6.) 

JECONIAH. (See J ehoia- 

CHIN.) 

JEDUTHUN. (1 Chron. xvi. 
38.) An eminent master of the 
temple music, to whom several of 
the Psalms are inscribed, (see Ps. 
xxxix. lxii. lxxvii., <fcc.,) or by 
whom, as some suppose, they were 
written. 

JEHOAHAZ. 1. (2 Kings xiii. 
1.) Son and successor of Jehu 
king of Israel, whose reign was 
disastrous to the kingdom to such 
a degree, that his army was re¬ 
duced to a mere nominal exist¬ 
ence; and the kings of Syria, 
(Hazael and Benhadad) are said 
to have destroyed them, and to 
have made them like the dust of 
the threshing-floor. (2 Kings xiii. 
7.) Before death, however, he 
was brought Jo reflect and hum¬ 
ble himself in the sight of God, 
on account of the calamities with 
which his subjects were visited; 
and God was pleased to raise up 
for them a deliverer in the per- 
son of Joash, the son and suc¬ 
cessor of Jehoahaz. 

2. (2 Kings xxiii. 30,) Son and 
successor of Josiah king of Ju¬ 
dah. He is called ShaUum, 1 
Chron. iii. 15 ; Jer. xxii. 11. He 
was the fourth son, and of course 
not the rightful heir to the crown , 
but his father being mortally 
wounded in the battle of Megiddo. 
the people immediately placed 
Jehoahaz on the throne. This ir¬ 
regular step, taken without con¬ 
sulting him, offended the king of 
Egypt; and before he had reigned 
four months, he managed to get 



JEH 

Jehoahazinto his power at Riblah, 
in Syria, whence he sent him, a 
prisoner, loaded with chains, into 
Egypt, and there he died, (Jer. 
xxii. 11, 12;, and his brother Je- 
hoiakim, became king in his 
stead. (2 Kings xxiii. 29, 35.) 

3. (2 Chron. xxi. 17.) The same 
with Ahaziah and Azariah. 
(Comp. 2 Chron. xxi. 17 ; xxii. 1, 
8, 8, 9.) 

JEHOASH. (See Joash.) 

JEIIOIACHIN, (2 Kings xxiv. 
8,) or CONIAH, (Jer. xxii. 24,) 
or JECONIAH, (1 Chron. iii. 17,) 
or JECONIAS, (Matt. i. 12,) son 
and successor of Jehoiakim king 
of Judah. It is supposed by some 
that when he was only eight years 
old he was associated with his fa¬ 
ther in the administration of tE8 
government. This supposition is 
adopted in order to reconcile the 
apparent inconsistency of 2 Kings 
xxiv. 8, and 2 Chron. xxxvi. 9; 
though it seems hardly necessary 
to resort to such means to account 
for a very natural error or omis¬ 
sion of a transcriber, especially 
in an immaterial chronological 
fact of such remote date. The 
reign of Jehoiachin terminated 
at the end of three months; at 
which time the city of Jerusalem 
was besieged by Nebuchadnezzar 
the king of Babylon, in the eighth 
year of his reign, (comp. 2 Kings 
xxiv. 12, and xxv. 1;) and the king 
and his family, and the principal 
part of the nation, with the royal 
treasures and the temple furni¬ 
ture, were carried away to Baby¬ 
lon. 

The wickedness of this king is 
described in very strong language 
by the prophet Jeremiah. (Jer. 
xxii. 24-30.) 

The expression, however, in 
Jer. xxii. 30, is not to be con 
30 * 


JE1I 

strued literally. (1 Chron. liL IT, 
18 ; Matt. i. 12.) Write this map 
childless, might as well read, Hi 
shall have no successor nr heir, oi 
None of his seed shall prosper. 
(See Life of Jeremiah, ch. viiL, 
and Elisama, pp. 64-66.) 

JEHOIADA. (2 Kings xi. 4.) 
A high-priest of the Jews, and 
the husband of Jehosheba. ("See 
Athaliah.) His administration 
was so auspicious to the civil and 
religious interests of the nation, 
(2 Kings xii.; 2 Chron. xxiii. 16,) 
that when he died at the advanced 
age of one hundred and thirty 
years, he was buried in the royal 
sepulchres at Jerusalem. (2 Chron. 
xxiv. 16.) 

JEHOIAKIM. (2 Kings xxiii. 
36.) Eldest son of Josiah, and 
the brother and successor of Je- 
hoahaz, king of Judah. His origi¬ 
nal name was Eliakim; but it was 
changed by order of the king of 
Egypt, (2 Kings xxiii. 34.) who 
put him on the throne. The ini¬ 
quity of his reign is strongly de¬ 
picted by the historian and pro¬ 
phet, (2 Kings xxiv. 4 ; 2 Chron. 
xxxvi. 8; Jer. xxii. xxvi. xxxvi.; 
and his end, as Jewish historians 
inform us, was in strict accord¬ 
ance with the prediction concern¬ 
ing him. 

For the first four years of his 
reign, Jehoiakim was subject to 
the king of Egypt, and paid an 
enormous tribute. Then he be¬ 
came tributary for three years 
to Nebuchadnezzar king of Baby¬ 
lon, (2 Kings xxiv. 1,) who at first 
bound him with chains to carry 
him to Babylon, (2 Chron. xxxvi. 
6; Dan. i. 2,) but afterwards set 
him at liberty, and left him at 
Jerusalem to reign as a tributary 
prince. The whole time of hi* 
reign was eleven years. 

X 353 




JEII 

The expression, Jer. xxxvi. 30, 
is not to be taken strictly; and 
yet as the reign of Jehoiachin 
was for only thirteen weeks, Je- 
hoiakim may be said to have been 
comparatively without a successor. 
He had scarcely sat down upon 
the throne before he was deposed. 
The same explanation applies to 
2 Kings xxiii. 34, where Eliakim is 
said to have succeeded his father 
Josiah; whereas the reign of Je- 
hoahaz intervened. This was so 
short, however, as not to be reck¬ 
oned in the succession. (See Eli- 
SAMA, ch. iii. and iv.) 

JEHONADAB. (See Re- 

CHABITES.) 

J E H 0 R A M, or JORAM, (2 
Kings viii. 16, 21.) was the son 
and successor of Jehoshaphat 
king of Judah. When he was 
thirty-two years of age he was as¬ 
sociated with his father in the 
government of the kingdom. (2 
Kings viii. 17; 2 Chron. xxi. 5.) 
At the end of four years his father 
died, and he became sole king. 
One of the first acts of his govern¬ 
ment was to put to death his six 
brothers and several of the chief 
men of the kingdom. (2 Chron. 
xxi. 4.) To punish him for this 
and other abominations of his 
reign, (2 Chron. xxi. 11-13,) the 
Edomites, who had long been sub¬ 
ject to the throne of Judah, re¬ 
volted, and secured their inde¬ 
pendence (2 Chron. xxi. 8-10.) 
One of his own cities also revolt¬ 
ed, and about the same time he re¬ 
ceived a writing from Elijah, or, as 
Borne suppose, Elisha, admonish¬ 
ing him of the dreadful calamities 
which he was bringing on himself 
by his wicked conduct. In due 
time these calamities came upon 
him and his kingdom. Their ter¬ 
ritory was overrun with enemies; 

354 


JEH 

the king’s palace was plundered, 
and the royal family, except the 
youngest son, made prisoners. 
The king himself was smitten 
with a terrible and incurable dis¬ 
ease, which carried him to the 
grave, unlamented; and he wa« 
buried without royal honours. (2 
Chron. xxi. 14—20.) 

JEHOSHAPHAT, (1 Kings xv. 
24,) or JOSAPHAT, (Matt. i. 8,) 
was the son and successor of Asa 
king of Judah. He is called 
king of Israel (2 Chron. xxi. 2) 
possibly because his kingdom was 
a part of the ancient kingdom of 
Israel, but probably by mistake: 
Israel being written for Judah. 
He was a prince of distinguished 
piety, and his reign, which lasted 
twenty-five years, was powerful 
and prosperous. This remark¬ 
able commendation is given to Je¬ 
hoshaphat by the sacred historian, 
that the more his riches and ho¬ 
nour increased, the more his heart 
was lifted up in the icays of the 
Lord. (2 Chron. xvii. 5, 6.) 
Among other evidences of his 
piety and benevolence, we are told 
that he caused the altars and 
places of idolatry to be destroyed, 
a knowledge of the law to be dif¬ 
fused throughout the kingdom, 
and the places of judicial and 
ecclesiastical authority to be filled 
by the wisest and best men of the 
land. (2 Chron. xvii. 6-9 ; xix. 
5-11.) His sin in forming a league 
with Ahab, contrary to tbo coun¬ 
sel of Micaiah, against Ramoth- 
gilead, (2 Chron xviii.,) was se¬ 
verely censured by Jehu, (2 Chron. 
xix. 2,) and had nearly cost him 
his life. (2 Chron. xviii. 31.) 

A few years after this, the king- 
Qom of Judah was invaded by u 
confederacy of Edomites, Moab¬ 
ites and others. They collected 




JEH 

their forces at Enge4i, and threat¬ 
ened to overthrow the kingdom. 
Jehoshaphat proclaimed a fast; 
and the people from all parts of 
the kingdom—men, women and 
children—came up to Jerusalem; 
and being assembled in one place, 
the king himself made supplica¬ 
tion to God for help in their ex¬ 
tremity. His remarkable prayer 
is recorded, 2 Chron. xx. 6-12; 
and while he was yet speaking, 
his prayer was answered, and a 
certain and easy victory was pro¬ 
mised. On the following day, the 
army of Judah went forth to meet 
the enemy, preceded by a com¬ 
pany of singers, who praised the 
name of the Lord. The vast army 
of his enemies were panic-struck, 
and fell into irrecoverable confu¬ 
sion ; and instead of facing their 
adversaries, turned their swords 
against each other, until they were 
utterly routed and overthrown; 
so that Jehoshaphat and his men 
had no occasion to engage in the 
conflict. And such abundance of 
6poil remained in the camp, that 
the men of Judah were employed 
three days in collecting it. (2 
Chron. xx. 14—27.) 

Still later in his life, Jehosha¬ 
phat connected himself with Aha- 
ziah, son and successor of Ahab 
king of Israel, in a naval expe¬ 
dition; but this alliance with a 
wicked king turned out disas¬ 
trously, as had been predicted by 
Eliezer, the son of Dodavah ; for 
while the fleet lay at Ezion-geber, 
it was utterly destroyed by a vio¬ 
lent storm. (2 Chron. xx. 35. See 
Ahaziah.) 

Again he involved himself in an 
alliance with Jehoram, the second 
son of Ahab, and also with the 
Edomites, for the purpose of in¬ 
vading the land of Moab; but 


JEH 

while they attempted to mafca 
their way through the wilderness, 
their water failed, and the whole 
army must have perished with 
thirst, had not a miraculous sup¬ 
ply been granted in answer to 
the prayers of Elisha, who ac¬ 
companied the army. (2 Kings 
iii. 6-20.) Jehoshaphat left seven 
sons, one of whom, Jehoram, suc¬ 
ceeded him. 

It may be said of his reign, as of 
that of many others inancientand 
modern times, that his schemes 
of reform were dependent on his 
personal influence ; and not being 
in conformity with the popular 
sentiment and general policy of 
the country, were not of perma¬ 
nent utility. 

Valley op Jesoshaphat 
(Joel iii. 2, 12.) A narrow glen 
running north and south, between 
Jerusalem and the mount of Olives, 
through which flows the brook 
Cedron. This valley is supposed 
to be meant by the king’s dale, 
(Gen. xiv. 17; 2 Sam. xviii. 18;) 
and its name to be derived either 
from the burial of king Jehosha¬ 
phat, or for the great victory he 
obtained there over the Moabites 
and their allies. (2 Chron. xx. 
25.) This valley, it is supposed by 
the Mohammedans, (from the pas¬ 
sage first above cited,)will be the 
scene of the final judgment. The 
better opinion is, however, that 
the prophetic language in this 
connection refers to the event of 
the general judgment, and not to 
the place; the meaning of the 
word Jehoshaphat being judgment 
of God. 

JEHOVAH. (Ex. vi. 3.) A 
title of the Supreme Being, indi¬ 
cative of the attribute of self- 
existence. It is similar in im¬ 
port to tho title, I am, (Ex. iii 
355 




JER 

i<») and denotes not only self- 
*xistence, but perfect independ¬ 
ence, eternity and immutability. 
(See Jah, God.) 

JEHU, 1. (1 Kings xvi. 7,) was 
the son of Hanani the seer, with 
whom Asa was so much enraged 
as to cast him into prison. (2 
Chron. xvi. 7-10.) He was ap¬ 
pointed to carry a message to 
Baasha from God, threatening to 
visit upon him the most fearful 
judgments. He was afterwards 
employed on a similar errand to 
Jehoshaphat. (2 Chron. xix. 1, 2.) 

2. (1 Kings xix. 16. Comp. 2 
Kings ix. 2.) The son of Nimshi, 
and grandson of Jehoshaphat, was 
selected by God to reign over Is¬ 
rael, and to be the instrument of 
inflicting his judgments on the 
house of Ahab. (1 Kings xix. 17; 
2 Kings ix. 1—10.) In executing 
this commission, he commenced 
with the reigning king, Joram, 
who was then lying ill at Jez- 
reel. Having been proclaimed 
king by a few adherents who 
were with him at Ramoth-gilead, 
he proceeded towards Jezreel. 
Upon his approach within sight 
of that place, Joram despatched 
two or three messengers to ascer¬ 
tain his design; and finding they 
did not return, he went out him¬ 
self to meet him. It happened 
that they met on the ground of 
Naboth the Jezreelite, (1 Kings 
xxi. 1-24;) and Jehu at once 
charged him with his gross in¬ 
iquities, and immediately shot 
him dead in his chariot. (Comp 
1 Kings xxi. 19, and 2 Kings 
ix. 26.) 

Jehu rode on to Jezreel, and as 
he was passing in at the gate, the 
wicked Jezebel, who h ad prepared 
herself foi the occasion, and was 
looking out at a window, said 
356 


TEII 

something in allusion to what had 
happened to Ahab. Jehu called 
to two or three persons who wer* 
at the same window to throw her 
down, which they did; and as she 
struck the ground, the blood spurt¬ 
ed out upon the wall, and upon the 
horses, and her body was actually 
trodden under foot! Jehu’s party 
then went into the city, and 
dined; and after dinner, he or¬ 
dered his attendants to go and 
bury the accursed woman, as this 
respect might be due to a king’s 
daughter; and when they came 
to the place, nothing could be 
found of her but the skull, the 
feet, and a part of the hands. 
The dogs had consumed the resi¬ 
due, in fulfilment of the prophecy. 
(1 Kings xxi. 23; 2 Kings ix. 
32-37.) 

Jehu then proceeded to exter¬ 
minate the family of Ahab. He 
addressed letters to those who 
had the care of his sons, (no less 
than seventy in number,) and 
proposed to them to select the fit¬ 
test of them, and place him on 
the throne of his father. This 
they declined to do, (through fear 
of Jehu,) but promised to do any 
thing else that might be required. 
Accordingly, Jehu directed them 
to bring to him the heads of 
Ahab’s sons the next day at Jez¬ 
reel; and they were sent in two 
baskets. He directed them to be 
emptied out in two heaps, at the 
gate of the city, and to remain 
there over night. The next morn¬ 
ing he ordered a general slaughter 
of all Ahab’s family and adhe¬ 
rents in the town of Jezreel. He 
then set out for Samaria, and 
meeting on his way a party of 
forty-two persons, all the family 
of Ahaziel, (a branch of Ahab’s 
house,) he seized and slew them. 






JEH 

But the most revolting of these 
deeds of olood remains to be told. 
When he arrived at Samaria, and 
had cut off every branch of the 
house of Ahab that he could find, 
(2 Kings x. 17,) he ordered a 
general convention of all the wor¬ 
shippers of Baal throughout the 
land, and made every arrange¬ 
ment as if he would have a 
united universal act of homage 
to the false god; and so strict 
were his orders, that no worship¬ 
per of Baal could absent himself 
but upon pain of death. They 
assembled; and we are told that 
not a man was absent. Each of 
the worshippers was furnished 
with a peculiar dress, that they 
might bo distinguished from all 
others; and when the assembly 
was convened, Jehu took pains to 
exclude every individual except 
the worshippers of Baal. As 
soon as they commenced their 
worship, Jehu appointed a de¬ 
tachment of eighty men to go in 
among the assembled idolaters,- 
and put every one of them to 
death; and, to ensure the execu¬ 
tion of his orders, he ordained, 
that if a single worshipper escaped, 
the life of him who suffered the 
escape should be forfeited. But 
there was no escape; every indi¬ 
vidual was put to the sword; the 
image of Baal was broken down 
and destroyed; and the temple 
was made the receptacle of offal 
and filth, in contempt and abhor¬ 
rence of the idolatry which had 
been practised there; and every 
trace of Baal’s worship was blot¬ 
ted out of Israel. 

This dreadful extermination of 
the house of Ahab, and of the 
idolatrous worship which he sanc¬ 
tioned, was in accordance with 
the divine command, and received 


JEP 

the divine approbation. (2 Kings 
x. 30.) Jehu himself, however, 
was ambitious and tyrannical, 
and fell into idolatrous practices. 
(2 Kings x. 31.) His reign lasted 
twenty-eight years; and he was 
succeeded by his son Jehoahaz. 
(For a full and interesting account 
of Jehu, and the various incidents 
of his life, see Life of Elisha, 
ch. x.) 

JEPHTHAH, (Judg. xi. 1,) 
one of the judges of Israel, was 
the illegitimate son of Gilead; 
and this fact made him so odious 
to the other children of the family, 
that they banished him from the 
house, and he took up his resi¬ 
dence in the land of Tob, a dis¬ 
trict of Syria not far from Gilead, 
and probably the same with Ish- 
tob. (2 Sam. x. 8.) Here, it is 
supposed, he became the head of 
a marauding party; and when a 
war broke out between the chil¬ 
dren of Israel and the Ammonites, 
he probably signalized himself for 
courage and enterprise. This led 
the Israelites to seek his aid as 
their commander-in-chief; and 
though he objected at first, on 
the ground of their ill-usage of 
him, yet, upon their solemn cove¬ 
nant to regard him as their leader, 
in case they succeeded against 
the Ammonites, he took command 
of their army. After some pre¬ 
liminary negotiations with the 
Ammonites, in which the question 
of the right to the country is dis¬ 
cussed with great force and in 
genuity, and finding every at¬ 
tempt to conciliate them abortive, 
the two armies met; the Am¬ 
monites were defeated with great 
loss of life, and their country 
scoured by the Israelites. 

On the eve of the battle, Jeph- 
thah made a vow, that if he oh- 
357 



JEP 

tained the victory, he would de¬ 
vote tc God whatever should come 
forth from his house to meet him 
on his return home. This turned' 
out to be his daughter, an only 
child, who welcomed his return 
with music and dancing. Jeph- 
thah was greatly afflicted by this 
occurrence; but his- daughter 
cheerfully consented to the per¬ 
formance of his vow, which took 
place at the expiration of two 
months; and the commemoration 
of the event by the daughters of 
Israel was required by a public 
ordinance. 

Whether Jephthah actually of¬ 
fered up his daughter for a burnt- 
offering, is a perplexing question, 
and continues to be much dis¬ 
puted. Those who maintain the 
negative allege, that by transla¬ 
ting the Hebrew prefix or, ren¬ 
dered and in our version, all dif¬ 
ficulty will be removed. His vow 
will then read, “shall surely be 
the Lord’s, or, I will offer a burnt- 
offering;” and not unfrequently 
the sense requires that the He¬ 
brew should be thus rendered. 
Moreover, when Jephthah made 
this vow, he could not have in¬ 
tended to insult the Lord by pro¬ 
mising a sacrifice of which he had 
expressed the utmost abhorrence, 
(Lev. xx. 2-5; Deut. xii. 31,) 
especially as it is recorded that 
the Spirit of the Lord was upon 
him when he uttered his vow. 
Suppose (says one) a dog had 
come out of the house of Jeph¬ 
thah, can any one suppose that 
he would have offered this un¬ 
clean animal as a burnt-offering 
to the Lord? And why then 
should we suppose that he would 
offer a human sacrifice, which 
would have been so much more 
abominable; and, besides, in all 
358 


JEP 

such cases, the law allowod tfie 
right of redemption, for a small 
sum of money. It is, moreover, ar¬ 
gued that no mention is made of 
any bloody sacrifice of the young 
woman. But merely that he did 
with her according to his void 
which he had vowed; and she 
knew no man; which last words 
seem to convey, not obscurely, the 
idea that Jephthah devoted his 
daughter to "the Lord, by conse¬ 
crating her to a life of celibacy. 
And it should not be forgotten, 
that in the Epistle to the He¬ 
brews, (ch. xi.,) Jephthah is 
placed among the worthies who 
were distinguished for their faith. 
Now can we suppose that such a 
man would be guilty of the crime 
of sacrificing his own daughter? 
(Comp. Heb. xi. 32, with 2 Sam. 

xii. 9; 1 Kings xi. 5, 7.) It is 

suggested whether the insertion 
of Jephthah’s name in this pas¬ 
sage is conclusive evidence of his 
piety. That he was distinguished 
for one kind of faith is evident; 
but was it saving faith ? (1 Cor. 

xiii. 2.) 

Those, on the other hand, who 
receive the common reading of 
this passage, and follow the ob¬ 
vious meaning, reason in the fol¬ 
lowing manner: That upon every 
fair principle of construction, it 
must be admitted, that Jephthah’s 
vow was single, and that he did 
actually bind himself, by this 
solemn bond, to offer as a burnt- 
offering to the Lord whatever 
should first come forth from his 
house to meet him on his return. 
That the time in which Jephthah 
lived was one of gross ignorance 
and idolatry, (Judg. x. 6 •) that a 
pious man might have felt him¬ 
self bound by the obligation of a 
vow, in making which he bad 




JEP 

none but a pious intention; that 
the law of redeeming devoted 
persons and things for money did 
not apply to the case of such a 
vow; that Jephthah’s excessive 
grief on seeing his daughter come 
forth to meet him, can only be 
accounted for on the supposition 
that he considered her devoted to 
death ; that the mourning for the 
daughter of Jephthah for four 
days in the year can be reconciled 
only with the opinion that she 
was offered up as a burnt-offer¬ 
ing; and that there is no law or 
precedent to authorize the opinion 
that to devote her to perpetual 
celibacy was not an offence to 
God of equal enormity with that 
of sacrificing her as a burnt-offer¬ 
ing. It seems the ditficulties 
which attend this construction of 
the passage are less than those 
which attend the other; and it 
has been also remarked, that if it 
was perfectly clear that Jephthah 
sacrificed his daughter, there is 
not the least evidence that his 
conduct was sanctioned by God. 
He was a superstitious and ill- 
instructed man, and, like Samson, 
an instrument of God’s power, 
rather than an example uf his 
grace. 

The Ephraimites, who had not 
been invited to take part in the 
war against the Ammonites, quar¬ 
relled with Jephthah, and in a 
battle with the Gileadites, were 
defeated; and the latter, seizing 
the fords of the Jordan, slew every 
Ephraimite who attempted to 
escape by crossing the river; and 
the method employed to ascertain 
whether they belonged to Ephraim 
was, to cause them to pronounce 
the word “ shibboleth,” which 
they sounded “sibbolethfor, 
't seems, that by this time a dif- 


JER 

ference in the manner of pro¬ 
nouncing at least one Hebrew let¬ 
ter had arisen between the inhabi¬ 
tants on the different sides of the 
Jordan. On this occasion, 42,000 
men of Ephraim were slain ; 
which was a just punishment for 
commencing a war with so small 
a provocation. (Judg. xi. xii.) 

JEREMIAH, or JEREMY, 
(Matt. ii. 17,) or JEREMIAS, 
(Matt. xvi. 14,) one of the chief 
of the Hebrew prophets, was the 
son of Hilkiah, and of the sacer¬ 
dotal race. (Comp. Jer. i. 1, and 
Josh. xxi. 18.) He was very 
young when he was called to the 
prophetic office, and on that ac¬ 
count declined it, (Jer. i. 6;) but 
God promised him grace and 
strength sufficient for his work; 
and for forty-two years he per¬ 
sisted in this arduous service, 
with unwearied diligence and 
fidelity, in the midst of the se¬ 
verest trials and persecutions. 

During all this time, Jerusalem 
was in a most distracted and de¬ 
plorable condition, and the pro¬ 
phet was palumniated, imprisoned, 
and often in danger of death. 
But no ill-treatment or threaten- 
ings could deter him from de¬ 
nouncing the judgments of God, 
which were coming upon the na¬ 
tion and that devoted city. His 
exhortation to the king and rulers 
were to submit at once to the 
arms of Nebuchadnezzar, for by 
that means they would preserve 
their lives ; but he assured them, 
as a message received from God, 
that their continued resistance 
would have no other effect than to 
bring certain and dreadful de¬ 
struction upon Jerusalem and on 
themselves. At this time, Jeru¬ 
salem swarmed with false pro¬ 
phets, who contradicted the words 
359 



JKR 

of Jeremiah, and flattered the 
king and his courtiers that God 
would rescue them from the im¬ 
pending danger; and after the 
city was taken, and part of the 
people carried away to Babylon, 
these prophets confidently pre¬ 
dicted a speedy return. On the 
other hand, Jeremiah sent word 
to the captives that ftie time of 
their captivity would be long, and 
that their best course was to build 
houses and plant vineyards in the 
land to which they were carried, 
and to pray for the peace of the 
country in which they resided. 
Indeed, he expressly foretold that 
the captivity would endure for 
seventy years; which duration, 
he intimated, was to make up for 
the sabbatical years which they 
had neglected to observe. He 
also foretold the deliverance of 
the people, and their return to 
their own country. Towards the 
close of his life, he was carried 
into Egypt against his will, by 
the Jews who remained in Judea 
after the murder of Gedaliah. On 
this occasion, he was requested 
by Johanan and his followers to 
inquire of the Lord whether they 
should flee into Egypt: in answer, 
after accusing them of hypocrisy, 
he warned them in the most 
Bolemn manner, from the Lord, 
not to go down to Egypt; but 
they disregarded the command¬ 
ment of God, and went, and took 
Jeremiah forcibly along with 
them, where, in all probability, he 
died, some think, as a martyr. 
For the reference to Jeremy in 
Matt, xxvii. 9, see Zech. xi. 12, 
13. (See the Life and Prophe¬ 
cies of Jeremiah, and Elisama, 
ch. iii.-vi.) 

Prophecy of, is the twenty- 
fourth book of the Old Testament, 
360 


JER 

{ and the ninth prophetical hook in 
chronological order. It embraces 
a period of upwards of forty years 
between b. c. 628 and b. c. 6S6. 
Jeremiah entered upon the office 
of a prophet in the thirteenth year 
of the reign of Josiah, (Jer. i. 2 ;) 
and his prophecy relates to the 
judgments that were to come upon 
the people for their gross idolatry 
and corruption; to the restoration 
which awaited them, whenever 
they would repent of their sins, 
and forsake them; and to the fu- ♦ 
ture glory which would arise od 
the church of God, and on such as 
were steadfast in his service, 
when the Desire of nations 
should come, and all flesh should 
see the salvation of God. 

The just and natural order of 
this book .is as follows : 

1. The prophecies uttered in 
Josiah’s reign, ch. i.-xii. 

2. In Jehoiakim’s, ch. xiii. xx. 
xxii. xxiii. xxxv. xxxvi. xlv.~ 
xlviii. xlix. 1-33. 

3. In Zedekiah’s, ch. xxi. xxiv. 
xxvii.-xxxiv. xxxvii.-xxxix. xlix. 
34-39; 1. li. 

4. In Gedaliah’s, ch. xl.-xliv. 

This arrangement of the matter 

will make the book much more 
intelligible to the reader. 

The fifty-second chapter, which 
seems to have been compiled from 
the latter part of the second book 
of Kings, was probably added to 
the book by Ezra; and seems de¬ 
signed partly as an illustration of 
the accomplishment of Jeremiah’s 
prophecies respecting Zedekiah, 
and partly as an introduction to 
the Lamentations. 

Lamentations of, (the book 
immediately succeeding the pro¬ 
phecy,) are a series of elegies 
written in view of the dreadful 
calamities which the city of Jeru- 




JEP 

salem, and the Jewish nation ge¬ 
nerally, were to suffer for their 
continued rebellion against God; 
and these events are described as 
if they were actually accom¬ 
plished. The lamentations of Je¬ 
remiah have been regarded by 
distinguished critics as the most 
perfect and regular elegiac com¬ 
position in the world. One would 
think that every letter was written 
with a tear, and every word with 
the anguish of a broken heart, by 
one who never breathed but in a 
sigh, nor spoke but in a groan. 
(See Life and Prophecies of 
Jeremiah, pp. 75-78.) 

An American missionary, who 
was at Damascus in 1823, visited 
a place near the gate of that city, 
where it is said Jeremiah wrote 
this book. It is a natural cave, 
over which the rock rises forty or 
fifty feet perpendicularly; and its 
whole appearance betokens a fit 
place for such melancholy mus- 
ings. The traveller sat down in 
the cave, and read Jer. ix. 1-8; 
and a more exact description of 
the present character and con¬ 
duct of the people of Jerusalem 
could not be written. 

JERICHO, (Num. xxii. 1,) one 
of the oldest cities in the Holy 
Land, was situa-ted in the tribe 
of Benjamin, about twenty miles 
from Jerusalem, and four or five 
from the river Jordan. This, or 
some place in its vicinity, is called 
the city of palm trees, (Deut. xxxiv. 
3;) perhaps from the abundant 
growth of the palm tree in that 
neighbourhood. The word Jeri¬ 
cho may be from Jerah, the moon; 
and the worship of the moon may 
have prevailed there. This city, 
which was next in size to Je¬ 
rusalem, was besieged and sub- 
iued by the Israelites imnr.ediate- 
31 


JER 

ly after the passage of the Jor¬ 
dan. The siege was conducted 
under the divine direction; and, 
at a given signal, by the immedi¬ 
ate interposition of miraculous 
power, the walls fell flat to the 
earth, probably destroying many 
lives, and throwing the citizens 
into universal Consternation. The 
Israelites marched directly into 
the city, and, in obedience to the 
command of God, put to death ev¬ 
ery living creature, except Rabab 
and her family, who were saved 
on her account, and in accordance 
with the promise of the spies, 
(Josh. ii. 1, 2,) whom she had con¬ 
cealed. The city itself was then 
set on fire, every thing in it, ex¬ 
cept the vessels of gold, silver, 
brass and iron, which were pre¬ 
viously removed, was burnt to 
ashes, and the very site of it was 
cursed. (Comp. Josh. vi. 26; 1 
Kings xvi. 34.) 

A city was rebuilt ‘on or near 
this spot, which is afterwards men¬ 
tioned (2 Sam. x. 5) as containing 
a school of the prophets, (2 Kings 
ii. 5,) and as being the residence 
of Elisha (2 Kings ii. 18) and 
Zaccheus. (Luke xix. 1-10.) It 
was in the vicinity of this place 
that a miraculous change was ef¬ 
fected by Elisha in the taste of 
the waters of a particular spring, 
and that the two blind men were 
miraculously restored by our Sa¬ 
viour. (Matt. xx. 29-34.) 

Under the Romans, Jericho 
was a royal residence, and Herod 
the Great died there. It was more 
than once laid waste and rebuilt, 
after Herod’s day; and there is 
now a miserable hamlet called 
Riha or llah, situated on the 
ruins of the ancient city, (or, as 
some think, three or four mile* 
east of it,) which a modern, tr^- 
361 



JER 

Teller describes as a poor, dirty 
village of tne Arabs. There are 
perhaps fifty houses, of rough 
stone, with roofs of bushes and 
mud, and the population, two hun¬ 
dred or three hundred in number, 
is entirely Mohammedan. The 
road from Jerusalem to Jericho 
lies through what is called the 
wildej’ness of Jericho, and is de¬ 
scribed by modern travellers as 
the most dangerous and forbid¬ 
ding about Palestine. As lately 
as 1820, an English traveller, Sir 
Frederick Henniker, was attack¬ 
ed on this road by the Arabs, with 
fire-arms, who left him naked and 
severely wounded. (Luke x. 30.) 

Two American missionaries 
were at Jericho in Juno, 1823. 
They confirm the accounts of 
other travellers, and mention par¬ 
ticularly the mountain Quarran- 
tania, where tradition says Christ 
fasted, and from the base of which 
rises a fountain whose waters were 
the subject of Elisha’s miracle. (2 
Kings ii. 19-22.) This is the ri¬ 
ver, or water of Jericho, referred 
to, Josh. xvi. 1. (See Omar, pp. 
137-142.) 

Plains op, (Josh. iv. 13,) de¬ 
note that tract of country lying 
between the city and river Jor¬ 
dan, down to the Dead Sea. It 
was remarkable for its balm, bal¬ 
sam and olive trees, as well as for 
roses and bees. (See Life of 
Elisha, ch. ii. 

JEROBOAM. 1. (1 Kings xi. 
26,) the son of Nebat, is distin¬ 
guished as ti e man who made Isra¬ 
el to sin. He was evidently a bold, 
ambitious, unprincipled man ; 
and having received from the 
prophet Ahijah a most tingular 
intimation that the kingdom of 
Solomon was to be divided, and 
he was to become the head of the 
362 


JER 

ten tribes, he perhaps made the 
fact known, or took some means 
to bring about the event. At any 
rate Solomon was alarmed, and 
took measures to apprehend Jero¬ 
boam, who fled to Egypt, and re¬ 
mained there till Solomon’s death. 
Rehoboam his son succeeded him, 
and had already made himself so 
unpopular with ten of the tribes, 
that they had withdrawn from his 
interest, and were found by Jero¬ 
boam, on his return, ready to re¬ 
ceive him as their king. He fixed 
his residence at Shechem, which, 
with other cities, he fortified for 
the furtherance of his plans. 

Fearing that if the revolted 
tribes should go up to the solemn 
national feasts at Jerusalem, they 
would be persuaded to return to 
their allegiance, and forgetting 
his obligations to Hod and his 
dependence on him, (1 Kings xi. 
14—39,) he caused two golden 
calves to be erected ; one at Dan, 
and the other at Bethel, the ex¬ 
tremities of his dominions, and 
caused a proclamation to be made, 
requiring the worship of these 
idols. (1 Kings xii. 26-33.) 

Jeroboam, having set up the 
idols, assembled the people at the 
latter place, to engage in the 
solemn worship of them ; and to 
show his zeal for the service, he 
officiated at the altar himself. But 
while he was thus occupied, a pro¬ 
phet from the land of Judah ap¬ 
peared in the midst of the assem¬ 
bly, and in the hearing of all the 
people, uttered a prediction, that 
a man by the name of Josiah 
should arise and destroy that al¬ 
tar, and should burn upon it the 
bones of the priests; and to con¬ 
firm his authority, he gave this 
sign, that the altar should immedi¬ 
ately be broken in pieces, and the 



JER 

ashes upon it bo poured out; and 
it was so. Jeroboam, greatly pro¬ 
voked by his bold interference, put 
forth his hand to seize the prophet; 
but in a moment it was stiffened so 
that he could not draw it in. In¬ 
timidated by this miraculous judg¬ 
ment, and convinced that the man 
was indeed a prophet of the Lord, 
he begged that he would intercede 
for him, that his arm might be 
restored; which was done accord¬ 
ingly. Jeroboam, however, was 
not reformed by this divine mes¬ 
sage and double miracle, but con¬ 
tinued to cause Israel to sin in 
worshipping the calves which he 
had set up. His son was taken 
sick, and ho instructed his wife 
to disguise herself and go to Ahi- 
jah, who was now blind with ago, 
and consult with him as to the 
event of the disease. The pro¬ 
phet was forewarned of her ap¬ 
proach ; and as soon as he heard 
her footsteps, he called her by 
name, and after recounting the 
sins of Jeroboam, he predicted 
the disgrace and ruin and utter 
extirpation of his whole family, 
and also the captivity and disper¬ 
sion of the people of Israel. He 
also told her that the child should 
die, and that the nation should 
mourn for him as the only indi¬ 
vidual of the house of their king 
who should come to a peaceful 
end; and also as one who in the 
midst of all the idolatry and wick¬ 
edness of the times, had some 
pious emotions, even in the house 
of Jeroboam. As she entered the 
door of her house, the child died. 
(1 Kings xiv. 17.) 

Jeroboam reigned in Israel 
cwenty-two years, and was suc¬ 
ceeded by his son Nadab. During 
his life there wero almost unceas¬ 
ing wars between him and the 


JER 

house of David; and history re^ 
cords not more destructive wars, 
for in one conflict the Israelites 
lost no less than 500,000 men. 

2. (2 Kings xiv. 23-29,) the 
son of Joash, and great-grandson 
of Jehu, reigned forty-one years 
and followed the former Jeroboam 
in his idolatrous worship. The 
Lord, however, by him, according 
to the predictions of the prophet 
Jonah, raised the kingdom of the 
ten tribes to its greatest splendour 
All the countries on the east of 
Jordan he reduced. It appears 
from the writings of Hosea and 
Amos, that idleness, effeminacy, 
pride, oppression, injustice, idola¬ 
try and luxury greatly prevailed in 
his reign. (Amos ii. 6-16; v. vi.) 
Nor was it long after his death, be¬ 
fore the Lord, according to the pre¬ 
dictions of Amos, cut off his fami¬ 
ly with the sword. (2 Kings xv. 
10 ; Hos. i. 1, Ac.) 

JERUB-BAAL. (See Gideon.) 

JERUSALEM. (Josh, xviii. 
28.) The capital of the kingdom 
of Judah, and the scene of the most 
extraordinary events which occur 
in the annals of the human race; 
events, in which men and angels 
have and must forever have the 
deepest interest. This was the 
place selected by the Almighty 
for his dwelling, and here his 
glory was rendered visible. This 
was the “perfection of beauty,” 
and the “glory of all lands.” 
Here David sat and tuned his 
harp, and sung the praises of Je¬ 
hovah. Hither the tribes came 
up to worship. Here enraptured 
prophets saw bright visions of the 
world above, and received mes¬ 
sages from on high for guilty man. 
Here our Lord and Saviour came 
in the form of a servant, and 
groaned and wept, and poured out 
363 




JER 

his soul even unto death, to re¬ 
deem us from sin, and save us 
from the pains of hell. Here, 
too, the wrath of an incensed 
God has been poured out upon 
his chosen people, and has laid 
waste his heritage. 

It was probably once called Sa¬ 
lem, (Gen. xiv. 18; Ps. lxxvi. 2; 
Ileb. vii. 1, 2,) and in the days 
of Abraham was the abode of 
Melchizedek. When the Israel¬ 
ites took possession of the pro¬ 
mised land, they found this strong¬ 
hold in the possession of the Je- 
busites, (see Jebus,) and it was 
by them called Jebus, (Judg. xix. 
10,) or Jebusi. (Josh, xviii. 28.) 
Perhaps the more modern name 
of the city may be compounded 
of these two, with a little modifi¬ 
cation for the sake of sound. 

We have called it a stronghold, 
and so indeed it was, even in its 
earlier days. (2 Sam. v. 6-8; 1 
Chron. xi. 4-6.) The whole foun¬ 
dation was of rock, with steep as¬ 
cents on three sides. Then it was 
nearly surrounded by a deep val¬ 
ley, which was again embosomed 
with hills. 

This natural position of the 
city furnishes some of the beauti¬ 
ful illustrations of the Bible. (Ps. 
xlviii. 2,13; cxxv. 1, 2.) The an¬ 
cient Salem was probably built 
upon Acra and Moriah, the east¬ 
ern and western hills. When the 
Jebusites became masters of it, 
they erected a fortress in the 
southern quarter of the city, which 
was afterwards called m >unt Zion, 
but to which they gav« the name 
of their ancestor, Jebus; and 
although the Israelites, under 
Joshua, took possession of the cir¬ 
cumjacent territory, (Josh, xviii. 
28,) the Jebusites still held this 
fortress, or upper town, until the 
364 


JER 

time of David, who wrested il 
from them, (2 Sam. v. 7-9,) and 
then removed his court from He¬ 
bron to Jerusalem, which was 
thenceforward known as the city 
of David. (2 Sam. vi. 10, 12; 1 
Kings viii. 1.) As the city was 
on the boundary line between the 
tribes of Judah and Benjamin, it 
is sometimes spoken of as the 
possession of each. 

Upon this eminence, Solomon 
erected the temple, or place of 
worship, for the whole Jewish na¬ 
tion, and also a palace for himself, 
called the house of the forest of 
Lebanon, on account of the mul¬ 
titude of cedars from that moun¬ 
tain employed in the construction 
of it, (1 Kings vii. 2; x. 17;) and 
in his reign the city became re¬ 
nowned for its commercial enter¬ 
prise, (1 Kings x. 22,) its bound¬ 
less wealth, (1 Kings x. 14—29,) 
and especially for th^ enjoyment 
of the peculiar presence and fa¬ 
vour of the Almighty. (Ps. ii. 6; 
xv. 1; lxxiv. 2.) This pre-eminence 
it maintained for nearly five hun¬ 
dred years, when it was destroyed 
by Nebuchadnezzar. Then it lay 
in ruins seventy years, while the 
Jews were in captivity; after 
which it was restored in some de¬ 
gree to its former importance, and 
so remained for nearly six hun¬ 
dred years, when it was finally 
destroyed by Titus, a.d. 70. Ie 
the reign of Adrian, the city was 
partly rebuilt, under the name of 
iElia. After being transformed 
into a pagan city, Helena, the 
mother of Constantine, overthrew 
its monuments of idolatry, and 
erected over the supposed site of 
the sepulchre of Christ a magni¬ 
ficent church, which included aa 
many of the scenes of our Sa¬ 
viour’s sufferings as superstition 




Entry of Christ into Jerusalem 







































































































. 













































JER 

and tradition could conveniently 
crowd into one spot. 

The emperor Julian, in the true 
spirit of an apostate, designing to 
give the lie to prophecy, assem¬ 
bled the Jews at Jerusalem, and 
endeavoured in vain to rebuild 
the temple. In this attempt he 
was frustrated by an earthquake, 
and fiery eruptions from the earth, 
which totally destroyed the work, 
consumed the materials which had 
been collected, and killed a great 
number of the workmen. 

Jerusalem continued in the 
power of the Eastern emperors till 
the reign of the caliph Omar, the 
third in succession from Moham¬ 
med, who reduced it into complete 
subjection. This Omar was after¬ 
wards assassinated in Jerusalem, 
in 643. 

The Saracens continued mas¬ 
ters of Jerusalem till the year 
1099, when it was taken by the 
Crusaders, under Godfrey of Bou¬ 
illon. They founded a new king¬ 
dom, of which Jerusalem was the 
capital, and which lasted eighty- 
eight years, under nine kings. 
At last this kingdom was utterly 
ruined by Saladin; and though 
the Christians once more obtained 
possession of the city, they were 
again obliged to relinquish it. In 
1217, the Saracens were expelled 
by the Turks, who have ever 
since continued in possession of it. 

Seventeen times has Jerusalem 
been taken and pillaged; millions 
of men have been slaughtered 
within its walls. No other city 
has experienced such a fate. 
This protracted and almost super¬ 
natural punishment betokens un¬ 
exampled guilt. 

The present political state of 
Jerusalem is perhaps as low as it 
has been at any time while under 
31* 


JER 

the dominion of the Turks. It 
has not even the honour of rank¬ 
ing as a provincial capital, and 
enjoys none of the immunities 
peculiar to the other holy cities 
of Islamism. It is included with, 
in the pashalic of Damascus, and 
is governed by a deputy appointed 
from thence. No difference is 
created by the peculiar sanctity 
of the place, (except in the rnindi 
of Christians,) as is done by that 
of the Arabian cities of Mecca 
and Medina; for while a gover* 
nor of either of these is honoured 
by distinguished privileges, the 
governor of Jerusalem ranks only 
as a magistrate of a provincial 
town. 

The force usually kept in Je¬ 
rusalem consists of about a thou¬ 
sand soldiers, including horse and 
foot, armed and equipped in the 
common Turkish fashion, and 
composed of *Turks, Arabs, and 
Albanians. These are stated to 
be sufficient to repel any attack 
from the armies of the country, 
but could offer no effectual resist¬ 
ance to European troops. 

The site of the city of Jerusa¬ 
lem has never been called in ques¬ 
tion. The associations with it 
have been permanent and unin¬ 
terrupted, and seem designed to 
connect the great eras in the his¬ 
tory of the church of the Re¬ 
deemer, to be an everlasting mo¬ 
nument of the truth and faithful¬ 
ness of the God of Jacob. 

There have been many changes 
in its form and appearance; the 
most important of which we pro¬ 
ceed to state, and to illustrate 
them by a map, which is prepared 
from the best materials that the 
journals of travellers supply. 

The city of Jerusalem stands 
in 31° 50' north latitude, and 350 
365 



JER 


JER 



The line with black squares upon it shows the oourse of the wall in our 


Saviour’s time. 

The zig-zag line --shows the extent of the wall built by Agrippa, 

after Christ’s death. 

The dotted line-shows the present wall. 


The square on the eastern side racresents the site of the ancient temple, now 
occupied by the mosque of Omar 

366 










































JER 

20' east longitude, from Green¬ 
wich. It is thirty-four miles south¬ 
easterly from Jaffa, (Joppa,) its 
port, and one hundred and twenty 
miles southwestwardly from Da¬ 
mascus. It has the valley of Je- 
hoshaphat, or Kedron, on the east, 
and the valley of Hinnom on the 
south and west. 

Mount Moriah is now on a level 
with other parts of the city, and 
Is occupied by the mosque of 
Omar, which stands probably 
very near, if not on the very site 
of the temple of Solomon. So 
sacred is this edifice in the view 
of the Turks, that no Christian is 
permitted to place his foot even 
within the spacious enclosure 
which surrounds it. Although the 
elevation of this mountain has 
disappeared, its position is beyond 
controversy. To prepare it for 
the vast structure of the temple, 
Solomon enclosed the mountain 
by a stupendous wall, of an ave¬ 
rage perpendicular height of five 
hundred feet; filling up the in¬ 
tervening space between the wall 
and the mountain, so as to form 
a spacious and level area for the 
temple and its extensive courts. 
At the northwestern angle of this 
area was a magnificent tower, 
which was called by Herod the 
tower of Antonia, in honour of 
Mark Antony. 

Mount Zion was southwest of 
Moriah ; and its present position 
and elevation correspond very ex¬ 
actly with the most ancient re¬ 
cords. 

It is impossible, after so many 
desolations as the city has suffer¬ 
ed, to trace the boundaries of this 
mountain. There is, however, a 
rise of ground between Zion and 
Moriah, which corresponds so en¬ 
tirely to the east part of 4cra, as 


JER 

described by ancient historians, ai 
to leave no doubt that it formed 
a portion of it. The Jews at 
the present day call the whole 
hill Zion. 

Acra (so called from a Greek 
word, signifying high) is some¬ 
times called the lower city, aa 
mount Zion was called the upper 
city. It was north of mount Zion, 
from which it was separated by 
the valley of the cheesemongers. 
A town was once erected on a 
peak of Acra, which overlooked 
the temple. After standing about 
twenty-five years, it was demolish¬ 
ed, and the mountain roduced to a 
level with the adjoining districts. 

Bezetha, or the neiv city, was 
a spacious suburb, stretching 
northward from mount Moriah, 
which was not taken withia the 
city proper until nearly fifty years 
after the crucifixion. It embraces 
what is supposed to have been 
the scene of that wonderful event. 

The modern city of Jerusalem 
is chiefly built on mount Moriah, 
and derives its principal support 
from the visits of pilgrims. Tho 
different accounts, given by tra¬ 
vellers, of the apearance of the 
city, may be accounted for in part 
by the direction in which it is ap¬ 
proached. From the north, it 
appears to the best advantage; 
and from the west, to the least. 
It is about two miles and a half 
in circuit, and contains a popula¬ 
tion variously estimated from 
15,000 to 50,000. The most ac¬ 
curate estimate we have seen 
places it at 20,000. 

It will be observed that the 
map presents the city in three 
different aspects. 

.marks the present bound¬ 
ary of the city. 

'W'W the wall built by Ag’ ippa 

m 




JER 

B in what was the city at the 
time of the crucifixion. 

At present, the south wall passes 
over mount Zion, near its summit, 
so that a great part of the city is 
without the walls. South of 
mount Zion is the deep valley of 
the son of Hinnom; the same 
valley, turning north, bounds Zion 
likewise on the west. Moriah 
has on the east the deep valley 
of Kedron. On the south of it, 
without the city, is a little eleva¬ 
tion, which is marked on D’An- 
ville’s map as Ophel; thence the 
descent is steep, till we come to 
the fountain of Siloah. The val¬ 
leys north and west of Moriah at 
present are not very deep. Cal¬ 
vary was perhaps only a small 
elevation on a greater hill, which 
is now the northwest part of the 
city; but the name is now given 
to the whole hill. Bezetha is se¬ 
parated from Calvary by a wide 
valley; and east of Calvary is the 
dividing valley between Moriah 
and Bezetha, in which is the pool 
of Bethesda. 

We have viewed Jerusalem, 
says a Christian traveller, from 
different stations, have walked 
around it and within it, and have 
stood on the mount of Olives, 
with Josephus’s description of it 
in our hands, trying to discover 
the hills and valleys, as laid down 
by him near eighteen hundred 
years ago; and after all our re¬ 
search, we compare Jerusalem to 
a beautiful person, whom we have 
not seen for many years, and 
who has passed through a great 
variety of changes and misfor¬ 
tunes, which have caused the rose 
tn her cheeks to fade, her flesh to 
consume away, and her skin to 
oecome dry and withered, and 
aave covered her face with the 
368 


JER 

wrinkles of age; but who still le 
tains some general features, by 
which we recognise her as the 
person who used to be the delight 
of the circle in which she moved. 
Such is the present appearanca 
of the Holy City, which was once 
the perfection of beauty, the joy oj 
the whole earth. 

Jerusalem, as to general form, 
may be called a square, or rathei 
a rhomboid; the northeast ana 
southwest angles are acute, and 
the northwest and southeast are 
obtuse. The east wall is nearlj 
straight the whole length. On 
the north and south sides, the 
wall makes a bend outwardly, 
and on the west side it makes an 
inward bend; so that it would 
not be very inaccurate to call the 
city a heptagon. There aro like¬ 
wise many little irregularities in 
the wall. 

Near the bend on the west 
side is Jaffa gate, called also the 
gate of Bethlehem and the Pil¬ 
grim’s gate, and Bab el Khaleel, 
(the gate of the Beloved, i. e. 
Abraham.) On the south side is 
the gate of Zion, called also the 
gate of David. On the east 
side, near the pool of Bethesda, 
is the gate of Stephen, called 
likewise the Sheep gate, and the 
gate of the Virgiu Mary. On the 
west side, between Calvary and 
Bezetha, is Damascus gate. These 
four are the principal gates of the 
city, and are always open from 
morning till sunset. There are 
two other small gates, which are 
opened only occasionally. One 
is on the south side, a little wost 
of mount Moriah. Maundroll 
calls it the Dung gr.te. The other, 
which Maundrell calls Heroa's 
gate, is on the west side, and goes 
out from Bezetha. On the east 



JER 


JER 


side of Moriah is a seventh gate, 
or rather a place where there was 
one when the Christians possessed 
the city : for it is now completely 

From the northwest corner 

to Jaffa gate. 

to southwest corner. 

to Zion gate. 

to the bend in the south wall. 

to the Dung gate.. 

to the southeast corner. 

to the Golden gate. 

to St. Stepaen’s gate. 

to northeast corner. 

to Herod’s gate. 

to the bend. 

to Damascus gate. 

to northwest corner.. 


walled up. Maundrell jails thii 
the Golden gate. 

The measure of the city by 
paces gives the following result: 


Paces. 


1 ^ 1768 west side. 
' 195 ^ 


.295 l 
.244 f 
.415 J 
.353 ) 
.230 J- 
,360 ) 
.350') 
.250 I 
.150 f 
.66OJ 


1149 south side. 

943 east side. 

1419 north side. 


The total is 4279 paces; and 
allowing five paces to a rod, this 
gives eight hundred and fifty-six 
rods, or about two miles and two- 
thirds, for the circumference of 
the city. Maundrell measured the 
city, and judged it to be two 
miles and a half in circumference. 
According to Josephus, it was 
thirty-three furlongs, or eight 
miles, in circumference before Ti¬ 
tus destroyed it. Mount Zion was 
then included; and the city seems, 
from his description, to have ex¬ 
tended farther north than it does 
now. The wall of the city is high, 
but not thick. From counting 
the rows of stones, the height, in 
different places, is supposed to be 
forty, fifty, and perhaps sixty feet. 
There is a castle, with two towers, 
on the west side, a little south of 
Jaffa gate, to which travellers 
have given the name of the Pisan’s 
tower. For a little distance, 
near the northeast corner, there 
is a trench without the wall, 
nit now nearly filled up. 

The Jews occupy a much 
smaller part of the city than the 
Turks and Arabs. The Arme¬ 
nians live in and around their 
convent on mount Zion; the 
Greeks and Catholics have their 
lonrents and houses on mount 

Y 


Calvary. The Turks and Arabs 
occupy Bezetha, and all the 
eastern part of the city, and have 
scattered dwellings in every quar¬ 
ter. The Jews live in the dust, 
between Zion and Moriah. The 
whole area of the ancient Jewish 
temple on Moriah, which now en¬ 
closes the mosque of Omar, is 
walled in, and, as was before 
observed, none but Mussulmans 
are allowed to enter it on pain of 
death, though this rule seems to 
have been lately relaxed in some 
degree. In and near it are four 
minarets. There are two others 
on Bezetha, one on Acra, one on 
Zion and two on Calvary. 

The Jews have a number of 
synagoguon, all connected to¬ 
gether, in the quarter where they 
live. The church of the Holy 
Sepulchre stands on Calvary. 
This is an edifice distinguished 
for its size and massiveness. It 
forms altogether a block of one 
hundred and sixty feet long and 
one hundred wide ; and includes 
what are called the chapel of the 
crucifixion, the church of the se¬ 
pulchre, seven small chapels, a 
monastery and cloisters The 
traditions with which the various 
apartments are associated are 
scarcely worthy to be preserved. 

369 

















JER 

and yet the votaries of supersti¬ 
tion have contrived to group and 
connect them in such a manner 
as to excite strong and probably 
salutary emotions in the mind 
of the reflecting visitor. The Pa¬ 
pists have one convent on the 
same mountain. The Greeks have 
twelve here, and one near Zion 
gate. The Armenians have three 
convents on mount Zion, a large 
one and a small one in the city, 
and another a little without Zion 
gate, where, it is believed, stood 
the house of Caiaphas, where Je¬ 
sus was arraigned, and where Pe¬ 
ter denied him. The Copts, Sy¬ 
rians and Abyssinians have also 
each a small convent. The houses 
are of stone, most of them low 
and irregular, with flat roofs or 
terraces, in the middle of which 
usually rises a small dome. The 
windows are small, and those 
towards the street have usually 
strong iron gates for defence, and 
then fine wooden grates to pre¬ 
vent the women from being seen 
by those who pass. The streets 
are narrow, and most of them ir¬ 
regular. There are but few gar¬ 
dens in the city. 

Jerusalem is seen to best ad¬ 
vantage from mount Olivet. 

(For a more minute history and 
description of the city, see De¬ 
struction op Jerusalem, ch. vi. 
xvi .; Elisama, oh. viii.-x.; Omar, 
eh. iv. viii.; and Selumiel, pp. 
49-52, 150-174, 195-210, and also 
Map of Jerusalem.) 

Jerusalem, new, (Rev. xxi. 2,) 
is a term employed metaphori¬ 
cally to represent the spiritual 
church. The ancient Jews re¬ 
garded the tabernacle, the temple, 
and Jerusalem itself, as descend¬ 
ing directly from God; and they 
suppose that there is a spiritual 
370 


JES 

tabernacle, temple and city cor. 
responding with them. (Comp. 
Gal. iv. 26; 2 Pet. iii. 10-13, 
Rev. xxi.) Jerusalem of old was 
the city of God; and Jerusalem 
above is called the city of the 
living God, or heavenly Jerusalem. 
(Heb. xii. 22; Rev. iii. 12.) 

JESHURUN. (Deut. xxxiL 
15.) A significant name, de 
scriptive of the Israelitish com¬ 
munity, and implying either theit 
general uprightness, or the pe¬ 
culiar manifestation of God’s pre¬ 
sence which they had enjoyed, 
and which aggravated the guilt of 
their rebellion. It is sometimes 
used as a term of fondness, and 
may be rendered the beloved one, 
or the object of Qod’s special de¬ 
light, as Benjamin was. (J)eut. 
xxxiii. 12.) It is synonymous 
with Israel. (Isa. xliv. 2.) 

JESSE. (1 Chron. ii. 13.) The 
son of Obed, and father of David. 
Hence he is called the root of Da 
vid, and the ancestor of the Mes¬ 
siah. (Isa. xi. 1, 10.) Christ 
describes himself as th< root and 
the offspring of Dayid, (Rev. v. 
5; xxii. 16,) in reference to his 
twofold nature; in one of which, 
he was the creator and source of 
all being, (John i. 3,) and in the 
other, he was born of a woman— 
of a descendant of the family of 
David. (Matt. i. 5-16.) 

. JESUS. (Matt. i. 21.) This 
term, in its original, imports the 
office of a Saviour, or one sent to 
save. It occurs only in the New 
Testament; and though it is not 
exclusively applied to Christ, it 
should be; for in Acts vii. 45; 
Col. iv. 11, and Heb. iv. B, Joshua, 
and not Jesus, is the proper ren¬ 
dering. 

In the evangelical history, our 
Saviour is designated by the nam*» 




JET 

of Christ alone, in nearly three 
hundred passages; by the name 
of Jesus Christ, or Christ Jesus, 
(ess than one hundred times ; and 
by the name of the Lord Jesus 
Christ, less than fifty. (See Christ 
Jesus.) 

JETHRO. (Ex. iii. 1.) A priest 
or prince of Midian, and father- 
in-law of Moses. He is called 
Rayuel, Num. x. 29, and Reuel, 
Ex. ii. 18; and was probably 
known by either name. It is 
highly probable, too, that he was 
a descendant of Abraham, (Gen. 
xxv. 2;) but what was the nature 
of his office as priest, (or prince, 
as some say it should be rendered,) 
we know not. (See Life of Mo¬ 
ses, pp. 36-41. 

JEWELS. (Gen. xxiv. 53.) 
This term is applied to ornaments, 


TEW 

made of the precious metals, and 
used to adorn the person. W o 
find them among the presents 
which the servants of Abraham 
made to Rebekah and her family 
when they sought her in marriage 
for Isaac. (Isa. lxl. 10.) It is 
probable that much skill was at¬ 
tained, at a very early period, in 
the manufacture of metal orna¬ 
ments; such as chains, bracelets, 
ear-rings, <fcc. (Num. xxxi. DO; 
Ezek. xvi. 12; Hos. ii. 13.) 

The word is figuratively used 
to denote any thing peculiarly 
precious; as, the chosen people 
of God, (Mai. iii. 17,) or wisdom. 
(Prov. xx. 15.) 

JEWRY. (Luke xxiii. 5.) The 
same with Judea. (Dan. v. 13.) 

JEWS. (2 Kings xvi. 6.) The 
word first occurs in this passage, 



371 
































JEW 

and denotes the Judeans, or men 
of Judah, in contradistinction from 
the seceding ten tribes who re¬ 
tained the name of Israel. The 
name Israelites was applied to the 
twelve tribes, or descendants of 
Jacob, (Israel,) as a body; but 
after the separation of the tribes, 
the above distinction obtained 
until the Babylonish captivity, 
which terminated the existence 
of the kingdom of Judah; and 
thenceforward, until the present 
day, the descendants of Jacob are 
called Jews, and constitute one 
of the two classes into which the 
whole human family is frequently 
divided, viz. Jews and Gentiles. 
(Rom. ii. 9, 10. See Hebrews.) 
Since the overthrow of their go¬ 
vernment, and the final destruc¬ 
tion of their city, the Jews have 
been set up on high as a visible, 
incontrovertible, and overwhelm¬ 
ing evidence of the truth and 
faithfulness of Jehovah. So long 
as they were the objects of his 
regard, no weapon formed against 
them could prosper; but when 
they became the objects of his 
displeasure, on account of their 
sins and rebellions, no plan or ef¬ 
fort for their restoration succeeds, 
or will succeed, until the set time 
to favour them shall come. Their 
return to the rest and privileges 
of God’s people will be as life 
from the dead. (Rom. xi. 15, 
25-28.) For a particular account 
of the calamities of this nation, 
from century to century, and the 
connection of their wonderful 
history with prophecy, see The 
Bible is True, ch. iv. v. 

The number of Jews in the 
world is estimated at from three 
to six millions. Of these there 
are reckoned in Europe, 2,000.000* 
Asia, 700,000 ; Africa, 50t),000. 
372 


JEZ 

The largest numbers .*re in Rus¬ 
sia and Poland. 

The number of Jews in tha 
United States is computed at from 
6,000 to la,000. 

JEZEBEL, (1 Kings xvi. 31,) 
the wife of Ahab king of Israel 
was the daughter of a Zidonian 
king, and of course educated in 
the idolatrous practices of her 
native country. It is charged 
upon Ahab as a sin of the deep¬ 
est die, that he should connect 
himself with such a woman. She 
introduced the worship of Baal 
and other idols, maintaining four 
hundred idolatrous priests at her 
own expense, while Ahab main¬ 
tained four hundred and fifty 
more. (1 Kings xviii. 19.) 

This wic-Sed woman once re¬ 
solved on the extermination of 
all the prophets of God. Oba- 
diah, who was a pious man, and 
principal officer of Ahab’s house¬ 
hold, rescued one hundred of them 
at one time from her grasp, and 
supplied them with bread and 
water while they were concealed 
in caves. (1 Kings xiiiii. 3, 4, 13.) 
Soon after this, Elijah caused the 
four hundred and fifty priests of 
Baal, supported by Ahab, to be 
put to death. For this proceed¬ 
ing, Jezebel threatened to take the 
life of Elijah, but her purpose was 
frustrated. Soon afterwards, she 
planned and perpetrated the mur¬ 
der of Naboth. And by using the 
king’s name and authority with 
the leading men of Jezreel, she se¬ 
cured their co-operation in the fla¬ 
grant crime. (1 Kings xxi. 1-13.) 

The doom of this impious wo¬ 
man was predicted by Elijah, and 
was in due time visited upon her 
to the very letter (See Jehu, 
Ahab. See Notable Wohem 
of Scripture, Art. Jezebel .' 




JE7 

In Rev. ii. 20, there is an allu¬ 
sion to this history; but whether 
the word Jezebel is there used as 
the name of a person then living, 
and resembling in character Jeze¬ 
bel of old, or whether it is only 
used proverbially, as it is in mo¬ 
dern times, to denote a cunning, 
wicked, deceitful, abandoned wo¬ 
man, is not certain. 

JEZREEL. (Josh. xix. 18.) A 
royal city within the bounds of 
Manasseh, in the valley of Jez- 
reel, where the tidings of Saul’s 
death, in the battle at Gilboa, were 
first announced, (2 Sam. iv. 4,) 
and where his son Ishbosheth 
reigned after his father’s death. 
(2 Sam. ii. 9.) It is worthy of 
remark, that the fountain of Jez- 
reel, where the Israelites encamp¬ 
ed before the battle of Gilboa, (1 
Sam. xxix. 1,) was the very spot 
where the Crusaders encamped in 
1183, when on the eve of a battle 
with Saladin. Ahab and Joratn 
resided at Jezreel, (1 Kings xviii. 
45; 2 Kings ix. 15;) and Jeze¬ 
bel and Joram were slain there 
by Jehu, (fi Kings ix. 24-33.) 
There was also a city in Judah 
of this name. (Josh. xv. 56.) 

Valley op. (Josh. xvii. 16.) 
An extensive valley, (1 Sam. 
xxxi. 7,) called by the Greeks Es¬ 
draelon, stretching south and 
southwest from mount Tabor and 
Nazareth, and remarkable for its 
beauty and fertility. It was the 
scene of many battles. Among 
them one between Deborah and 
Barak and Sisera, the commandsr 
of the Syrians, (Judg. iv. 14,) one 
between Ahab and the Syrians, 
(comp. 1 Sam. xxix. 1; 1 Kings 
xx. 26;) another between Saul 
and the Philistines, (1 Sam. xxix. 
1,) and another between Gideon 
and the Midianites. (Judg vi. 33.) 

32 


JEZ 

This plain is computed by mo. 
dern travellers to be at least fif¬ 
teen miles square, and contain* 
five miserable villages, with 
scarcely a moving inhabitant. 
One of them speaks of it as a 
chosen place for battles and mili¬ 
tary operations in every age, from 
the time of Barak to that of Bo¬ 
naparte : Jews, Gentiles, Egyp¬ 
tians, Saracens, Christian Crusa¬ 
ders and anti-Christian French¬ 
men, Persians, Druses, Turks and 
Arabs. Warriors out' of every 
nation which is under heaven 
have pitched their tents upon the 
plains of Esdraelon, and have 
beheld the various banners of 
their nation wet with the dews of 
Tabor and Hermon. 

The soil is extremely rich; and 
in every direction are the most 
picturesque views. The hills of 
Nazareth to the north; those of 
Samaria to the south; to the east 
the mountains of Tabor and Her¬ 
mon; and Carmel to the south¬ 
west. “About four o’clock in the 
afternoon,” says a traveller, “we 
arrived at this village of Gennyn, 
which is situated at the entrance 
of one of the numerous vales 
which lead us out of the plain of 
Esdraelon to the mountainous re¬ 
gions of Ephraim.” 

“From the window of the khan 
where we are lodging we have a 
clear view of the tract over which 
the prophet Elijah must have 
passed, when he girded up his 
loins and ran before Ahab to the 
entrance of Jezreel. But, In the 
present day, no chariots of Ahab 
.or of Sisera are to be seen; not 
even a single wheel carriage of 
any description whatever.” 

The plain opens about three 
miles from Nazareth, on the way 
to Jerusalem. 


373 



JOA 

An American missionary was 
there in the autumn of 18211, and 
confirms the previous account of 
the size, position, &c. of Esdra- 
elon. So rich and fertile is the soil, 
that he thinks the plain, though 
less than fifteen miles square, 
would support thirty or forty vil¬ 
lages of 2000 or 3000 souls each. 
(See Omar, p. 118.) 

JOAB (2 Sam. ii. 18) was the 
nephew of David, and the com¬ 
mander-in-chief of his army. (1 
Chron. ii. 16; xi. 6.) Ho was 
evidently a valiant man, but am¬ 
bitious and revengeful. To re¬ 
venge the death of his brother 
Asahel, whom Abner had killed 
in self-defence, (2 Sam. ii. 23,) he 
treacherously assassinated this 
distinguished general. (2 Sam. 
iii. 27.) He brought about a re¬ 
conciliation between Absalom and 
his father, after the murder of 
Amnon; but when Absalom re¬ 
belled, Joab adhered to his master; 
and under his generalship, the 
troops of David, though much in¬ 
ferior in number, obtained a com¬ 
plete victory over the army which 
had been collected by this aban¬ 
doned and infatuated young man; 
and, contrary to the express or¬ 
ders of David, he put him to d »ath 
with his own hand, as he hung 
suspended from the oak tree. (2 
Sam. xviii. 14.) After this event, 
David promoted Amasa to be his 
general-in-chief, by which Joab 
was deeply offended, and secretly 
resolved on the death of his ri¬ 
val ; and took the first opportunity 
>f assassinating him, as he had 
done Abner, (2 Sam. xx. 10.) Da¬ 
vid, after this, seems to have taken 
him again into favour. (2 Sam. 
sxiv. 2.) When David the king 
had become old, however, Joab 
combined with Abiathar the priest, 


JOA 

and other* to set Adonijahon the 
throne, in defiance of the will of 
David, who had, by divine direc¬ 
tion, resolved to make Solomon 
king. (1 Kings ii. 28.) The plot 
was seasonably defeated, and Solo¬ 
mon was proclaimed king the 
same day. But Joab now seemed 
to David so evidently an object 
of the divine displeasure, that he 
solemnly charged Solomon to pu¬ 
nish him for all his enormous 
crimes, and especially for the mur¬ 
der of two valiant men, both better 
than himself, Abner and Amasa. 
Joab, conscious that his life was 
forfeited, sought an asylum at 
the horns of the altar, which po¬ 
sition he absolutely refused to re¬ 
linquish ; and Benaiah, now ad¬ 
vanced to be the captain of the 
host, slew him by the altar, agree¬ 
ably to the command of the young 
king. He was buried in his own 
house in the wilderness. (1 Kings 
ii. 5-34.) 

JOANNA (Lukeviii. 3) is men¬ 
tioned as the wife of Chusa, He¬ 
rod’s steward, or head-servant. 
She seems to have been the sub¬ 
ject of some miraculous cure by 
Christ, whom she followed, and 
to whom she ministered. (Luke 
xxiv. 10.) 

JOASH, 1. (2 Kings xiii. 1,) or 
JEHOASII, (2 Kings xii. 1,) was 
the son and successor of Ahaziah, 
king of Judah. Jehosheba, (or 
Jehoshabeath, 2 Chron. xxii. 11,) 
the wife of Jehoiada the high- 
priest, his aunt, preserved him 
Irom the murderous designs of 
Athaliah, his grandmother, when 
he was but a year old, and kepi 
him hid six years in a chamber 
belonging to the temple. (See 
Athaliah.) When he was seven 
years of age, Jehoiada entered 
into a solemn covenant with Aza- 





JOA 

Mali and others, to set up young 
Joash for their sovereign, and de¬ 
throne the wicked Athaliah. Af¬ 
ter preparing matters in the king¬ 
dom, and bringing the Levites, 
and such others as they could 
trust, to Jerusalem, they crowned 
him in the court of the temple 
with great solemnity. (2 Kings 
xi.) Joash behaved himself well 
while Jehoiada the high-priest 
lived and was his guide; but no 
sooner was this good man re¬ 
moved, than he began to listen to 
the counsels of his wicked cour¬ 
tiers. The worship of God fell 
into neglect, and idolatry prevail¬ 
ed. Zechariah the priest, son of 
Jehoiada, warned him of his sin 
and danger; but as a reward for 
his fidelity, he was, by order of 
Joash, stoned to death between 
the porch and the altar. When 
dying he assured them that God 
would avenge his death. (2 Chron. 
xxiv. 20-22.) To which event 
our Saviour is supposed by some 
to refer, Matt, xxiii. 35. Hazael 
invaded the kingdom; but Joash 
with a large sum of money, in¬ 
cluding all the treasures and fur¬ 
niture of the temple and palace, 
redeemed his capital from plun¬ 
der. (2 Kings xii. 18.) After 
suffering other injuries from the 
Syrians, and after being loaded 
With ignominy, he was murdered 
by his own servants, after a reign 
of forty-one years. (2 Chron. 
Kxiv. 24-27.) 

2. (2 Kings xiii. 9.) Son and 
successor of Jehoahaz king of Is¬ 
rael, and grandson of Jehu, was 
for two or three years associated 
with his father in the govern¬ 
ment; and he reigned alone, 
after his father’s death, fourteen 
years. 

He was a wicked prince, though 


JOB 

he was successful in three cam¬ 
paigns against the Syrians, and 
recovered the cities which they 
took from his father, according 
to the prediction of Elisha. (2 
Kings xiii. 15-25.) He was alsc 
signally successful in a war with 
Amaziah king of Judah, (see 
Amaziah;) soon after the termi¬ 
nation of which he died. (2 Kings 
xiv. 12-16.) 

JOB. (Job. i. 1.) A man oi 
singular piety and more singular 
trials, who is supposed to have 
lived in Idumea at a very early 
period of the world. Some have 
supposed that he was the same 
with Jobab, (1 Chron. i.44,) great- 
grandson of Esau; and others 
place him before Abraham’s time. 

Book op. Considerable differ¬ 
ence of opinion has prevailed as 
to the date and author of the 
book of Job. It is evidently of 
great antiquity, (probably earlier 
than the time of Moses,) and its 
genuineness appears from Ezek. 
xiv. 14, and James v. 11. From 
the whole current of tradition, 
and from the character, style and 
contents of the book itself, the 
prevailing opinion is, that it was 
written by Job or by one of his 
contemporaries. It presents some 
of the most important evangelical 
doctrines of the Christian religion, 
in a very distinct and forcible 
manner. 

Perhaps no portion of the Holy 
Scriptures has suffered more by 
the modern division into chapters, 
than Job. The following arrange¬ 
ment of the book is prepared by a 
learned critic, and will be found 
of great use to the student in pre¬ 
serving the connection of the 
subject: 

I. Job’s character and trials, ch, 
i.-iii. 


876 



JOC 

II. First series of conversations, 
or controversies, viz. 

Eliphaz’s address, iv. v. 

Job’s answer, vi. vii. 

Bildad’s address, viii. 

Job’s answer, ix. x. 

Zophar’s address, xi. 

Job’s answer, xii.-xiv. 

III. Second series of contro¬ 
versy :— 

Eliphaz’s address, xv. 

Job’s answer, xvi. xvii.. 
Bildad’s address, xviii. 

Job’s answer, xix. 

Zophar’s address, xx. 

Job’s answer, xxi. 

IV. Third series of controversy: 
Eliphaz’s address, xxii. 

Job’s answer, xxiii. xxiv. 
Bildad’s address, xxv. 

Job’s answer, xxvi.-xxxi. 

V. Elihu’s four speeches to Job, 

xxxii.-xxxvii. 

VI. Jehovah’s first and second 
address to Job, xxxviii.-xli. 

VII. Humiliation of Job, and his 
final prosperity, xlii. 

(See Evening recreations, 
vol. iii. pp. 10-21.) 

JOCHEBED. (Ex. vi. 20,) the 
mother of Aaron, Moses and Mi¬ 
riam, was the wife and aunt of 
Amram, and the daughter of Levi. 
(Num. xxvi. 59.) 

JOEL, prophecy op, is the 
twenty-ninth book of the Old Tes¬ 
tament, and the fifth of the pro¬ 
phetic books in chronological or¬ 
der. It is supposed to have been 
uttered in the reign of Ahaz, and 
the author to have been contem¬ 
porary with Isaiah, between b. c. 
810 and 700. It contains a re¬ 
markable prediction of the effu¬ 
sion of the Holy Spirit, which is 
supposed to have been fulfilled on 
the day of Pentecost. The bur¬ 
den of the prophecy of Joel is 
the dreadful temporal juigments 


JOH 

which were to come upon th# 
Jews, and which he figuratively 
describes as already present. In 
view of these, the people are ex¬ 
horted to repent and humble 
themselves before God, that they 
may obtain forgiveness and find 
grace in the day of his merciful 
visitation. 

JOHN, THE baptist. (Matt, 
iii. 1.) The prophet and fore¬ 
runner of our Saviour, and the 
Elias of the New Testament. He 
was the son of Zacharias, the aged 
priest, and Elisabeth, (Luke i. 13,) 
and was born about six months 
before Christ. His birth and 
work were predicted by the angel 
Gabriel, (Luke i. 5-15,) and by 
Isaiah (Isa. xl. 3) and Malachi. 
(Mai. iv. 5.) He grew up in soli¬ 
tude ; and, when about thirty 
years of age, began to preach in 
the wilderness of Judea, and to 
call men to repentance and re¬ 
formation. By divine direction, 
he baptized all who came unto 
him, confessing their sins, with 
the baptism of repentance, (Luke 
iii. 8;) and many supposed he 
might be the Christ. (John i. 19- 
2S.) His manner of life was soli¬ 
tary, and even austere; for he 
seems to have shunned the habi¬ 
tations of men, and to have sub¬ 
sisted on locusts and wild honey; 
while his dress was made of th* 
coarse hair of camels, and a lea¬ 
thern girdle was about his loins. 
John, moreover, announced to the 
Jews the near approach of the 
Messiah’s kingdom, called the 
kingdom of heaven. (Matt. iii. 
2.) Multitudes flocked tc hear 
him, and to be baptized of him, 
from every part of the land; and 
among the rest came Jesus of Na¬ 
zareth, and applied for baptism. 
John at first hesitated, on account 



JOH 

of the dignity of the person and 
his own unworthiness: but when 
Jesus told him that it was neces¬ 
sary, John acquiesced; and while 
this solemn ceremony was in the 
course of performance, heaven 
was opened, and the Holy Ghost 
descended on him in the likeness 
of a dove, and a voice was heard 
from heaven, saying, This is my 
beloved Son, in tohom I am well 
pleased. (Matt. iii. 17.) By this, 
John knew most certainly that 
Jesus of Nazareth was the Mes¬ 
siah ; and, indeed, before he saw 
this sign from heaven, he knew 
that the Lamb of God who taketh 
away the sin of the world was pre¬ 
sent, and pointed him out to his 
Own disciples, and announced to 
the people that he was then among 
ibem. (John i. 26.) John was 
i man of profound humility; and, 
•ithough he foresaw that his fame 
irould be eclipsed by the coming 
of Christ, as the brightness of the 
morning star is dimmed by the 
rising of the sun; yet he rejoiced 
sincerely in the event, saying, 
He must increase, but I must de¬ 
crease. The testimony of John 
to the divine nature and offices 
of the Redeemer is full and dis¬ 
tinct. (John i. 29; iii. 28-32.) 
The message he sent by his disci¬ 
ples while he was in prison, was 
for their sakes, and not for his 
own. (Matt. xi. 1-6.) The preach¬ 
ing of John seems to have been 
of a very awakening and alarm¬ 
ing kind, and to have produced a 
lively impression on the minds of 
his hearers, but with most it was 
but temporary. They rejoiced in 
Pis light for a season. Among 
the hearers of John was Herod, 
the tetrarch of Galilee. This 
wicked prince not only heard 
»im, but heard him with delight, 
32* 


JOH 

and reformed his conduct in many 
points in consequence of hia 
solemn warnings, (Mark vi. 20;' 
but there was one sin which he 
would not relinquish. He had 
put away his own wife, and had 
married Herodias, the wife of his 
brother Philip, he being alive. 
For this iniquity, John faithfully 
reproved the tetrarch, by wbioh 
he was so much offended that he 
would have killed the preacher, 
had he not feared an insurrection 
of the people; for all men held 
John to be a prophet. (Matt. xi> 
5.) He went so far, however, as 
to shut him up in prison. The 
resentment of Herodias was still 
stronger and more implacable 
towards the man who had dared 
to reprove her sin. She there¬ 
fore watched for some opportunity 
to wreak her vengeance on this 
prophet of the Lord. And it was 
not long before an occasion such as 
she desired offered itself; for on 
Herod’s birthday, when all the 
principal men of the country were 
feasting with him, the daughter 
of Herodias came in, and danced 
so gracefully before the company, 
that Herod was charmed beyond 
measure, and declared with an 
oath that he would give her what¬ 
ever she asked, even to the half 
of his kingdom. She immediately 
went to her mother, to get her 
advice what she should ask; who 
told her to request the bead of 
John the Baptist, which she ac¬ 
cordingly did ; and Herod, whose 
resentment against him seems to 
have subsided, was exceedingly 
sorry; but out of regard to his 
oath, as he said, and respect for 
his company, he sent to the prison 
and caused John to be beheaded; 
and his head was brought in a 
dish and presented to the young 

m 



J Oh 

dancer, who immediately gave it 
to her mother. Thus terminated 
the life of one, concerning whom 
our Lord declared, that of those 
born of woman a greater had not 
appeared. (Matt. xi. 11.) He 
also declared, that he was the 
Elijah predicted in the Scriptures; 
that is, a prophet who greatly re¬ 
sembled Elijah, and who came in 
his power and spirit. John, in¬ 
deed, in answer to the questions 
proposed by the deputation from 
Jerusalem, asserted that he was 
not Elijah; but this was spoken in 
relation to the opinion entertained 
by the Scribes and Pharisees, that 
Elijah would come in person. 
(For a full account of his life, 
with illustrative maps, see Life 
of John the Baptist. 

„ John’s Baptism, (Acts xix. 3,— 
Baptism of John, Matt. xxi. 25,) 
is in this passage taken for his 
whole ministry, because this was 
a prominent branch of it. What 
the baptism of John was is a sub¬ 
ject of controversy. The words 
of our Saviour, recorded in Matt, 
xxviii. 19, are allowed to be the 
foundation of this ordinance, to 
be administered in the Christian 
church; yet various opinions 
have been entertained respecting 
its origin. Whilst some maintain 
that it was never practised before 
the mission of John the Baptist, 
others affirm that we ought to 
look for its origin among the an¬ 
cient ceremonies of the Jews. We 
may be allowed to remark, that 
as the baptism of Christ differed 
from that of John, at least in the 
form of expression, so both dif¬ 
fered perhaps still more from the 
washings which were called bap- 
asms by the Jews. Some main¬ 
tain, however, that .a ceremony 
prev ailed at the initiation of prose- 
378 


JOH 

lytes into the Jewish church* 
which bore a striking resemblance 
to baptism, and which might in¬ 
duce our Saviour to adopt it. If 
baptism had been altogether un¬ 
known to the Jews, say they, 
would they not have contemplat¬ 
ed John’s conduct with that as¬ 
tonishment which novelty always 
excites? While they were so far 
from expressing any surprise, 
that they spoke of baptism as a 
familiar rite when they said to 
him, Why baptizest thou, then, if 
thou art neither Christ nor Elias? 
(John i. 25.) But it is not diffi¬ 
cult to trace the source of their 
ideas about baptism; for not only 
was Moses commanded to wash 
Aaron and his sons at their con¬ 
secration, but no person who had 
contracted ceremonial impurity 
was admitted into the sanctuary 
till it was removed by washing; 
and so of furniture, <fcc. (Mark 
vii. 4.) The conduct of Christ, 
in the institution of the supper, 
also corresponds to his conduct on 
this occasion; for as the Jews 
concluded their passover by giv¬ 
ing to every person a piece of 
bread and a cup of wine, so Christ 
though he set aside, as the nature 
of his office required, the rites en 
joined by Moses in that ordinance 
which he had been then com¬ 
memorating, yet retained tho 
bread and cup added by the Jews. 

JOHN, The evangelist, was 
the son of Zebedee and Salome, 
and was probably born at Betb- 
saida, and was a companion of 
Pe.ter, Andrew and Philip, who 
were all of Bethsaida. (Matt. iv. 
18, 21.) His parents were proba¬ 
bly in comfortable circumstances 
(Mark i. 20; John xix. 27.) 

He was an adherent, and, as 
some think, a cousin of John the 



JOH 

Baptist; and when Chrisi came, 
he readily followed him. When 
they first met, he spent ssveral 
hours with him, and afterwards 
obeyed his call. (Matt. iv. 21.) 
It is supposed that John abode 
at Jerusalem, and took care of 
the mother of Jesus until her de¬ 
cease, as that was the last request 
of his Lord and Master. 

After the death of the apostle 
Paul, John preached in Asia 
Minor; and was banished to Pat- 
mos, in the Egean Sea, where he 
wrote the Revelation. (Rev. i. 
9.) He returned from his exile, 
laboured in the gospel at Ephesus, 
and died at the age of ninety, in 
the reign of Trajan. Jerome tells 
us, that when John was too in¬ 
firm to converse correctly, he was 
continually repeating the words, 
Little children, love one another; 
and when asked why he always 
repeated this sentence only, he 
replied, “Because it is the com¬ 
mandment of the Lord, and if this 
is done, it is enough.” 

John was, in many respects, 
the most interesting of the apos¬ 
tles in his personal character. 
Among the earliest disciples of 
the Lord, he was distinguished 
not only by marks of the peculiar 
regard and confidence of his Mas¬ 
ter, but by a bold and unwavering 
attachment to his cause. Anti¬ 
quity attributes to him great love¬ 
liness of temper and high per¬ 
sonal attractions: traits of cha¬ 
racter which, connected with his 
youth and relationship to the Re- 
leemer, and his constancy of af¬ 
fection, may well account for his 
being so much beloved. It is sup¬ 
posed by some that he had some 
prominent defects of natural cha¬ 
racter, and especially that he 
was inclined to harshness and 


JOH 

selfishness. (Mark ix. 38; x. 35 1 
Luke ix. 54. Comp. Matt. xx. 
20.) We know that those sublime 
qualities of love, meekness, and 
humility, which afterwards dis¬ 
tinguished him, were the fruits 
of the Spirit, by which he was 
regenerated and sanctified, and 
made peculiarly dear to the Re¬ 
deemer. (John xiii. 23; xix. 26; 
xx. 2; xxi. 7.) John was of an 
ardent temperament, as appears 
by the frequent display of zeal 
and devotedness to the cause he 
had espoused. Sometimes, in¬ 
deed, he was impetuous; but, on 
the other hand, we find him fore¬ 
most in action and fearless in 
danger. His character is finely 
contrasted with that of his bold 
and forward associate, Peter; for 
while he who was counted a rock 
shrunk away from his post and 
denied his Master, the amiable 
John was firm and undaunted; nor 
did he forsake his Lord even at 
the cross, but stood by him, and 
amid all the violence and dismay 
of that dreadful hour, received his 
last message, and bore witness 
to the minutest events that oc¬ 
curred. 

After the resurrection, John 
was first, with Peter, in announc¬ 
ing the gospel. His bold and 
zealous conduct on this occasion 
is worthy of admiration; and to 
the end of his long life, he was 
distinguished by the ardour and 
affection with which he served his 
boioved Lord. (For a full history 
of John the Evangelist, with il¬ 
lustrative maps and cuts, see The 
Beloved Disciple.) 

JOHN, gospel of, is the fourth 
book of the New Testament. It 
is supposed by many to have been 
written about the year 69; but 
there are some powerful reason* 
379 



jon 

to believe that it was written as 
late as 97. It was published in 
Asia. The particular design of 
it is expressed by the author to 
be, that those to whom it was 
written might believe that Jesus 
is the Christ, the Son of God, and 
that believing they might have 
life through his name. (John xx. 
31.) Hence the subjects and dis¬ 
courses of this book have special 
relation to our Lord’s character 
and offices, and are evidently in¬ 
tended to establish his nature, 
authority and doctrines, as divine. 
He probably had the other gos¬ 
pels before him, or was familiar 
with their general contents. This 
fact affords substantial evidence 
of the genuineness of these writ¬ 
ings, and also accounts for the 
omission of many important oc¬ 
currences which are particularly 
stated by the other evangelists. 

This gospel is divided into 
twenty-one chapters ; and among 
the leading subjects are :—A plain 
declaration of the Redeemer’s 
Godhead, (ch. i 1-5; iv. 14; v. 
17, 18-23; x. 18, 30;) the nature 
and necessity of regeneration and 
redemption, (iii. 3-21;) the secu¬ 
rity of the people of God, (x.;) 
the resurrection of the dead, 
(xi.;) the descent of the Holy 
Spirit, (xvi.;) and the blessed re¬ 
lation of Christ and his true dis¬ 
ciples. (xvii.) 

This whole gospel abounds with 
the most sublime and mysterious 
truths of our holy religion, ex¬ 
pressed with great simplicity, 
and with the utmost zeal, affec¬ 
tion, and veneration for the Divine 
author and finisher of our faith. 
No one can read it and wonder 
at the declaration, “ He that be- 
lieveth not the Son shall not seo 
Life.” , (John xx. 31.) 

389 


JOII ' 

Epistles op, are three in num¬ 
ber, and make the twenty-third, 
twenty-fourth, and twenty-fifth 
books of the New Testament. 
The first has always been attri¬ 
buted to John, though his name 
is neither prefixed nor subscribed. 
It has been supposed to be intro¬ 
ductory, or a kind of dedication 
of the gospel. It was written 
not far from a. D. 70. Some have 
assigned to all three of these 
epistles a date as late as A. D. 90 
or 97. It is addressed to Chris¬ 
tians generally, and might more 
properly be called a discourse or 
treatise, though some have thought 
it was designed particularly for 
the church at Ephesus. The 
leading objects of it are, to esta¬ 
blish Christians in the faith of 
those things to which the author 
and his fellow-labourers had testi¬ 
fied as eye-witnesses, and to in¬ 
duct them into the mysteries of re¬ 
deeming love, and into the princi¬ 
ples and duties which the religion 
of Christ enjoins, and to furnish 
them with certain signs, or cri¬ 
teria, by which to determine the 
genuineness of their faith. 

The second epistle is addressed 
to the elect (excellent, eminent, 
&c .) laxly and her children. The 
elect lady is supposed to have 
beon some honourable woman, 
distinguished for piety, and well 
known in the churches as a dis¬ 
ciple of Christ. Some, however, 
have thought some particular 
church and its members might be 
denoted. Those who adopt the 
latter opinion apply the term to 
the church at Jerusalem, and the 
term elect sister (v. 13) to the 
church at Ephesus. These con¬ 
jectures, however, have generally 
yielded to the more natural con¬ 
clusion that some eminently hoe- 



JOH 

pitabie woman and her sister, of 
like spirit, are denoted. The title 
of elder, which the author as¬ 
sumes, was probably one of the 
honourable distinctions in the 
primitive church, and indicative 
of the apostle’s office or of his 
great age, then not far from 
one hundred years, as it is sup¬ 
posed. The substance of this 
letter is an exhortation to con¬ 
tinual obedience, and an admoni¬ 
tion against deceivers, especially 
against a new form of error, that 
Christ was a man in appearance 
only, and notin reality, and there¬ 
fore his sufferings and death were 
not real. 

The third epistle, which is ad¬ 
dressed to Gaius, or Caius, a pri¬ 
vate individual, and is commend¬ 
atory of his piety, was written 
about the same time with the 
others. There are at least five 
persons of this name mentioned 
in the Scriptures, but nothing is 
now known of their respective 
residence, nor of the other per¬ 
sons to whom allusion is made in 
the course of this short letter. 

JOHN, ( surnamed , or called 
also, MARK,) (Acts xii. 12,) was 
a nephew, or some think a cousin 
of Barnabas, (Col. iv. 10,) and is 
often mentioned as the companion 
of the apostles. (Acts xii. 25; 
xv. 39; 2 Tim. iv. 11; Philern. 
24.) His mother was the Mary 
at whose house the apostles and 
first Christians usually met. (Acts 
xii. 12-16.) 

The same name (Marcus) is ap¬ 
plied (1 Pet. v. 13) to an indi¬ 
vidual who is called by that apos¬ 
tle liis son, (in the Lord.) It is 
doubtful by which of these per¬ 
sons the gospel (by Mark) was 
written, if, indeed, it was written 
by either. Many modern critics 


JOK 

of deserved celebrity consider all 
these passages as relating to one 
and the same individual, and that 
to be the evangelist Mark. 

JOKNEAM (Josh. xii. 22) was 
a city of Zebulon. (Josh. xxi. 34.) 
It was situated south of Ptole- 
mais, near the bay, and is called 
of Carmel, because it was at the 
foot of that mountain. 

JOKTHEEL. (2 Kings xiv. 7.) 
The name given by Amaziah to 
Selah, or the modern Petra. It 
was the capital of Idumea, and 
one of the most magnificent of 
the ancient cities. It was situat¬ 
ed near the base of mount Hor, 
about three days journey from 
Jericho, and the same distance 
from mount Sinai; and must be 
regarded as the most singular 
spot in all Arabia—perhaps in the 
whole Eastern world. Its remark¬ 
able character and history, which 
have been but recently disclosed, 
and its close connection with pro¬ 
phecy, require a more extended 
article than would otherwise be 
given to it. 

This city appears to have been 
coeval with the birth of com¬ 
merce ; and there is indubitable 
evidence that it was a flourishing 
emporium seventeen centuries be¬ 
fore the Christian era. It was the 
point to which all the trade of 
northern Arabia originally tend¬ 
ed ; and where the first merchant! 
of the earth stored the precious 
commodities of the East. 

With the decline and fall of 
the Roman power in the East, the 
name of Petra almost vanishes 
from the page of history. About 
the period of the Crusades, it was 
held in such esteem by the sul¬ 
tans of Egypt, on account of its 
great strength, that they made it 
the depository of their choicest 
381 



JOK 

treasures; and, in ths course of 
these religious wars, its possession 
was strenuously contested by the 
Turks an$ Christians, who re¬ 
garded it hs the key that opened 
the gates of Palestine. From that 
time it was known only as the 
seat of a Latin bishop. Its once 
crowded marts ceased to be the 
emporium of nations. The ob¬ 
scurity of nearly a thousand years 
covered its ruins. The very place 
where it stood became a subject 
of controversy. 

The accounts of recent tra¬ 
vellers, who have discovered the 
ruins of this great city, tell us of 
the utter desolation which now 
reigns over those once celebrated 
regions, described by an inspired 
pen as the fatness of the earth. 
It is scarcely possible, they say, 
to imagine how a wilderness so 
dreary and desolate could ever 
have been adorned with walled 
cities, or inhabited for ages by a 
powerful and opulent people. The 
aspect of the surrounding coun¬ 
try is singularly wild and fantas¬ 
tic. On one side stretches i»n 
immense desert of shifting sands, 
whose surface is covered with 
black flints, and broken by hil¬ 
locks into innumerable undula¬ 
tions; on the other are rugged and 
insulated precipices, among which 
rises mount llor, with its dark 
summits, and near it lies the an¬ 
cient Petra, in a plain or hollow of 
unequal surface, (Wady Mousa,) 
enclosed on all sides with a vast 
amphitheatre of rocks. 

The entrance to this cele¬ 
brated metropolis is from the east, 
through a deep ravine called El 
Byk; and it is not easy to con¬ 
ceive any thing more awful or 
sublime than such an approach. 
The width in general is not more \ 
382 


JOK 

than sufficient for the passage ot 
two horsemen abreast; and 
through the bottom winds the 
stream that watered the city. As 
this rivulet must have been of great 
importance to the inhabitants, 
they seem to have bestowed much 
pains in protecting and regulating 
its course. The channel appears 
to have been covered by a stone 
pavement, vestiges of which still 
remain; and in several places 
walls were constructed to give the 
current a proper direction and 
prevent it from running to waste. 
Several grooves or beds branched 
off as the river descended, in or¬ 
der to convey a supply to the gar¬ 
dens and higher parts of the city. 
On either hand of the ravine rises 
a wall of perpendicular rocks, 
varying from four hundred to 
seven hundred feet in height, 
which often overhang to such a 
degree that, without their abso¬ 
lutely meeting, the sky is inter¬ 
cepted; scarcely leaving more 
light than is in a cavern, for a 
hundred yards together. The 
sides of this romantic chasm, from 
which several small streamlets 
issue, are clothed with the tama¬ 
risk, the wild fig, the oleander, 
and the caper plant, which some¬ 
times hang down from the cliffs 
and crevices in beautiful festoons, 
or grow about the path with a 
luxuriance that almost obstructs 
the passage. Near the entrance 
of the pass a bold arch is thrown 
across it at a great height. Whe¬ 
ther this was the fragment of an 
aqueduct, or part of a road for¬ 
merly connecting the opposite 
cliffs, the travellers had no oppor¬ 
tunity of examining ; but its ap¬ 
pearance, as they passed under it, 
was terrific; hanging over their 
heads between two rugged masses. 




JOK 

apparently inaccessible. Without 
changing much its general direc¬ 
tion, this natural defile presents 
so many windings in its course, 
that the eye sometimes cannot 
penetrate beyond a few paces for¬ 
ward, and is often puzzled to dis¬ 
tinguish in what direction the 
passage will open. For nearly two 
miles its sides continue to increase 
in height as the path descends. 
The solitu^j is disturbed by the 
incessant screaming of eagles, 
hawks, owls and ravens soaring 
above in considerable numbers, 
apparently amazed at strangers 
invading their lonely habitation. 
At every step the scenery'"dis¬ 
covers new and more remarkable 
features; a stronger light begins 
to break through the sombre per¬ 
spective ; until at length the 
ruins of the city burst on the view 
of the astonished traveller in their 
full grandeur, shut in on every 
side by barren, craggy precipices, 
from which numerous recesses 
and narrow valleys branch out in 
all directions. 

The entire face of the cliffs 
and sides of the mountains are 
covered with an endless variety 
of excavated tombs, private dwell¬ 
ings and public buildings; pre¬ 
senting altogether a spectacle to 
which nothing perhaps is analo¬ 
gous in any other part of the 
world. It is impossible,” says a 
traveller, “ to give the reader an 
idea of the.singular effect of rocks 
tinted with the most extraordinary 
hues, whose summits present na¬ 
ture in her most savage and ro¬ 
mantic form; while their bases 
are worked out in all the symme¬ 
try and regularity of art, with 
colonnades and pediments and 
ranges of corridors adhering to 
the perpendicular surface.” The 


JOK 

inner and wider extremity of the 
circuitous defile by which the city 
is approached, is sculptured and 
excavated in a singular manner; 
and these become more frequent 
on both sides, until at last it has 
the appearance of a continued 
street of tombs. 

About half way through there 
is a single spot, abrupt and pre¬ 
cipitous, where the area of this 
natural chasm spreads a little and 
sweeps into an irregular ciicle. 
This had been chosen for the site 
of the most elaborate, if not the 
most extensive, of all these archi¬ 
tectural monuments. The na¬ 
tives gave it the name of Kazr 
Faraoun, the castle or palace of 
Pharaoh, though it resembled 
more the sepulchre than the resi¬ 
dence of a prince. On its sum¬ 
mit is placed a large vase, once 
furnished apparently with handles 
of metal, and supposed by the 
Arabs, to be filled with coins; 
hence they denominated this mys¬ 
terious urn the treasury of Pha¬ 
raoh. Its height and position 
have most probably baffled every 
approach of avarice or curiosity; 
from above it is rendered as inac¬ 
cessible by the bold projection of 
the rough rocks, as it is from be¬ 
low by the smoothness of the po¬ 
lished surface. The front of the 
mausoleum itself rises in several 
stories to the height of sixty or 
seventy feet, onnamented with 
columns, rich friezes, pediments 
and large figures of horses and 
men. The interior consists of a 
chamber sixteen paces square, and 
twenty-five feet high; the walls 
and roof are quite smooth, and 
without the smallest decoration. 
The surprising effect of the whole 
is heightened by the situation and 
the strangeness of the approach* 



JOK 

Half seen at first through the 
dim and narrow opening, columns, 
Statues and cornices gradually ap¬ 
pear as if fresh from the chisel, 
without the tints or weather-stains 
of age, and executed in stone of 
a pale rose colour. This splendid 
architectural elevation has been 
bo contrived that a statue, perhaps 
of Victory, with expanded wings, 
just fills the centre of the aper¬ 
ture in front, which, being closed 
below by the ledges of the rocks 
folding over each other, gives to 
the figure the appearance of be¬ 
ing suspended in the air at a con¬ 
siderable height; the ruggedness 
of the cliffs beneath setting off 
the sculpture to the greatest ad¬ 
vantage. No part of this stupen¬ 
dous temple is built, the whole 
being hewn from the solid rock; 
and its minutest embellishments, 
wherever the hand of man has 
not purposely effaced them, are 
so perfect that it may be doubted 
whether any work of the ancients, 
except perhaps some on the banks 
of the Nile, has survived with so 
little injury from the lapse of 
time. There is scarcely a build¬ 
ing to be found of forty years’ 
standing so fresh and well pre¬ 
served in its architectural decora¬ 
tions as the Kazr Faraoun, which 
Burckhardt represents as one of 
the most elegant remains of an¬ 
tiquity he had found in Syria. 

The ruins of the city itself 
open on the view with singular 
effect, after winding two or three 
miles through the dark ravine. 
Tombs present themselves not 
only in every avenue within it, 
and on every precipice that sur¬ 
rounds it, but even intermixed al¬ 
most promiscuously with its pub¬ 
lic and domestic edifices,* so that 
Petra has been truly denominated 
384 


JOS 

one vast necropolis, or city of th& 
dead. It contains above two hun¬ 
dred and fifty sepulchres, which 
are occasionally excavated in tiers 
one above the other; and in places 
where the side of the cliff is so 
perpendicular that it seems im¬ 
possible to approach the upper¬ 
most, no access whatever being 
visible. There are besides nu¬ 
merous mausoleums of colossal 
dimensions, and in a state of 
wonderful preservation. Near the 
west end of the wady are the re¬ 
mains of a stately edifice, the 
Kazr Benit Faraoun, or palace of 
Pharaoh’s daughter, of which 
only a part of the wall is left 
standing. Towards the middle of 
tho valley, on the south side, are 
two large truncated pyramids, and 
a theatre, with complete rows of 
benches, capable of containing 
above 3000 spectators, all cut out 
of the solid rock! The ground 
is covered with heaps of hewn 
stones, foundations of buildings, 
fragments of pillars and vestiges 
of paved streets,—the sad memo¬ 
rials of departed greatness. On 
the left bank of the river is a ris¬ 
ing ground, extending westward 
for about three-quarters of a mile, 
entirely strewn with similar relics. 
On the right bank, where the 
ground is more elevated, ruins of 
the same description are to be 
seen. In the eastern cliff there 
are upwards of fifty separate se¬ 
pulchres, close to each other. 
There are also the remains of a 
palace and several temples; grot¬ 
toes in vast numbers, not sepul¬ 
chral ; niches sometimes excavat¬ 
ed to the height of thirty feet, 
with altars for votive offerings, or 
with pyramids, columns and obe¬ 
lisks ; horizontal grooves, for the 
conveyance of water, cut along 



JCK 

the face of the rock, and even 
across the architectural parts of 
gome of tko excavations; dwell¬ 
ings scooped out of large dimen¬ 
sions, in one of which is a single 
chamber sixty feet in length and 
of a proportional breadth ; many 
other habitations of inferior note, 
particularly numerous in one re¬ 
cess of the city, the steep sides 
of which contain a sort of exca¬ 
vated suburb, accessible only by 
flights of steps chiselled out of 
the rock. In short, the outer sur¬ 
face of the strong girdle that en¬ 
circles the place is hollowed out 
into innumerable artificial cham¬ 
bers of different dimensions, whose 
entrances are variously, richly and 
often fantastically decorated with 
every order of architecture: show¬ 
ing how the pride and labour of art 
has tried to vie with the sublimity 
of nature. The effect of the whole 
is heightened by the appearance 
of mount Hor, towering above 
this city of sepulchres, and per¬ 
forated almost to the top with 
natural caverns and excavations 
for the dead. 

The immense number of these 
stupendous ruins corroborates the 
accounts given, both by sacred 
and profane writers, of the kings 
of Petra, their courtly grandeur 
and their ancient and long-con¬ 
tinued royalty. Great must have 
been the opulence of a capital 
that could dedicate such monu¬ 
ments to the memory of its rulers. 
Its magnificence can only be ex¬ 
plained by a reference to the im¬ 
mense trade of which it was the 
■jommon centre from the dawn of 
civilization. 

These magnificent remain* can 
now be regarded only as the 
grave of Idumea, in which its 
former wealth and splendour lie 
33 Z 


JON 

interred. The state of desolation 
into which it has long fallen is 
not only the work of time, but the 
fulfilment of prophecy, which 
foretold that wisdom and under¬ 
standing should perish out of 
mount Seir; that Edom should 
be a wilderness; its cities a per¬ 
petual waste, the abode of every 
unclean beast. (Isa. xxxiv. 5, 
10, 17.) Nowhere is there a more 
striking and visible demonstration 
of the truth of these divine pre¬ 
dictions than among the fallen 
columns and deserted palaces of 
Petra. The dwellers in the clefts 
of the rocks are brought low; the 
princes of Edom are as nothing; 
its eighteen cities are swept 
away, or reduced to empty cham¬ 
bers and naked walls; and the 
territory of the descendants of 
Esau affords as miraculous a 
proof of the inspiration of Scrip¬ 
ture history as the fate of the 
children of Israel. 

JONADAB. (See Rechab- 

ITES.) 

JONAH. (2 Kings xiv. 25,) 
or JONAS, (Matt. xii. 39, 40,) 
was the son of Amittai, and was 
born at Gath-hepher. The only 
history we have of him is given us 
in connection with his prophecy. 
It seems he was commissioned 
by God to go to the great city of 
Nineveh, and reprove the people 
for their abominable iniquities. 
Instead of doing this, he fled in 
the opposite direction to Joppa, 
and thence sailed for Tarshish. 
On the voyage they were overta¬ 
ken by a violent storm, which 
threatened their destruction. They 
lightened the ship by throwing 
over part of the cargo, and betook 
themselves to prayer. Jonah was 
asleep: but the captain awoke 
him, and besought him to inter- 
386 



JON 

cede for their deliverance. Under 
the superstitious (though in this 
case correct) impression that such 
calamities were to be regarded as 
the visitation of God upon one or 
more particular individuals, and 
that the lot would determine who 
they were, they cast lots to see on 
whose account the present judg¬ 
ment was sent. The result of 
the lot showed that Jonah was 
the ill-fated man. They earnestly 
begged him to tell them all his 
history, and what he had done to 
bring this distress upon the ship. 
He gave them a history of him¬ 
self, and why he bad taken the 
voyage. And upon their inquir¬ 
ing what they should do with him 
to rid the ship of his presence, 
and so save themselves from de¬ 
struction on his account, he pro¬ 
posed that they should throw him 
overboard. This they were very 
reluctant to do, and made all pos¬ 
sible effort to bring the ship to 
land, but in vain. And so, after 
solemnly appealing to God for 
their justification in the act, they 
cast the prophet overboard ; and 
then the storm ceased, and they 
were delivered from their danger. 

God had provided means, how¬ 
ever, for the prophet’s preserva¬ 
tion. He was swallowed by a 
fish, within whose body he re¬ 
mained for three days and three 
nights, when he was thrown forth 
upon the shore. 

However extraordinary this 
event may appear, it is certainly 
uot more extraordinary nor more 
contrary to all human experience 
and reason, than the events re¬ 
corded in Matt. xiv. 25, and xvii. 
27. They are all alike the re¬ 
sult of Omnipotence. The sup¬ 
position that a boat is intended 
by the belly or bowels of the fish, 
386 


JON 

(Jonah i. 17,) is entirely gratui. 
tons, and utterly inconsistent 
with the account which Jonah 
i gives us: The waters compassed 
me about, even to the soul: the 
depth closed me round about: the 
weeds were wrapped about my 
head. I ivent doion to the bottoms 
of the mountains; the earth with 
her bars toas about me forever: 
yet hast thou brought up my life 
from corruption, 0 Lord my God. 
(Jonah ii. 5, 6.) Of what con¬ 
veyance would these expressions 
be used, unless such a one as 
some monster of the deep might 
afford? The particular species 
of fish is not stated in the sacred 
history ; and though in a refer¬ 
ence to the event recorded, (Matt, 
xii. 40,) a whale is mentioned, 
the original word there translated 
whale signifies any large fish. 

After the fish had thrown him 
out upon the shore, he was again 
directed to^ carry the message of 
the Lord to Nineveh; and he 
went and proclaimed the purpose 
of God to destroy that mighty 
city in forty days. His prediction 
was believed ; and the whole peo 
pie, of every class and age, clothed 
themselves in sackcloth, and de 
voted themselves to acts of pent, 
tence. Man and beast, herd an I 
flock, abstained from food and 
drink, until God was pleased to 
suspend the threatened judgment. 
This was very irritating to Jonah, 
who was afraid he should be re¬ 
garded and treated as a false pro¬ 
phet; and indeed this was the 
very reason of his attempted flight 
to Tarshish. (Jonah iv. 2.) He 
was so much disappointed and 
vexed as to pray that God would 
take away his life; but God re¬ 
proved his inhumanity by a sig¬ 
nificant miracle, (see Gourd,) and 






JON 

showed him the unreasonableness 
of his complaints, though with 
what effect we are not told. 

This incident in the life of 
Jonah was alluded to by our Sa¬ 
viour in a conversation with the 
Scribes and Pharisees, (Matt. xii. 
39-41,) in which he signifies to 
them thathe should in like manner 
be three days and three nights in 
the heart or bowels of the earth. 
Of course whatever credit was or 
should have been given by the 
Ninevites to the preaching of Jo¬ 
nas, on the ground of his having 
been three days and three nights 
in the bowels of a fish, and hav¬ 
ing then been thrown out alive on 
the land, the like credit should 
the Jews give him, as he would 
in like manner be three days and 
three nights in the earth, and 
would then rise alive. If the 
Ninevites repented at the preach¬ 
ing of Jonas, whose divine com¬ 
mission was attested by this sign, 
viz. his deliverance from the body 
of the fish; how great must be 
the condemnation of the Jews if 
they repented not at the preaching 
of Christ, (so much greater than 
Jonas,) whose divine commission 
was attested by a much greater 
sign, viz. his resurrection from 
the dead. 

Jonah, prophecy of, is the 
thirty-second book of the Old 
Testament, and the ninth in the 
chronological order of the prc • 
phecies. The time at which it 
was uttered is uncertain. His 
prophecy respecting Jeroboam (2 
Kings xiv. 25) is not extant, but 
is supposed to have been uttered 
in tho reign of Jehoahaz, the 
grandfather of Jeroboam. (Comp. 
2 Kings xiii. 3-7 with 2 Kings 
xiv. 26.) So that though he 
might be contemporary with 


JON 

Hosea, Amos, and Isaiah, ha 
must have prophesied at an earlier 
period than that at which either 
of the prophecies now extant was 
uttered. We are safe perhaps in 
placing it between b. c. 856 and 
784. It respects the destruction 
of the city of Nineveh, the capital 
of the Assyrian empire, which 
God threatened, unless they would 
repent and turn to him,* and it is 
at once a wonderful record of 
God’s long-suffering and forbear¬ 
ance, and an abundant proof that 
he has no pleasure in the death 
of the wicked. 

JONATHAN (1 Sam. xiv. 1) 
was the son of Saul, and distin¬ 
guished for piety and valour. He 
and his armour-bearer, being en¬ 
couraged by an intimation from 
God, attacked a Philistine garri¬ 
son, slew twenty men, and put 
the garrison to flight. Having 
ignorantly violated a decree of 
his father, (the kifcig,) that no 
man should stop, on pain of death, 
in the pursuit of the enemy, to 
taste of food, the people inter¬ 
posed, and saved him from the 
penalty which his father waa 
ready to inflict. (1 .Sam. xiv. 
37-45.) 

After David’s defeat of the 
giant, Jonathan became acquaint¬ 
ed with him, and their friendship 
for each other was so remarkable 
as to be minutely described by 
the sacred historian. (1 Sam, 
xviii. 1-4; xix. 2.) The oppor¬ 
tunity to show their friendship 
for each other was greatly ex¬ 
tended by the bitter and relent¬ 
less hostility of Saul to David. 
(1 Sara. xix. xx., <fcc.) Jonathan 
fell with his father and two bro¬ 
thers in the battle of Gilboa. The 
lamentation of David for his 
friend (2 Sara. i. 17-27) is ju?Uy 



JOP 

regarded as inimitably pathetic 
ma beautiful; and his treatment 
of Mephibosheth, Jonathan’s son, 
shows the sincerity and strength 
of his affection for the father. (2 
Sam. ix.) 

JOPPA, {Greek, 2 Chron. ii. 
16,) or JAPHO, {Hebrew, Josh, 
xix. 46,) or JAFFA or YAFFA, 
as it is now called, is one of the 
oldest towns of Asia, situated on 
a sandy promontory, jutting out 
from the eastern coast of the Me¬ 
diterranean, between Cesarea and 
Gaza, and thirty or forty miles 
northwest of Jerusalem. Three 
of its sides are washed by the sea. 
It was, and still is, the principal 
Beaport of the land of Judea, and 
of course a place of great commer¬ 
cial importance, (2 Chron. ii. 16; 
Ezra iii. 7; Jonah i. 3;) but its har¬ 
bour is bad, and ships generally 
anchor a mile from the town. 
Several interesting incidents in 
Peter’s life occurred here. (Acts 
ix. and x.) It was also a promi¬ 
nent place in the history of the 
Crusaders, and in the Egyptian 
campaign of Bonaparte. The 
modern city is surrounded by a 
wall twelve or fourteen feet high, 
and contains from 4000 to 5000 
inhabitants, chiefly Turks and 
Arabs, and perhaps six hundred 
nominal Christians. 

Some of our American mission¬ 
aries lodged there in the spring 
of 1823, and in the house occu¬ 
pied by the British vice-consul, 
which stands on or near the spot 
where tradition says Simon the 
tanner lived. (Acts ix 43. See 
Seluaiiel, pp. 15,16.) 

JORAM, (2 Kings viii. 16,) or 
JEHORAM, (2 Kings ni. 1,) suc¬ 
cessor to Ahaziah, king of Israel, 
was the second son of Ahab. 
Though he put away the worship 
138 


JOR 

of Baal, he was still a very wicked 
king. (2 Kings iii. 3.) After the 
death of Ahab, the king of Moab 
refused to pay the annual tribute 
to the king of Israel, which he 
had been accustomed to pay; and 
Joram determined forthis cause to 
wage war with him. He secured the 
aid of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, 
and they went up through Edom, 
whoso king also joined the expe¬ 
dition. After seven days’ march, 
they found themselves likely to 
be cut off by a severe drought. 
In this extremity, they besought 
the help of Elisha the prophet, 
who had followed the army, (pro¬ 
bably under a divine influence.) 
Elisha at first inferred him to the 
gods of Ahab, his father, and his 
mother, Jezebel, for succour; but 
finally, for the sake of Jehosha- 
phat, he consented to interpose 
for their relief, and received a 
command from God to make the 
valley full of ditches. This was 
done, and then, without wind or 
rain, at a particular hour of the 
next morning, water came, not 
from the springs, into which they 
dug, but from Edom, and supplied 
the army and the country with an 
abundance of water. (2 Kings iii. 
20. Comp. Ex. xvii. 5, 6.) 

The Moabites had in the mean¬ 
time assembled their forces, and 
were ready for battle on the bor¬ 
der of their land, when they saw 
the streams of water at a distance, 
apparently red as blood. This 
appearance might have been oc¬ 
casioned by the reflection of the 
son’s rays, or perhaps by the soil 
through which the water flowed. 
At any rate, the Moabites flattered 
themselves that the army of Israel 
and its allies had fallen out by the 
way, and had fought a desperate 
battle .among themselves. En 



JOR 

eouraged by this conjecture, they 
Hastened to fall on them; but 
when tney came to the camp of 
Israel, they were met by the full 
strength of the allied army, and 
were defeated with great slaugh¬ 
ter. The king of Moab tried to 
the utmost to rally his forces, but 
did not succeed; and his king¬ 
dom was completely desolated by 
the enemy. 

Joram was at last wounded at 
the siege of Ramoth-gilead, and 
was lying ill at Jezreel. Jehu 
being sent thither as an instru¬ 
ment of God’s vengeance upon the 
wicked house of Ahab, Joram 
went out to meet him and was 
shot dead in his chariot, and his 
body was thrown out into the 
field of Naboth the Jezreelite, 
according to the prediction. (1 
Kings xxi. 18-29. For an in¬ 
teresting sketch of the life of 
Joram, see Life of Elisha, 
ch. iii.) 

JORDAN, 1. River, (Josh. i. 
11,) sometimes called THE RI¬ 
VER, (Gen. xxxi. 21,) was the 
eastern boundary of Judea. The 
name Jordan is compounded of 
Jor, or Yar, and Dan, (the river 
of Dan,) because its rise was in 
the vicinity of Dan. It rises at 
the foot of mount Lebanon, in the 
little lake Phiala, and having run 
southerly, under ground, some 
miles, to Cesarea Philippi, it 
breaks out, and receiving two or 
three considerable tributaries, it 
passes on fifteen miles farther 
south, where it expands into the 
marshy lake Meroin, now Houle, 
(see Merom;) a short distance 
south of which is a stone bridge, 
called the bridge of the sons of 
Jacob, in allusion to Gen. xxxii. 
iO. After running about twelve 
miles from lake Merom, the Jor- 
33* 


JOR 

dan passes through the midst of 
the sea of Tiberias, in a current 
by itself, and thence onward to 
the Dead Sea, into which it 
empties. It probably continued 
its course to the Red Sea, through 
the valloys of mount Seir, until 
it was checked by the convulsions 
attending the overthrow of Sodom 
and Gomorrah, and the filling up 
of the valley with sand, Ac. The 
whole course of the river is com¬ 
puted at one hundred and fifty or 
two hundred miles, but in a di¬ 
rect line does not exceed sixty 
or eighty miles. , The ordinary 
breadth of the Jordan, opposite 
Jericho, and near where the Is¬ 
raelites are supposed to have 
crossed, is said by travellers to 
be sixty feet, about six or seven 
feet deep, and with a current so 
strong as to be resisted with great 
difficulty. It has, however, two 
banks on each side. The first, or 
inner one, is that of the river in 
its natural state ; and the second, 
or outer one, about the eighth of 
a mile distant, is its bank when it 
overflows. This overflowing is 
occasioned by the melting of the 
snow on Lebanon and Hermon, 
in March and April, which was 
the time of the Jewish harvest. 
(Josh. iii. 15; 1 Chron. xii. 15.) 
It was at this time, when the Jor¬ 
dan was at its height, that the 
passage of the Israelites took 
place; and hence the miracle, on 
that occasion, was the more stu¬ 
pendous. At the point of their 
passage, the pilgrims now collect 
for the purpose of bathing. The 
annual procession for this purpose 
takes place soon after Easter. 
Multitudes of pilgrims, under the 
protection of the governor of Je¬ 
rusalem and his guards, visit this 
spot, plunge into the stream, and, 
389 



J3R 

taking a bottle of water with 
them, return to Jerusalem. For 
this privilege, each pilgrim pays 
a tax to the Turkish government. 
Where the Jordan leaves the sea 
of Tiberias, (near the ruins of 
Tarichea,) it is one hundred and 
twenty feet across, but fordable 
by horses; and its course for seve¬ 
ral miles is through a deep, rich 
valley, shaded with thick groves, 
which, from its beauty and fer¬ 
tility, is called the pride of Jor¬ 
dan. (Zech. xi. 3.) The Jordan 
is said to bo the only river of Ju¬ 
dea that continues to flow the 
year round. The space between 
the natural bank and the freshet 
mark is marshy, and abounds 
with tall grass, reeds, willows and 
shrubs, alfording hiding-places for 
wild beasts; whence they were 
driven by the rising of the waters 
(called the swelling of Jordan, 
Jer. xlix. 19; i. 44) to seek food 
for their famishing bodies. Hence 
the allusion of Jeremiah, above 
cited. There were several ford- 
ing-places in the river; one of 
which (the fords of Jordan) was 
seized by Ehud to intercept the 
Moabites. (Judg. iii. 28.) 

The valley of the Jordan is 
from four to six (and some say 
ten) miles wide, and the average 
breadth of the current, as given 
by different travellers, varies from 
sixty to one hundred feet. It is, 
however, very rapid, and rolls a 
vast body of water into the Dead 
Sea. 

The waters of the Jordan are 
iurbid, but when drawn off be- 
tome clear and bright, pleasant 
to the taste, and remarkable for 
the length of time during which 
they will retain their freshness. 

2. The Plain op Jordan, (2 
Chron. iv. 17,)or the region round 
390 


JOS 

about Jorian, (Matt. iii. 5,) of 
the plain south of Chinneroth, 
(Josh. xi. 2,) or simply the plain, 
(2 Kings xxv. 4,) is, strictly speak¬ 
ing, so much of the country as 
borders on the Jordan between 
Tiberias and the Dead Sea. The 
modern name of the lower portion 
of this valley is El Ghor. The 
first of the above names was some¬ 
times applied to the whole extent 
of country watered by the Jor¬ 
dan, from the foot of Lebanon to 
the wilderness of Paran. 

For the most part, this place is 
a barren waste, hot and unwhole¬ 
some, inhabited only by Bedou¬ 
ins, and by them only in the cold 
season. (See Evening Recrea¬ 
tions, vol. ii. pp. 17-23.) 

JOSEPH, (Gen. xxx. 24,) son 
of Jacob and Rachel, was born in 
Mesopotamia, A. m. 2256. He and 
his brother Benjamin were the 
children of Jacob’s old age; and 
his fondness for Joseph particu¬ 
larly seems to have been the 
source of much of his trouble. 

When Joseph was about seven¬ 
teen years of age, he gave offence 
to his brethren, and was cruelly 
sold by them to a company of 
trading Ishmaelites, who carried 
him into Egypt, where he became 
the property of Potiphar, captain 
of the royal guard. Perceiving 
that the young man had extraor¬ 
dinary wisdom and purity of cha¬ 
racter, and that his presence 
brought with it a blessing upon 
the whole household, Pctiphar at 
once advanced Joseph to the high¬ 
est trust. In this situation ho 
was falsely charged by Potiphar’s 
wife with the grossest offence, and 
was for this cause cast into pri¬ 
son. Here again he won the con¬ 
fidence of all around him by hig 
upright and amiable conduct, and 



JOS 

was intrusted with the principal j 
care 01 the other prisoners. 

Among those confined with Jo¬ 
seph were two persons who had 
held the offices of butler and ba¬ 
ker in the king’s household, and 
who for some offence against the 
King were cast into prison. These 
two men had each a remarkable 
dream, which Joseph interpreted 
to mean that the butler should be 
restored to his place in the court, 
and the baker should be hung. 
And the event was according to 
this interpretation. Two years 
after this, Pharaoh had a signifi¬ 
cant dream, and after trying in 
vain to obtain an interpretation 
of it from the magicians and wise 
men of Egypt, the butler told 
him of Joseph, and related what 
had taken place in prison. Jo¬ 
seph was immediately sent for, 
and after hearing the dream, in¬ 
terpreted it to signify the approach 
of a seven years’ famine immedi¬ 
ately succeeding the same period 
of plenty, and at the same time, 
he recommended to the king the 
appointment of a suitable person 
to make provision for the season 
of want, by laying by one-fifth of 
the annual produce of the land 
during the season of plenty. The 
suggestion was adopted, and Jo¬ 
seph was forthwith appointed to 
this important and responsible 
post, and so became, at thirty 
years of age, second only to the 
king in dignity and authority. He 
also married the daughter of one 
of the priests or princes of Egypt, 
and had two children, Manasseh 
and Ephraim. 

When the seven years of famine 
came, it spread distress through 
ail the countries around Egypt, 
in which no provision had been 
made: and among them was the 


JOS 

land of Canaan, where Joseph's 
father and brethren still lived It 
was soon known abroad that pro¬ 
visions were to be had in Egypt, 
and ten of Jacob’s sons went 
down thither to obtain a supply, 
leaving Benjamin at home, as his 
father feared some mischief might 
befall him if he should go with 
them. 

It was necessary for applicants 
to appear personally before the 
governor and procure an order; 
and so the sons of Jacob went in 
before Joseph and made known 
their errand. Instead of receiv¬ 
ing the expected order, they were 
charged with being spies and hav¬ 
ing come thither for an evil pur¬ 
pose. This they denied, declar¬ 
ing briefly the history of the 
family, and the honesty of their 
purpose. After a series of expe¬ 
dients which were designed to 
awaken their consciences and to 
lead them to repent of their sin, 
Joseph disclosed himself to his 
brethren, and immediately made 
the most liberal arrangements for 
the removal of his aged father 
and the whole family to Egypt, 
and their comfortable settlement 
in a province by themselves. 

Joseph’s political i'orecast and 
integrity were displayed when, in 
the sixth year of the famine, the 
Egyptians were obliged to sell 
their lands, and even themselves, 
to pay for the corn they bough. 
(Gen. xlvii. 1-22.) 

At the death of Jacob, seven¬ 
teen years after his removal to 
Egypt, Joseph was present and 
recoived the patriarch’s prophetic 
blessing. (Gen. xlix. 22-6.) His 
treatment of his brethren after 
their father died illustrates his 
kindness and generosity. (Gen 
1. 15-21.) 


391 




JOS 

Fifty-four years passed away, 
and he already saw his posterity 
to the third and fourth generation. 
When at the age of one hundred 
and ten years, he died, leaving it 
in charge with his countrymen to 
take his bones with them, when 
they should leave Egypt; an 
event of which he doubtless had 
divine intimation. (See Jacob, 
Hebrews. See also Life of Ja¬ 
cob and his son Joseph.) 

2. Joseph of Arimathea. 
(Matt, xxvii. 57, 59.) A wealthy 
citizen, probably residing in the 
vicinity of Jerusalem, and a man 
of eminent wisdom and piety. 
(Mark xv. 43; Luke xxiii. 51.) 
lie was a disciple of Christ, 
though he did not appear openly 
as such. (John xix. 38.) 

It is said that the Jews, as a 
mark of ignominy, did not allow 
the bodies of those executed as 
malefactors to be deposited in the 
tombs of their fathers, except the 
flesh had been previously con¬ 
sumed. It was to prevent this 
use of the body of Christ, that 
Joseph so early asked leave to 
remove it and place it in his own 
tomb. 

3. (Matt. i. 18.) The husband 
of Mary, the mother of Christ, 
was by occupation a carpenter, 
(Matt. xiii. 55;) at which trade 
some have supposed (though with¬ 
out warrant) our Lord himself 
laboured until ho entered upon 
his public ministry. (Mark vi. 3.) 

Joseph is called a just man , 
(Matt. i. 19;) which, in this con¬ 
nection, may imply his kindness 
and tenderness, as well as his in¬ 
tegrity, which is its usual import. 
He was informed by an angel that 
Mary was to be the mother of the 
promised Messiah, and had ac- 
tompan 3d her to Bethlehem to 
392 


JOS 

be registered in the tax-books, ac¬ 
cording to the law of the country, 
when Christ was born. When the 
babe was forty days old, Joseph 
and his wife went with him to Je¬ 
rusalem, in observance of the law 
of Moses, and when about return 
ing home to Bethlehem, he was 
divinely admonished to go into 
Egypt, for Herod, the king, was 
resolved to destroy the infant Re¬ 
deemer, if he could get him into 
his power. After the death of 
Herod, they set out again for 
home ; but apprehensive that the 
king’s successor, Archelaus, might 
be equally cruel, they thought it 
safer to go into Galilee ; and they 
took up their abode at Nazareth. 
When Jesus was twelve years of 
age, Joseph and Mary took him 
with them when they went up to 
Jerusalem to celebrate the feast 
of the passover; and after that 
we find nothing more of Joseph 
in the sacred history. It is ge¬ 
nerally supposed he died before 
Christ began his public ministry, 
as he is not mentioned with Mary, 
and as Christ commended her to 
the care of one of the disciples. 
(John xix. 25-27.) 

JOSES (Mark xv. 40) was the 
son of Alpheus, or Cleopas as he 
is called, John xix. 25, and brother 
of James the Less. (See James.) 

JOSHUA (Josh. i. 1) was the 
son of Nun, and is called the 
minister of Moses (Ex. xxiv. 13) 
from the fact that he assisted him 
in the exercise of his office. The 
original name was Oshea, (Num. 
xiii. 8;) and ho is also called Ho - 
shea. (Deut. xxxii. 44.) Joshu? 
is a contraction of Jehoshua, 
(Num. xiii. 16,) and Jeshua, or Je¬ 
sus, is the Greek mode of writing 
Joshua, as in Acts vii. 45, and 
Heb. iv. 8 ; in which passages, the 





JOS 

fie brew word Joshua ought to have 
been retained. Joshua is intro¬ 
duced to us at the.time the Israel¬ 
ites were about to contend with 
the Amalekites at Rephidim. He 
was appointed by Moses to com- 
amnd the forces of Israel on that 
occasion. (Ex. xvii. 9.) He was 
then about forty-four years of age, 
though considered a. young man. 
(Ex.xxxiii.il.) In prospect of 
the death of Moses, Joshua was 
set apart to succeed him, as the 
leader and deliverer of God’s 
chosen people. (Num. xxvii. 16- 
18; Deut, xxxi. 7-14; xxxiv. 9 ) 
And at the age of eighty-four, 
(a. m. 2553,) he passed over the 
Jordan, at the head of the hosts 
of Israel, and entered the land of 
promise. Then commenced a se¬ 
ries of wars with the Canaanites, 
in which Joshua and the people 
of Israel were merely the instru¬ 
ments of God’s righteous judg¬ 
ments on these wicked nations, 
the cup of whose iniquity was 
now completely full, and whose 
impious and abominable deeds 
loudly cried to heaven for divine 
vengeance. Jericho, the city 
nearest to them, and the one first 
attacked, was subdued without a 
contest. It was expressly forbid¬ 
den to the Israelites to touch the 
Bpoil of this city; for it was utterly 
devoted to destruction, with all 
its wealth. But Achan coveted 
and took part of the spoil, and 
concealed it in his tent. In con¬ 
sequence of this act, the host of 
Israel were unsuccessful in their 
first attempt on Ai, and great dis¬ 
tress and discouragement seized 
*he whole multitude; and even 
Joshua lay all night upon the 
ground in mourning and suppli¬ 
cation, for now the Israelites, be¬ 
ing once repulsed with loss, ap- 


JOS 

X eared no longer to be invincible, 
(Josh. vii. 6.) The crime of AcnaB 
was brought to light by recourse 
to the lot, and he and all his fa¬ 
mily suffered an exemplary pun¬ 
ishment. (See Achan.) 

The Gibeonites, who lived near, 
fearing that destruction was at 
hand, made use of a stratagem to 
preserve their lives and thoir 
city. They sent messengers to 
Joshua, who were to pretend that 
they came from a very remote 
people; and to confirm their story, 
they showed that their bread was 
mouldy; their wine bottles (of 
skin,) old and patched; and their 
shoes and garments very much 
worn. On this occasion, Joshua 
neglected to apply to the Lord for 
direction; and, deceived by the 
false appearances above men¬ 
tioned, entered into a solemn 
league with the Gibeonites, which, 
although obtained by fraud, he 
did not think it expedient to 
break. The other cities of Ca¬ 
naan, with their kings, now en¬ 
tered into a formidable combina¬ 
tion utterly to destroy the Gibe¬ 
onites, because they had made 
peace with Joshua; and a mighty 
army, led on by many kings, 
were actually drawing near to 
Gibeah, when they, in all haste, 
sent messengers to Joshua to come 
instantly to their relief. He did 
not delay to comply; and marched 
all night, as well as day, and im¬ 
mediately attacked and defeated 
this mighty army; and the day 
not being sufficient for the pursuit 
and destruction of the Canaanites, 
Joshua commanded the sun and 
moon to stand still, which they 
did far the period of one whole 
day, by which means he was able 
utterly to destroy those whom 
God had devoted to death. Thi? 

393 




JOS 

was indeed a stupendous miracle, 
but required only the power that 
creates the heavenly bodies, and 
maintains them in their orbits. 
iJosh. ix. x.) 

Joshua was employed about 
Bixteen years in the conquest of 
Canaan; after which, the men of 
war belonging to the tribes ol Gad, 
Reuben, and the half tribe of Ma- 
nasseh, were permitted to return 
to their families, and to the in¬ 
heritance which Moses had given 
them on the other side of Jordan, 
where the land of the Amorites 
had been, at their own request, 
assigned to them. (Josh, xxii.) 
Of those who came out of Egypt in 
adult age not one survived to en¬ 
ter Canaan, but Joshua and Caleb, 
according to the word of the Lord. 

When the war was terminated, 
Joshua lived in retirement and 
peace, in a possession which the 
children of Israel assigned him in 
Timnath-serah,of mount Ephraim. 
(Josh. xix. 50.) When he found 
that his end was approaching, he 
assembled the Israelites, rehearsed 
to them the history of the pro¬ 
vidence of God towards them, 
and finally put it to them to choose 
that day, whether or not they 
would serve the Lord, professing 
his full purpose to continue in the 
service of God as long as he lived. 
(Josh. xxiv. 15.) Joshua died at 
the age of one hudnred and ten 
ears, (Josh. xxiv. 29,) having 
een a witness of as many of the 
wonderful works of God as any 
man who ever lived, except per- 
naps his companion Caleo. 

2. (Zech. vi. 11.) Was the high- 
priest of the Jevs when they re¬ 
turned from Babylon. He assisted 
Zerubbabel in rebuilding the tem¬ 
ple. (Ezra v. 1, 2.; Hag. i. 1; 
a. 4.) Zechariah saw him re- 
394 


JOS 

presented as standing before thi 
Lord in filthy garments, and Sa¬ 
tan standing at his right hand to 
accuse and resist him: but an 
angel rebuked the devil, and ar. 
rayed Joshua in other raiment 
(Zech. iii. 1-4.) Not long after, 
Zechariah was directed to make a 
golden crown for him. (Zech. vi. 
10-14.) 

Book of, is the sixth in the 
arrangement of the books of the 
Old Testament. It embraces the 
period between b.c. 1451 and 1425, 
and is a history of the Israelites, 
under the government of Joshua, 
the successor of Moses. It is sup¬ 
posed to have been written by 
Joshua, (except the last five 
verses,) and it records the accom¬ 
plishment of God’s promises to 
his people, and his judgments 
upon the idolatrous nations of 
Canaan. The conquest of the 
promised land is related, ch. i.- 
xi.; the division of it among the 
tribes, ch. xii.-xxii.; and the 
counsels and death of Joshua, ch. 
xxiii. xxiv. 

It has been remarked, that the 
book of Joshua bears the same re¬ 
lation to the Pentateuch, or five 
books of Moses, as the Acts of the 
Apostles bears to the four gospels. 
The Pentateuch contains a history 
of the acts of the great Jewish 
legislator under the immediate 
authority and direction of God, 
and the laws on which His ancient 
church should be established; 
and the book of Joshua shows us 
the end of these laws, and how 
the church was established in 
Canaan. The analogy between 
this and the relation of Acts to 
the Gospels, is sufficiently obvious. 

JOSIAH, (2 Kings xxi. 24,) 
the son and successor of Amon 
kirg of Judah, began to reign 



JOS 

■when ho was but eight years of 
Age, and was remarkable for his 
integrity and piety. Ho gradually 
abolished the idolatrous customs 
of nis predecessors,* (2 Chron. 
xxxiv. 3 ;) and, in the eighteenth 
7 ear of his reign, began a tho¬ 
rough repair of the temple. In 
the progress of this work, Hil- 
kiah the high-priest, found a 
complete copy of the law of Mo¬ 
ses : a rare treasure in those days 
of degeneracy and corruption, 
when God and his institutions 
were forsaken and contemned on 
every side. Josiah himself was 
but imperfectly acquainted with 
its contents until they were read 
to him by one of his officers; and 
then he was overwhelmed with 
grief to find how far they and 
their fathers had departed from 
the right way. He, however, 
humbled himself before God, and 
received the most precious pro¬ 
mises of the divine favour. (2 
Chron. xxxiv. 26-28.) He then 
assembled the people and pub¬ 
lished the law in their hearing; 
and they all united with the king 
in a solemn vow of obedience. Af¬ 
ter this, he utterly destroyed every 
vestige of idolatry, both images 
and temples, and then, by divine 
command, caused the feast of the 
passover to be celebrated with 
unusual solemnity. (2 Chron. 
xxxv. 3-18.) 

This pious king seems to have 
been accessory to his own pre¬ 
mature death; for the king of 
Egypt, who was marching with a 
great army against the king of 
Assyria, assured him that he en¬ 
tertained no hostile design against 
bi ui or his kingdom, and entreated 
him not to interfere with him in 
nis contest with the king of As¬ 
syria; and, to influence Josiah, 


JOT 

Necho pretended to have received 
a communication from heaven by 
which the king of Judah was ex¬ 
pressly forbidden to meddle with 
him in his expedition. But Jo¬ 
siah, thinking it a dangerous pre¬ 
cedent to permit a large army to 
march through his territories, or, 
more probably, being in league 
with the king of Assyria, ho could 
not consistently comply with the 
demand of the king of Egypt; 
and even if he wished to. remain 
entirely neutral in the war, he 
could notallow one of the contend¬ 
ing parties a free passage through 
his territory, without forfeiting 
his neutrality. Whatever might 
have been the motive, Josiah at¬ 
tempted to oppose the Egyptian 
army, and a battle was fought at 
Megiddo, in which he was mor¬ 
tally wounded, and was carried 
out of the field in his carriage, 
and brought to Jerusalem, where 
he died, and was buried in one 
of the sepulchres of his fathers. 
No king, perhaps, was ever more 
deservedly beloved; and certainly 
we know of none who was more 
sincerely and tenderly bewailed 
by his people. Indeed, his death 
was the end of prosperity to the 
kingdom of Judah. Jeremiah 
the prophet was greatly affected 
by it, and composed an elegy on 
the occasion, (2 Chron. xxxv. 
25;) and all those accustomod to 
celebrate in song the worth and 
achievements of men of great 
eminence, both men and women, 
mourned for Josiah for ages after 
his death. Indeed, the mourning 
was such as to become proverbial. 
(Zech. xii. 11.) He was only 
thirty-nine years of age when he 
died. (See Necho. See also 
Elisama, pp. 36-41.) 

JOT, (Matt. r. 18,) or Yod, (in 
395 




JOT 

Greek Iota.) This is the name 
of the letter i in the original lan¬ 
guage in which it is used, and 
this letter in that language is the 
least of all the letters of the al¬ 
phabet, being shaped not unlike 
our comma, (,). It was prover¬ 
bially used by the Hebrews to 
signify the least thing imaginable; 
and hence the text expresses the 
idea that not the least require¬ 
ment of the commandments of 
God shall in any wise be dis¬ 
pensed with ; they shall all stand 
to the very letter. 

JOTHAM. 1. (Judg. ix. 5.) 
The youngest son of Jerubbaal, 
or Gideon, the only one who 
escaped from the massacre at 
Ophrah ; and this he did by eon- 
cealinghimself. (See Abimelech.) 

2. (2 Kings xv. 32.) The son 
and successor of Uzziah, or Aza- 
riah, king of Judah. He actually 
reigned forty-one years, being 
associated with his father for 
twenty-five years before his death. 
His sole administration of the go¬ 
vernment was only for sixteen 
years. (Comp. 2 Kings xv. 30, 
32, 33.) His example was holy; 
his reign was peaceful and pros¬ 
perous, and of course beneficial 
to the kingdom. (2 Chron. xxvii. 
2-6.) 

JOURNEYINGS of Israel. 
(Nutn. ix. 20.) The habitation 
of the Hebrews, in Egypt, was in 
Goshen, which is supposed to 
have extended from a point above 
Cairo to the Mediterranean, in¬ 
cluding the land on both sides 
of the eastern branch, by which 
the Nile discharged its waters; 
and bounded on the east by the 
wilderness, and on the south by 
ihe mountains which separate the 
waters of the Red Sea from those 
of the .Nile. Their journeyings 
3M6 


JOU 

commenced on the fifteenth day 
of the first month, (about the mid¬ 
dle of our April.) Their first 
journey was from Rameses, ten 
miles northwest of Suez, to Sue- 
coth; which last (as the naan 
signifies booths) was probably 
nothing more than a convenient 
encampment. The distance be¬ 
tween these two places is estima¬ 
ted at thirty miles. Their course 
must have been a little north of 
east, to pass round the end of a 
mountain which stood in their 
way. From Succoth to Etham, 
in the edge of the wilderness, was 
a long march, the stages being at 
least sixty miles apart; but they 
were flying from an enemy, and 
there was not one sick or feeble 
among them, and their God bore 
them as on eaglee’ wings, so that 
it is not impossible that they 
passed over this distance in twen¬ 
ty-four hours. The distance to 
the Arabian Gulf may, however, 
have been twelve or fifteen miles 
less, anciently, than at present, as 
there are clear indications that 
the water has receded about that 
distance. Now they received an 
order from God to change their 
course, and, instead of going east¬ 
ward in the wilderness, in a direct 
line, to turn southward and pass 
along the coast of the Red Sea, 
keepiug it on their left, and the 
mountains already mentioned on 
their right. Pursuing this route 
fcr about thirty-two miles from 
Etham, which was formerly on 
the northern point of the Arabian 
Gulf, or twenty miles south of .Suez, 
now occupying the land at the 
end of one arm of the Red Sea, 
they arrived at a place where 
there seems to have been a gap 
or opening in the mountains to¬ 
wards Egypt, and a creek or es- 






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JOU- 

5uary which obstructed their 
farther progress to the south. 
Here at Migdol, over against Baal 
Zephon, and near Pihahiroth, 
when enclosed on every side but 
one, they were overtaken by the 
chariots and horsemen of Pharaoh, 
and must have been utterly de¬ 
stroyed, had not God miraculously 
interposed, and opened for them 
a passage through the sea; and 
still the Egyptian host would soon 
have overtaken them, but they 
were overwhelmed by the sudden 
reflux of the waters to their for¬ 
mer channel. Niebuhr and some 
other learned men have declared 
in favour of Suez as the place of 
their passage; but to this have 
been urged two objections. It is 
said in the first place, there was 
nothing here to shut up or en¬ 
tangle them, so as to need a mi¬ 
raculous dividing of the waters. 
They might have marched around 
as easily as through this extreme 
end of the gulf. But, in the next 
place, the < hannel here is not wide 
enough to warrant the supposi¬ 
tion that the whole Egyptian army, 
marching in file, could have been 
drowned by the return of th« wa¬ 
ters. Bryant, Bruce and Burck- 
hardt have nearly agreed, that 
the place called Clysma, twenty 
miles south of Suez, and by the 
Arabians, lias Musa, the Cape 
of Moses, must have been the 
place where this great event 
occurred. 

“Our own observation on the 
spot,” says Dr. Robinson, “led 
both my companions and myself 
to incline to the supposition that 
the passage took place across 
Bhoals adjacent to Suez on the 
south and southwest. On either 
supposition the deliverance of 
the Israelites was equally great, 
34 


JOU 

and the arm of Jehovah alike 
gloriously revealed.” 

Having crossed the gulf, they 
went forward into the wilderness, 
a journey of three days, and came 
to Marah , whose bitter waters 
were miraculously rendered sweet 
for their use. Marah corresponds 
with the well now called Hawara, 
whose waters are bitter. The 
next journey was to Elim, “ where 
were twelve wells of water, and 
threescore and ten palm trees.” 
This place, as Niebuhr and Burck- 
hardt agree, is now called Wady 
Ghurundel , about ten miles from 
Hawara. There is at this place 
now a copious spring, and wa¬ 
ter may be obtained anywhere 
around by digging for it; so that 
we need not expect to find the 
precise number of wells which 
existed in the time of Moses 
Hitherto their march was parallel 
to the sea, and at no great dis¬ 
tance from it; but now the coas* 
changes from southeast to south 
and the straight course to Sinai 
leaves it more to the right. From 
Elim, they journeyed through 
Dophkah and Alush to Rephidiui, 
where water was first obtained by 
smiting a rock with the rod of 
Moses; and here the Israelites 
were first attacked by their im¬ 
placable enemies, the Amalok- 
ites. (Ex. xvii. 3-8; 1 Sam. 
xv. 2.) Their next encampment 
was in the desert of Sinai, where 
they remained eleven months, hav¬ 
ing spent between two and three 
months in coming from Egypt to 
this place. Here they received 
the laws and institutions of Je¬ 
hovah ; and here the tabernacle 
was erected and consecrated, and 
the whole ceremonial servico en¬ 
acted. On the twentieth day of 
the second month of the second 
397 



JOU 

fear, the pillar of cloud and fire 
arose from the tabernacle, where 
it had rested for some time, and 
by its course led theui into the 
willerness of Paran, called the 
grext and terrible wilderness. 
(Num. x. 12.) When they came 
to Kibroth Hattaavah, they pro¬ 
voked God to destroy many of 
them for their inordinate lusting, 
and for their ungrateful rebellion. 
(Num. xi. 34.) This place is also 
called Taberah ,• both names be¬ 
ing derived from the fearful de¬ 
struction of the people which oc¬ 
curred here. From this place, 
where they remained long, they 
marched northward through Ha- 
zero th, Rithma, Rimraon-parez, 
Libnah, and Kadesh-barnea, 
whence the spies were sent to 
explore the land. On the re¬ 
bellion of the people, occasioned 
by the report of the spies, they 
were ordered to get them into the 
wilderness of the Red Sea. (Num. 
xiv. 25.) Now their march was 
retrograde, and they came into 
the same wilderness of Paran 
which they had passed some time 
before, but by a different route. 
How much time they spent in the 
wilderness, before they reached 
Ezion-geber, a port on the eastern 
arm of the Red Sea, is unknown; 
but fifteen stations are distinct¬ 
ly named. Probably they wo*e 
sometimes stationary for a long 
period; but in all their marches 
and restings, they were under the 
direction of the pillar of cloud and 
of fire which went before them. 
(Num. ix. 22.) For many days 
they encompassed mount Seir, 
and then turned northward to the 
desert of Zin, and journeyed to 
mount Hor, where Aaron died 
and was buried. (Num. xx. 20- 
28.) Being disappointed ia ob- 
39R 


JOB 

; taining a passage through tha 
j country of Edom, they returned to 
I Ezion-geber, and passed round 
the south side of mount Seir. 
At length they arrived at the 
brook Zared, or Benthammed, in 
the thirty-eighth year after the 
time of their leaving Kadesh- 
barnea, and the fortieth from 
their departure from the land of 
Egypt. From Zared they made 
one march across the Arnon, now 
Mudjeb, to Dibon, the ruins of 
which place are still visible about 
four miles from the Arnon. 
Thence they proceeded by se¬ 
veral stages to the mountains of 
Abarim, on the east of Jordan, 
which chain of mountains they 
crossed at Pisgah, from the sum¬ 
mit of which Moses was indulged 
with a view of the land of Canaan, 
which he was not permitted to 
enter; and here also terminated 
his useful and laborious life. De¬ 
scending from these mountains, 
they came to Beth-jesimoth and 
Abel-shittim, where they en¬ 
camped on the banks of the Jor¬ 
dan, which river they crossed, as 
they had done the Red Sea, on 
dry ground. When the Israelites 
departed from Egypt, the number 
of males above twenty years of 
age was 603,550; when they ar¬ 
rived in sight of Canaan, it wa# 
601,730; so that the decrease of 
their number, during the forty 
years’ wandering in the wilder¬ 
ness, was 1820; but it is remark¬ 
able, that while some of the tribes 
greatly increased in population, 
others lost half their oiiginal 
number, which is not very easily 
accounted for by the facts re¬ 
corded in the sacrod history. As 
all who were more than twenty 
years of age when they left Egypt 
perished in the wilderness, it. is 



JOY 

evident that when they entered 
Canaan, there was not a man in 
all the host above threescore, 
except CaleD and Joshua; so that 
all the men were effective, and fit 
for military service. In respect 
to the fact recorded Deut. viii. 4; 
xxix. 5, concerning the clothes 
of the Hebrews during their jour- 
neyings, it may be proper to say 
that the history does not neces¬ 
sarily imply that the clothes which 
they had on at the outset were 
miraculously preserved, or that 
they grew with the growth of 
their children and youth. They 
had sheep, and goats, and cattle, 
on their march; and they un¬ 
derstood the arts by which these 
animals were made subservient 
to their necessity and comfort. 
Thus they were enabled always 
to procure seasonably good and 
sufficient clothing, and were saved 
from all suffering and inconve¬ 
nience on this score. (See He¬ 
brews, Moses, Joshua. See 
also Map op the Journeyings of 
Israel.) 

JOY (1 Sam. xviii. 6) is an 
agreeable affection of the soul, 
arising from the possession or 
prospect of good. (Ezra vi. 16 ,* 
Esth. viii. 16.) It is reckoned 
among the fruits of the Spirit, 
(Gal. v. 22,) and is chiefly used 
by the sacred writers, especially 
of the New Testament, to signify 
a religious emotion. That which 
springs from a sense of pardoned 
sin and a union of the soul to 
Christ is pure, (Luke xv. 10,) cer¬ 
tain, (John xvi. 22 unspeakable, 
(1 Pet. i. 8,)andeternal,(Ija.lxi.7.) 

JUBILEE. (See Feasts.) 

1UDA1I, (Gen. xxix. 36,) the 
fourth son of Jacob and Leah, 
waa born in Mesopotamia, about 
A. m 2249. The tribe of which 


JUD 

he was the head and representa 
tive, was the most powerful cf 
the twelve, (Nura. i. 27,) and had 
the first lot in the division of the 
promised land. 

The prophetic blessing which 
his father pronounced on Judah, 
(Gen. xlix. 8-12) is very remark¬ 
able. It describes the warlike 
character, and gradually increas¬ 
ing strength of the tribe, (comp. 
Num. ii. 3; Josh. xiv. 11; xv. 1; 
Judg. i. 1, 2; 1 Chron. xiv. 17; 
Ps. xviii. 40; Isa. xxix. 1, where 
Judah is called Ariel —lion of God. 
Rev. v. 5,) the duration of its 
power, viz. until the coming of 
Christ, when Judea became a pro¬ 
vince of Rome, (comp. Luke ii. 
1-7; John xviii. 31; Acts v. 37,) 
and the destruction of their city, 
A. D. 70, when the Christian dis¬ 
pensation had become established, 
(comp. Matt. xxiv. 14; Acts ii. 8; 
Rom. x. 18,) in the glory and tri¬ 
umph of the Messiah. 

Tribe of, took the southern 
section of Canaan, extending 
across from the Jordan to the Me¬ 
diterranean Sea, and northwardly 
to the territory of Benjamin and 
Dan. (Josh. xv. 1-63.) 

In the catalogue of the cities 
of this tribe, we have the utter¬ 
most cities, or those nearest Edom, 
on the south; cities in the valley , 
that is on the lowlands, near the 
coast; cities in the mountains, that 
is, up in the interior; and cities 
in the wilderness, or along the 
shores of the Dead Sea. (Josh, 
xv. 21, 33, 48, 61.) 

Of the cities of Judah, several 
continued in the possession of the 
natives, (as Ashd-od, Gaza, Ashe 
Ion and Elcron,) or, if conquered, 
were afterwards recovered. 

JUDAH, land of. (See Ca 

NAAN.) 

'399 



JUD 

JUDAH, or JUDEA, moun¬ 
tains op, (Josh. xx. 7,) included 
so much of the mountainous chain 
as extended from the borders of 
Benjamin south to Edom and east 
to the valley of the Jordan. This 
was formerly called the mountain 
of the Amorite8. (Deut. i. 20.) 

Wilderness of, (Matt. iii. 1,) 
was a wild, uneven region on 
both sides of the Jordan, extend¬ 
ing on the west from Jericho to 
the Dead Sea. It is also called 
the country about Jordan. (Luke 
iii. 3.) It is described by tra¬ 
vellers as abounding with caverns 
and cells, or grottoes of the most 
forbidding character. Even now 
they are the abode, to some ex¬ 
tent, of hermits ; and amidst the 
rocks and mountains, neither 
shade, nor tree, nor herbage, nor 
even moss, is found. It was call¬ 
ed the loilderness pre-eminently. 
(Matt. iv. 1.) 

JUDAS ISCARIOT (Matt. x. 
4) was one of the twelve chosen 
disciples of our Lord. Nothing 
Is certainly known of his birth¬ 
place or parentage. It is sup¬ 
posed by some that the word Is¬ 
cariot signifies of Carioth, a small 
town on the east of Jordan. He 
is called the son of Simon , John 
vi. 71; whence some have sup- 
pos3d he was the son of Simon 
the Canaanite, another of the 
twelve. He is almost uniformly 
mentioned with the infamous dis¬ 
tinction of the man who betrayed 
Christ. The principal fact relat¬ 
ed of him by the evangelists, pre¬ 
viously to the commission of the 
dreadful crime into which he fell, 
was a marked displeasure at Mary 
‘or expending upon our Lord so 
much precious ointment, which 
might have been sold for much 
ind given tfi the poor. The truth, 
400 


JUD 

however, was, that he cared not 
for the poor, but that he held the 
purse of the company ; and if this 
money had been deposited with 
him for the poor, he would have 
had it in his power to appiy it to 
his own use. The reproof which 
he received from his Master on 
this occasion was probably the 
immediate cause of bi3 determi¬ 
nation to betray him. The sacred 
history represents him as going 
immediately, and agreeing with 
the chief priests and elders to de¬ 
liver him into their hands. After 
this, however, he had the impu¬ 
dence to return again, and was 
present at the last interview be¬ 
tween Christ and the other dis¬ 
ciples. Here our Lord announced 
in the hearing of all, that one of 
his disciples would betray him, 
and pointed out Judas as the per¬ 
son ; on which he seems to have 
left the table in displeasure, and 
abruptly; perhaps before the 
Lord’s supper was instituted. Be¬ 
ing now fully under the power of 
the devil, he became the leader 
of a band of soldiers, sent to ap¬ 
prehend Jesus. The impious man 
knew where his Master would be 
that evening; and he had the ef¬ 
frontery to intrude upon him in 
his hours of devotion; and had 
agreed to make known the proper 
person to the soldiers by the usual 
sign of friendship and love: there¬ 
fore when he led the band into 
the sequestered garden of Geth- 
semane, he went up to Jesus and 
kissed him, saying, Hail, Master; 
and received from the meek Sa¬ 
viour no other reproof than, Ju 
das, betrayest thou the Son of 
man with a kiss ? His service was 
now done, and he had the stipu¬ 
lated price of his iniquity in hia 
possession. It is probable, there- 



JUD 

fore, that he did not accompany 
the soldiers back to the chief 
priests and ciders. But as soon 
as his mind had opportunity for 
reflection, remorse seized upon 
him ; and, covetous as he was, he 
could no longer bear about with 
him the price of innocent blood. 
Having learned that his Master 
was condemned, he returned to 
the temple, and finding the per¬ 
sons from whom he had received 
the money, he cast it down, and, 
unable to bear the burden of mi¬ 
sery, he went and hanged himself. 

We are told in Acts i. 18, that, 
falling headlong, he hurst asunder 
in the midst , and all his howels 
gushed out. The passages are not 
irreconcilable with each other; 
for it is evident that a man might 
be hung, and that he might fall, 
and that the parts of his body 
might be torn asunder in the fall; 
but how the effect was produced 
which is described in the above- 
cited passage can be only matter 
of conjecture. It may have been 
that he hung himself over a pre¬ 
cipice, or from some very elevated 
position, and that his body was mu¬ 
tilated in that manner by the fall; 
or his body might possibly have re¬ 
mained undiscovered until, being 
partially decayed, it had, by its , 
own weight, fallen, and present¬ 
ed this horrible spectacle. To 
support the first of these posi¬ 
tions, it may be enough to say, 
that the spot which tradition de¬ 
signates as the potter’s-field, was 
visited by two American mission¬ 
aries in 1823; and they tell us, 
that in the vicinity of the field 
are trees near the brink of hug? 
cliffs, on which, if he hung him¬ 
self and fell, he must have been 
iashed in pieces. 

Th» fact that Judas was with 

34* 


JUD 

our Saviour in public and private, 
and had the confidence of the 
band of disciples, connected with 
his strong testimony to his inno¬ 
cence unde’' such extraordinary 
circumstances, is altogether inex¬ 
plicable upon any other supposi¬ 
tion than that the Messiah was 
what he claimed to be,—the Son 
of God and the only Saviour of 
sinners. 

JUDAS of Galilee. (Acts v. 37.) 
An insurgent against the Roman 
government, who excited the Jews 
to resist the enrolment and taxa¬ 
tion of their people, as a province 
of Rome. 

JUDE (Jude i. 1) was one of 
the apostles, and the brother of 
James the Less. He is called Ju¬ 
das Matt. xiii. 55; John xiv. 22; 
Acts i. 13 ; and elsewhere Leb- 
heus, (Matt. x. 3,) and Tliaddeus , 
(Mark iii. 18.) 

Epistle of, occupies the last 
place but one in the arrangement 
of the books of the New Testa¬ 
ment. It was written, as many 
have supposed, about a. d. 65, but 
it is by no means certain. It 
seems to have been intended to 
guard believers against prevalent 
errors, and to urge them to con¬ 
stancy in the faith. This is done 
by a vivid exhibition of the ter¬ 
rors of God’s judgments upon the 
wicked, and by a recurrence to 
that great principle of our reli¬ 
gion, dependence on Christ alono 
to keep us from falling. 

JUDEA. (See Canaan.) 

JUDGES. (Acts xiii. 20.) This 
was the title of a class of magis¬ 
trates among the Israelites. They 
were appointed originally by Mo 
ses, at the suggestion of his fa¬ 
ther-in-law, to relieve him of a 
part of the duties of the chief 
magistracy. The judges spoken 
4.01 


2 A 




JUD 

of in the above-cited passage, and 
whose history is given in the book 
of Judges, were a class of men 
raised up in extraordinary emer¬ 
gencies, and invested with extra¬ 
ordinary powers, not unlike the 
archons of Athens, and the dic¬ 
tators of Rome. (See Hebrews.) 
We are told that they were given 
to the Israelites about the space 
of four hundred and fifty years, 
until Samuel the prophet. A 
chronological difficulty has occur- 
ed to some in the reading of this 
passage in Acts; but it is suffi¬ 
cient for us that, if there is a dif¬ 
ficulty, Paul’s statement is in ac¬ 
cordance with the received chro¬ 
nological tables of his day, as Jo- 
Bephus conclusively shows. 


List of judges , and probable term 
of service. 

Years. 

Othniel, about b. c. 1400. 40 

tinder Eglon. 18 

Ehud, &c. 80 

Under the Philistines.unk. 

Shamgar.unk. 

Under Jabin. 20 

Deborah and Barak.40 

Under Midian. 7 

Gideon.40 

Abimelcch. 3 

Tola.23 

Jair. 18 

Under the Ammonites. 18 

Jephthah. 6 

Ibzan. 7 

Elon. 10 

Abdon. 8 

Under the Philistines.40 

Samson ). 20 

Eli S. 40 

Under the Philistines. 20 

Samuel, about...12 

Saul, the first king, b. c. 1091. 

Book of. The seventh in the 
arrangement of the books of the 
Oid Testament, and the seventh 
also in chronological order, de¬ 
rives its title from the fact that it 
gives us the history of the Israel¬ 
ites under the administration of 
fifteen judges, viz. from eighteen 
cr twenty years after the death 
of Joshua, or about B. o. 1564, to 
402 


JUD 

the time of Saul, or about b. a 
1110 : a period of more than four 
hundred and fifty years. (Acts 
xiii. 20. See preceding para, 
graph.) It was one of the pro¬ 
visions of the Jewish constitu¬ 
tion, that judges or chief magis¬ 
trates should be appointed in 
every city, whose qualifications 
and jurisdiction are sufficiently 
defined in Dent. xvi. 18. and xvii. 
8-10. (See also Biblical Anti¬ 
quities, vol. i. ch. ix. $ 2.) At an 
early period after they left Egypt, 
a rank of judges was established, 
the lowest of which were appoint¬ 
ed over ten men, and probably 
amounted to 60,000 ; then those 
of fifty, one hundred, and one 
thousand men; the final jurisdic¬ 
tion, in all cases of difficulty be¬ 
ing reserved to Moses himself. 
(Ex. xviii. 21-26.) After they 
became settled in their respective 
districts of the promised land, 
this judiciary system underwent 
considerable modification. Judges 
were then appointed for the cities 
or chief towns; but it does not ap¬ 
pear how they were appointed, 
nor that there was a regular 
succession of them. The law to 
be administered being most fa¬ 
miliar to the Levites, and they 
being, by force of circumstances, 
more conversant with such sub¬ 
jects, it came to pass that the ju¬ 
dicial office generally devolved 
on them. The book of Judges 
is supposed to have been written 
by Samuel, after the establish¬ 
ment of the royal government, 
and it forms a connecting link 
between Joshua and Samuel. 

JUDGMENT, JUDGMENTS. 
(Ex. vi. 6; xii. 12.) These are 
words of frequent occurrence in 
the sacred Scriptures, and the 
sense of them is generally deter- 



























JUD 

mined by the connection. When 
God’s judgments are spoken of, 
the term may denote either the 
secret decisions of the divine 
will, (Ps. x. 5; xxxvi. 7,) or the 
declarations of God’s will reveal¬ 
ed in the Scriptures, (Ex. xxi. 1; 
Deut. vii. 12 ; Neh. ix. 13,) or the 
inflictions of punishment on the 
wicked. (Prov. xix. 29; Ezek. 

xxv. 11.) 

JUDGMENT HALL. (John 
xviii. 28.) A room or office in 
the palace of the Roman govern¬ 
or, where causes were tried and 
justice administered. The Jews 
declined to enter it, when they 
were prosecuting their murderous 
purpose against the Redeemer, 
lest they should be defiled by an 
approximation to the person of a 
heathen. 

The Judgment-seat. (Matt, 
xxvii. 19) was an elevated place 
in the hall of judgment, from 
which sentence was pronounced. 

Breastplate of judgment. 
(See Breastplate.) 

Judgment of Urim. (See 
Urim.) 

Day of judgment. (Matt. x. 
15.) That important day which 
is to terminate the present dis¬ 
pensation of grace; when time 
shall be no more, and the eternal 
state of all men be unchangeably 
fixed. That such an event is ne¬ 
cessary to vindicate the justice of 
God, (Lukexvi. 25,) and that such 
a day is appointed, is abundantly 
evident. (Eccl. xi. 9; Matt. xii. 
i!6 ; Acts xvii. 31; 2 Thess. i. 7- 
10 ; Heb. ix. 27; 2 Pet. ii, 9 ; iii. 
t; 1 John iv. 17.) Thai! Jesus 
Christ will officiate as judge is 
also evident. (Matt. xxv. 31,32; 

xxvi. 64 ; John v. 22 ; Acts xvii. 
31; Rom. ii. 16; 2 Cor. v. 10.) 
That the judgment will be uni- 


JUN 

versal, appears from Eccl. xii. 14 ; 
John v. 28, 29; Rom. xiv. 10, 11, 
2 Cor. v. 10; Rev. xx. 12, 13 
That its decision will be final and 
irreversible, admitting the right¬ 
eous to the joys of Christ’s king¬ 
dom, and dooming the wicked 
to outer darkness and eternal de¬ 
spair, appears from the foregoing 
Scriptures, and also from Matt, 
xxv. 14-46; 1 Cor. xv. 52-57; 1 
Thess. iv. 14-17; Heb. vi. 2; 2 
Pet. iii. 7. 

JULIUS. (Acts xxvii. 1.) The 
captain of the Roman guard, to 
whom Festus, governor of Judea, 
committed Paul, to be conveyed 
to Rome. Julius appears to have 
had great regard for Paul. He 
suffered him to land at Sidon, and 
to visit his friends there ; and in 
a subsequent part of the voyage, 
he opposed the violence of the 
soldiers, directed against the pri¬ 
soners generally, in order to save 
the apostle. (Acts xxvii. 43.) 

JUNIPER. (Job xxx. 4.) A 
well-known tree, of the cedar fa¬ 
mily. Probably by the word ren¬ 



Juniper Tree. 


dered juniper, in the passage from 
Job, is intended the broom tree, 
which is still common in the de¬ 
serts of Arabia. That such sub- 
403 






JUP 

otanees were sometimes used for 
food is very evident. (2 Kings 
iv. 38, 39; Amos vii. 14; Luke 
xv. 16.) 

Coals of juniper. (See Ar¬ 
mour.) 

JUPITER. (Aetsxiv. 12.) The 
chief of the heathen gods, having 
power over all the rest. The peo¬ 
ple of Lycaonia, when they saw 
the impotent man at Lystra in¬ 
stantly healed, were disposed to 
regard the apostles as gods in the 
likeness of men ; and *■> there was 
a tradition among them that their 
province was once visited by Ju¬ 
piter and Mercury, they were in¬ 
clined to regard this as a repeti¬ 
tion of the favour. So they call¬ 
ed Barnabas Jupiter, and Paul 
(who was the chief speaker, and 
probably quite eloquent) Mercury. 
To carry the superstition out, the 
priest who was accustomed to sa¬ 
crifice to Jupiter, the tutelar deity 
of the city, whose image or tem¬ 
ple was before the gates, brought 
the usual sacrifices, decked out 
for the altar, and would have join¬ 
ed the people in the religious wor¬ 
ship of the apostles, had they not 
been persuaded to desist by their 
solemn warnings. 

The image of Diana at Ephe¬ 
sus was said by the town clerk to 
have fallen from Jupiter. Pro¬ 
bably this expression refers to 
some prevailing superstitious no¬ 
tion, that this image itself, or the 
worship paid to it, had some pe¬ 
culiar sanctity or virtue imparted 
to it directly from Jupiter. 


JITS 

JUSTICE. (Ps. lxxxix. 14. 
One of the glorious and incom 
prehensible attributes of the Su 
preme Being, denoting the infi* 
nite righteousness of his nature, 
of his law, of his government, and 
of all his dealings and proceed 
ings with his creatures. 

JUSTIFY, JUSTIFICATION 
(Job ix. 20; Rom. iv. 25.) Thess 
terms involve one of the funda¬ 
mental principles of the Chris¬ 
tian faith. They stand opposite 
to condemn and condemnation. In 
their evangelical use, they denote 
that act of God’s sovereign grace, 
by which he accepts and receives 
those who believe in Christ as 
just and righteous. When God 
has pardoned a sinner, he treats 
him as righteous, or as if he had 
never sinned. This is called jus¬ 
tification. And because there is 
no way of pardon known to us 
except believing on and trusting 
in the Lord J»sus Christ., it is call¬ 
ed justification by faith. For 
his sake, such persons are ac¬ 
counted just or righteous, and will 
not be punished for their sins. 
(The Epistle to the Galatians is 
chiefly on this subject, and is 
analyzed in Union Questions, 
vol. iii.) 

The expression, Wisdom is justi¬ 
fied of her children, (Matt. xi. 19,) 
is supposed to mean, either that 
the fruits or offspring of Wisdom 
justify all her claims, or that the 
children of God are taught and 
incline l by divine grace to justify 
all his ways. 



KAB 

AB, or CAB. (See Mea¬ 
sures.) 

KABZEEL, (Josh. xv. 21,) or 
JEKABZEEL, (Neh. xi. 25,) was 
a city in the northern section of 
the inheritance of Judah, just 
west of the southern extremity 
of the Dead Sea. It was the 
birthplace of Benaiah. (2 Sam. 
xxiii. 20.) 

KADESII, (Num. xiii. 26,) pro¬ 
bably the same with Kadesh-bar- 
uea, (Num. xxxiv. 4,) originally 
called En-mishpat, (Gen. xiv. 7,) 
was a city in the desert of Paran, 
near the southern bounds of the 
tribe of Judah, and between 
twenty and thirty miles south of 
Hebron. It was a royal city of 
the Canaanites; and the spies 
were sent there to explore the pro¬ 
mised land. 

2. (Num. xx. 1.) A place east 
of the above, in the desert of 
Zin, from whence messengers were 
sent to ask of the Edomites per¬ 
mission to pass through their ter¬ 
ritory, and from whence, too, the 
Israe.ites went up on mount Hor 
to bury Aaron. 

KANAH. (Josh. xvi. 8.) A 
river or brook, which formed the 
boundary line between Ephraim 
and Manasseh, and falls into the 
Mediterranean a few miles south 
of Cesarea. It is now called Nahr 
el Ka8ab. There was also a town 
of this name in the tribe of Asher. 
(See Cana.) 

KEDAR. (Gen. xxv. 13.) A 
son of Ishmael, whose descend¬ 
ants settled in the southern part 
of Arabia. Probably Kedar’s pos¬ 
terity were the most numerous 
and powerful of the family of 
Ishmael; whence the whole of 
that country is sometimes called 
Kedar, (Isa. xxi. 16, 17; lx. 7; 
Jer. xlix* 28;) and the Ishtnael- 


KEY 

ites generally are called the me* 

of Kedar. 

KEDESH, (Josh. xx. 7,) called 
Kade8a by Jewish historians, was 
situated in upper Galilee, in the 
tribe of Naphtali, twenty or thirty 
miles southeast of Tyre. It was 
the residence of Barak, and one 
of the cities of refuge, and is 
called Kedesh Naphtali, (Judg. iv. 
6,) to distinguish it from another 
place of the same name in the 
tribe of Judah. (Josh. xv. 23.) 

KEDRON. (See Kidron.) 

KENATH. (Num. xxxii. 42.) 
A city of Manasseh, east of Jor¬ 
dan, the supposed ruins of which 
are called Kahuat. It is situated 
on a brook of the same name, and 
there are indications of its having 
been once a splendid city. 

KENITES. (Gen. xv. 19.) One 
of the tribes or nations who had 
possession of Canaan in the time 
of Abraham. It appears that 
they were driven from Canaan : 
and are afterwards spoken of as 
dwelling in the highlands, near 
the Ammonites and Moabites. 
(Num. xxiv. 21, 22.) In the time 
of Saul, they were found dwell¬ 
ing among or near the Amalekites. 
Jethro, the father-in law of Moses, 
was of this nation. (Judg. i. 16 ;) 
and for his sake, the lvenites were 
saved from the destruction which 
came upon the Amalekites. (1 
Sam. xv. 6. See Rechabites.) 

KEY. (Judg. iii. 25.) The 
keys of ancient days were of very 
inconvenient size, and shaped not 
unlike a reaping-hook. As they 
were generally of wood, they 
must be somewhat bulky, or their 
strength would be insufficient. 
The gates of Grand Cairo are 
fastened with ponderous wooden 
locks and keys, even at this day. 
In modern times, in transferring 
405 





KID 

the government of a city, the 
keys of the gates are delivered 
as an emblem of authority. (Rev. 

A late traveller among the 
Moors says it is common to see a 
man of authority marching along 
with a large brass key on his 
shoulder. One corner of a ker¬ 
chief is tied to the circular part, 
and hangs down in iront; and by 
this the key is balanced as it 
rests on the shoulder. This fact 
forcibly illustrates Isa. xxii. 22. 

KID, (Judg. xiv. 6,) or the 
young of the goat, was among the 
luxuries of the ancients, (Gen. 
xxvii. 9; xxxviii. 17,- Judg. vi. 
19 ; 1 Sam. xvi. 20,) and is now 
esteemed a great delicacy by East¬ 
ern nations as food. Kids were 
among the sacrificial offerings.” 
(Num. vii. 11-87.) 

KIDRON, (1 Kings ii. 37,) or 
CEDRON. (John xviii. 1.) A 
brook running through the valley 
which separates Jerusalem from 
the mount of Olives, and forming 
the eastern boundary of the an¬ 
cient and modern city. About 
nine months in the year the chan¬ 
nel of the brook is dry. It is on 
an average nine feet in width. 
When swollen by the rains, the 
current is deep and rapid. It 
empties into the Dead Sea. (See 
Selumiel, pp. 129-135.) 

KINE (Gen. xli. 2) is used by 
the sacred writers as the plural 
of cow. The word is used figu¬ 
ratively by the prophet, concern¬ 
ing the Israelites, to describe the 
feebleness, idleness and luxury 
which characterized them. They 
were like the fatlings of Bashan, 
feeding carelessly and securely in 
rich pastures, only to prepare 
them for the slaughter. (Ezek. 
xxxix. 18.) 

406 


KIN 

KING. (Gen. xiv. 18.) The 
title of a ruler. It is applied in 
Scripture to the chief of a tribe 
or to the ruler of a single-town oi 
city ; q.nd, of course, we need not 
be surprised at the number who 
were often defeated in a single 
campaign. (Josh. xii. 24; Judg. 
i. 7; 1 Kings xx. 1-16.) This 
fact also explains Gen. xxxvi. 3i, 
and Deut. xxxiii. 5. The title is 
applied to Jehovah and to our 
blessed Saviour. (1 Tim. i. 17 ; 
vi. 15.) The ceremony of coro¬ 
nation is described 2 Kings xi. 
12. (See Anoint, Hebrews.) 

KINGDOM. (Luke xii. 32.) 
The precise import of this term 
can usually be determined by its 
connection. In the New Testa¬ 
ment, it generally denotes either 
the spiritual reign of Christ over 
the hearts of individuals, or over 
his church collectively. (John 
xviii. 36.) 

Kingdom of God, (1 Cor. xv. 
50,) Kingdom of Heaven. (Matt, 
iii. 2.) These terms sometimes 
denoto the state of glory beyond 
the grave. (2 Pet. i. 11.) More 
generally they denote the gospel 
dispensation under the govern¬ 
ment of the Messiah, in distinction 
from the typical kingdom of the 
Jews, (Matt. iii. 2 ; xxi. 43 ; xxv. 

1Duke x. 9, 11.) And some¬ 
times they signify the gospel ex¬ 
erting a reigning power over the 
hearts and minds of men. (Luke 
xvii. 21; John iii. 3, b ; Rom. 
xiv. 17.) 

KINGS, books of. (1 Chron. 
ix. 1.) The eleventh and twelfth 
books of the Bible are called the 
first and second books of Kings. 
In old versions, the books of 
Samuel and Kings are called the 
four books of Kings; and honce 
the titles of these books in oui 






KIN 


KIR 


Bibles is, the first booJc of Samuel, 
otherwise called the first book of 
Kings, and the first book of Kings, 
commonly called the third book of 
Kings. The four books contain 
the history of the Jewish nation 
andei the kings of Israel and Ju¬ 
dah. The first two are called 
Samuel, because that prophet 
commenced them, and wrote the 
first twenty-four chapters. Na¬ 
than and Gad finished them. 
(1 Chron. xxix. 29.) These em¬ 
brace a period of about one hun¬ 
dred and twenty years, viz. from 
the birth of Samuel to the close 
of the reign of David. The first 
book contains an account of Eli 
and his sons; of Samuel, as pro¬ 
phet and judge; and of Saul, the 
first king of Israel. The second 
book records the prosperity of Da¬ 
vid’s kingdom, his sin and suffer¬ 
ings, and his restoration to the 
throne and to.the favour of God. 
The third and fourth books,' sup¬ 
posed to have been compiled by 
Ezra from the public records, em¬ 
brace a period of about four hun¬ 
dred and twenty-five years, viz. 
from the commencement of Solo¬ 
mon’s reign to the destruction of 
Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar. 

Of these, the former gives us 
rf n account of the building and 
dedication of the temple, the 
reign of Solomon, the division of 
the nation, the fall of the glory 
of Israel, and the extraordinary 
ministry of the prophet Elijah. 

The latter continues the hi story 
of the kingdoms of Israel and 
Judah, intermingled, till they 
were both destroyed, and the peo¬ 
ple carried into captivity. It, in¬ 
forms us of the translation of 
Elijah, the ministry of Elisha, and 
the destruction of Jerusalem. 

The following catalogue of the 


successive kings may be regarded 
as approximating to a correct 
chronology • 

Of the whole, nation. 

Bejan to reign. Reigned. 

Saul.a. c. 1091.40 year* 

David.1051.40}$ “ 

Solomon.1010.40 1 

Rehoboam.971.1 “ 

Of Judah alone. 

Rehoboam. 972.16 “ 

Abijam. 954 3 “ 

Asa.951.41 « 

Jehoshaphat.910.25 “ 

Jehoram. 885. 4 * 

Ahaziah.881.1 " 

Interval . 880 6 1 

Joash. 874.40 * 

Amaziah. 835.29 “ 

Uzziah, or >. 806. 52 it 

Azariah }. 

Jotham........ 754......16 “ 

Ahaz. 738.16 “ 

Hezekiah. 722.29 “ 

Manasseh. 694.55 “ 

Amon. 639. 2 “ 

Josiah. 637.31 

Jehoahaz. 606.| months. 

Jehoiakim. 606.11 years. 

Jehoiachin. 594.^ month! 

Zedekiah. 594.11 years. 

Captivity . 583 

Of Israel alone. 

Jeroboam. 971.22 “ 

Nadab 950. 2 “ 

Baasha. 949.24 “ 

Elah. 926. 2 “ 

Zimri. 925. 7 days. 

Omri. 925.12 years 

Ahab. 914.22 

Ahaziah. 893 2 “ 

Jehoram. 892.12 “ 

Jehu. 880.28 * 

Jehoahaz. 852.17 “ 

Joash, or).835. 16 „ 

Jehoash 5. 

Jeroboam II.819.41 u 

Zachariah. 778....| jjj 

Shallum. 768. 1 month. 

Menahem. 767.10 ystr*. 

Pekaiah. 757. 2 ‘ 

Pekah. 755.20 

Interval . 734. 9 • 

Hoshea. 725... . 9 ‘ 

Captivity .716 

KIR. (Isa. xxii. 6 ; Amos ix. 
7.) A country north of Media 
and Assyria, lying along the river 
Cyrus, now Kur, between the 
Black and Caspian seas. An¬ 

ciently it was called Albania and 
Iberia, at present Georgia. Thi¬ 
ther the Damascenes, conquered 
407 






























































































KIR 

oy Tiglath-pileser, were sect into 
exile. (2 Kings xvi. 9; Amos i. 5.) 

Kir op Moab. (Isa. xv. 1.) 
The bulwark or principal fortress 
of Moab, called Kirharesheth, 
(Isa. xvi. 7,)and Kirharesh, (Isa. 
xvi. 11,) and Kirheres. (Jer. 
xlviii. 31.) Kerek, or Korak, (the 
modern name of the same place,) 
is found south of the Dead Sea. 
Many of the ruins of the ancient 
fortress are discernible; and a tra¬ 
veller, who was there in 1822, tells 
us that the population consisted of 
four hundred Turks and one hun¬ 
dred and fifty nominal Christians. 

KIRJATII, (Josh, xviii. 28,) 
called also Kirjath-jearim, Kir- 
jath-baal and Baalah, (Josh. xv. 
9, 60 ; 1 Chron xiii. 6,) was on or 
near the boundary line between 
Judah and Benjamin, and is there¬ 
fore mentioned in the above pas¬ 
sages as a city of both tribes; 
though in Judg. xviii. 12, and 2 
Sam. vi. 2, it is called a city of 
Judah. This was the native 
place of Urijah the prophet, (Jer. 
xxvi. 20;) and it was here that 
the ark remained many years. 
(1 Sam. vii. 1, 2; 2 Sam. vi. 2.) 

KIRJATHAIM. (Josh. xiii. 
19.) One of the oldest towns 
eastward of Jordan. It was once 
the possession of the Emims, and 
was then called Shaveh (or, the 
plain of) Kiriathaim, (Gen. xiv. 
&;) and is afterwards spoken of 
ns a city of Moab. (Jer. xlviii. 23.) 
There was a town of this name 
in Naphtali. (1 Chron. vi. 76.) 

KIRJATH-ARBA. (See He¬ 
bron.) 

KIRJATII-SEPHER, KIR- 
JATH-SANNAH. (See Debir.) 

KISIION. (Judg. iv. 7, 13.) 
An ancient river, (Judg. v. 21,) 
rising at the foot of mount Tabor, 
and winding southerly of that 
408 


KIT 

mountain, through the plain o i 
Jezreel, about thirty miles, to 
Ptolemais, where it falls into ths 
Mediterranean. It is called the 
loatera of Megiddo, (Judg. v. 19,) 
because Megiddo was built upon 
its margin. It is famous for the 
battle between Barak and Sisera, 
and for the destruction of Baal's 
prophets. (1 Kings xviii. 40.) 
It is called the river before Jok- 
neam, (Josh.xix.il,) and formed 
the boundary between Zebulon 
and Issachar. It is a considerable 
stream, even in summer. 

KISS. (Gen. xxvii. 26.) A 
kiss was a mode of salutation sig¬ 
nifying reverence, (Ps. ii. 12; 
Prov. xxiv. 26,) natural affection, 
(Gen. xxxi. 55; Luke xv. 20,) 
and religious affection. (Rom. 
xvi. 16; 1 Thess. v. 26.) The 
Eastern mode of honouring a 
writing from a sovereign is by 
kissing it, and then putting it to 
the forehead. Kissing the idol 
was a part of heathen worship, 
(1 Kings xix. 18;) and when the 
objects of their idolatrous regard 
were out of reach, they were ac¬ 
customed to kiss the band in to¬ 
ken of adoration. (Job xxxi. 27.) 

The expression in Ps. ii. 12, re¬ 
fers to a custom at the coronation 
of kings. After the crown had been 
imposed, and the king had taken 
his covenants, the nobles pledged 
their allegiance with the kiss of 
homage, or, as the Jews call it, 
the kiss of majesty. (1 Sam. x. 1.) 

KITE. (Lev. xi. 14.) A ra¬ 
pacious bird, of the hawk species, 
unclean by the ceremonial law. 
The term rendered wild beasts of 
the islands, in Isa. xiii. 22; xxxiv. 
14 ; and Jer. 1. 39, is supposed by 
some to denote this bird ; but the 
prevalent opinion is, that it refers 
to jackals. 




RNE 

KNEADING TROEGHS. (See 
Bread.; 

KNOP. (Ex. xxv. 31.) A 
tufted top or projection, used in 
architecture for ornament. 

KORAII (Num. xvi. 1) was 
the great-grandson of Levi. Be¬ 
ing jealous of the authority of 
Moses and Aaron, he entered into 
a conspiracy with Dathan, Abiram 
and On, to put them down; and 
associating with themselves two 
hundred and fifty princes or lead¬ 
ing men of the Levites, they went 
to Moses, and made known their 
grievance. Moses reasoned with 
them upon the folly and pre¬ 
sumption of their complaint. Da¬ 
than and Abiram made other 
charges, and refused to respect 
the authority of Moses. Moses 
proposed to test the reasonable- 


KOR 

ness of their complamt by refer, 
ence to God himself; and, aftei 
separating all the rest of the peo¬ 
ple from them, he said that if 
Korah and his party should die a 
natural death, then he would 
agree that he was not a true mes¬ 
senger from God; but if they 
should be destroyed in an extra¬ 
ordinary manner, (which he par¬ 
ticularly described,) then it should 
be admitted that they had pro¬ 
voked God. The dreadful event 
showed that Korah and his com¬ 
panions were in the wrong; for 
they, and all that appertained 
to them, were swallowed up alive, 
in a moment, by the earth, which 
opened to receive them, and at 
the same time a fire was sent and 
consumed the two hundred and 
fifty princes. (Num. xvi. 2, 35.) 


LAB 

ABAN. (Gen. xxviii. 2.) The 
brother of Rebekah, and the 
father of Jacob’s wives, Rachel 
and Leah. His conduct towards 
his kinsman Jacob evinced an 
avaricious and overbearing dis¬ 
position. It is supposed that the 
valuable ornaments which had 
been given to Rebekah by the 
stranger, and which Laban saw 
upon her hands, excited his cu¬ 
pidity, and made him so anxious 
to have the stranger entertained. 
Afterwards, he grossly deceived 
Jacob, and obtained from him, 
fraudulently, seven years’ service, 
in addition to seven which he had 
agreed to serve, that In might 
obtain Laban’s daughter, Rachel. 
In other ways he oppressed and 
abused his nephew, notwithstar d- 
ing his faithful and unremitted 
service, uDtil he was compelled 
85 


LAC 

to flee. Laban pursued him, 
doubtless with hostile intentions; 
but he received an intimation 
from God which changed his 
course, and their differences were 
amicably adjusted. The inter¬ 
view between them took place on 
what was afterwards known as 
mount Gilead, (or Gcileed, the 
heap of witnesses;) a name de¬ 
rived from the circumstance that 
a heap of stones was collected as 
a monument or witness of their 
treaty. (See Jacob. For a full 
history of these transactions, with 
illustrative maps and cuts, see 
Jacob and his Son Joseph, ch. 
iii. and iv.) 

LACHISIL (Josh. x. 3.) A 
city of Judah, lying south of Je¬ 
rusalem, and towards the border 
of Simeon. It was one of the 
Canaanitish cities, which was sub- 
409 






LAH 

aued by Joshua, Dut it was after¬ 
wards rebuilt by Jeroboam, (2 
Chron. xi. 9,) and sustained a se¬ 
vere and fruitless siege by the 
Assyrians. (2 Kings xviii. 17; 
six. 8; 2 Chron. xxxii. 9; Jer. 
xxxiv. 7.) 

LA-HAIROI. (See Beer-la- 

HAIROI.) 

LAISH, or LESHEM. (See 
Dan.) 

LAKE. (Luke v. 1.) The prin¬ 
cipal lakes mentioned in the Bi¬ 
ble are Tiberias or Gennesaret, 
the Salt or Dead Sea, and Merom. 

(See these articles.) The place 
of final punishment is called the 
lake of fire, (Rev. xix. 20,) the 
lake which burneth, Ac. (Rev. 
xxi. 8. See Hell.) 

LAMB. (Ex. xii. 3.) The I 
young of the sheep, though the 
original word means also the kid 
or young of the goat; and by the 
Jewish law it is expressly pro¬ 
vided that the sacrifice at the pass- 
over might be a lamb, either of 
the sheep or goat. (Ex. xii. 5.) 
Sundry peculiar enactments are 
contained in the same law, re¬ 
specting the qualities of the ani¬ 
mal. (Ex. xxii. 30; xxiii. 19; 
Lev. xxii. 27.) 

The prophet represents Christ 
as a lamb led to the slaughter, (Isa. 
liii. 7 ;) and the same figure is 
employed by John when he an¬ 
nounced the approach of Jesus 
to his c mpanions. (John i. 29, 
36.) I 4 may denote the meek¬ 
ness and gentleness of the Mes¬ 
siah’s character, but still more ex¬ 
pressively designates him as the 
great sacrifice for sin. Hence the 
frequent allusions to the Lamb, 
the Lamb that was slain, the blood 
of the Lamb, Ac. (Rev. v. 6; vii. 

9, 14, 17; xii. 11; xir. 1, 4; xviL 
14; xxi. 23- 27.) 

410 


LAM 

LAMECH. 1. (Gen. v. 25-31.) 
The son of Methuselah, and the 
father of Noah. He died about 
five years before the flood. 

2. (Gen. iv. 18.) A descendant 
of Cain, and notorious as the 
person who introduced into the 
world the sin of polygamy. The 
speech he made to his wives (Gen. 
iv. 23, 24) is supposed to have 
been designed to relieve any ap¬ 
prehension they might have as to 
his personal safety, as a descend¬ 
ant of the first murderer, who 
had been accursed. 

The words of Lamech are thus 
rendered by some critics: 

“ And Lamech said unto his wives, 

Adah and Zillah, hear ye my voice; 

Wives of Lamech, hearken to my speech: 
Have I slain a man. that I should be 
wounded ? 

Or a youug man, that I should be bruised? 
If Cain should be avenged sevenfold, 

Also Lamech seventy and seven." 

That is, if God hath guarded 
Cain, the murderer, by a threat 
of dreadful punishment upon such 
as slay him, how much more will 
he guard me, who am innocent 
of the blood of all men? 

Others render the fourth and 
fifth lines thus: 

“ I have slain a man who wounded me; 

Yea, a young man who smote me 

and suppose that Lamech had 
slain a man in self-defence; that 
his wives were alarmed lest the 
kindred of the deceased should 
seek his life; and, to quiet their 
fears, he tells them, that if he who 
took the life of Cain, a wilful 
murderer, should suffer a seven¬ 
fold (or great) punishment, surely 
he who should kill Lamech, who 
had slain a man in self-defence, 
should suffer seventy-sevenfold 
(or still greater) punishment. 

These are two of many con¬ 
structions which have been put 








LAM 

apon the passage, and all of then' 
may be erroneous. 

LAMENTATIONS OF JERE¬ 
MIAH, the book op. The He¬ 
brews were accustomed to com¬ 
pose lamentatations, or mournful 
Bongs, on the occur¬ 
rence of private and 
public calamities. 

Such was David’s la¬ 
ment on the death of 
Absalom and Jona¬ 
than. The prophet Je¬ 
remiah thus laments 
over the ruin of the 
holy city and the tem¬ 
ple,, the destruction of 
the state, and the ca¬ 
lamitous condition and prospects 
of his countrymen. In the original 
language, the first four chapters of 
this book are written so that every 
verse or couplet begins with a let¬ 
ter of the Hebrew alphabet, in 
regular order. The first and se¬ 
cond chapters contain twenty-two 
verses each, according to the let¬ 
ters of the alphabet. In these, and 
in the fourth chapter, the city and 
church of God are presented to 
us in personified form, and their 
calamities are described in the 
most pathetic and touching lan¬ 
guage. The third chapter has 
sixty-six verses, and therefore 
every triplet begins with a He¬ 
brew letter in order. In this 
chapter, a single Jew speaks in 
the manner of a chorus of hi? 
countrymen, as in ancient dra 
matic writings, ar d describes their 
state and prospects. The fifth 
chapter contains the united plead¬ 
ings and supplications of the whole 
people. The peculiar mode of 
Versification above mentioned was 
designed, as it is supposed, to as¬ 
sist the memory. 

Ti seems to be the prevailing 


LAM 

opinion, that this book refers to 
events past, and has not a pro 
phetic character. 

LAMP. (1 Sam. iii. S.) Tha 
lights of the East are of various 
kinds; not only oil, but pitch 



naphtha, and wax are used to 
maintain the flame. Sometimes 
strips of cotton cloth, soaked in 
these combustible substances, sup¬ 
ply the place of lamps; and in 
the Indies particularly, it is cus¬ 
tomary to carry a pot of oil in one 
hand, and a lamp full of oily rags 
in the other. The form of orien¬ 
tal lamps was fanciful and often 
elegant. 

The lamps of the Hebrews, it 
is probable, .ike those of Aleppc 
and Egypt at the present day, were 
suffered to burn all night; and 
this occasioned no great expens# 
in a country so rich in oil. We 
are told that this was considered 
so indispensable to the comfort of 
a family, and that the poorest peo¬ 
ple would rather deny themselves 
food than neglect it. The putting 
out of the light denoted the ruin 
and extinction of the family, and 
the desertion of the house. This 
gives force to the words in Job 
xviii. 5, 6 ; xxi. 17; xxix. 3 : The 
light of the wicked shall be put 
out; the light shall be dark in his 
tabernacle , and his candle shall 
hi put out with him. How oft it 
411 






LAN 

the candle of the wicked put out. 
(Jer. xxv. 10, 11; Prov. xx. 20.) 
Also in Prov. xiii. 9, The light of 
the righteous rejoiceth, but the lamp 
if the wicked shall be put out; 
and of the prudent wife, Her can¬ 
dle goeth not out by night. (Prov. 
xxxi. 18.) 

LANCE. (See Armour.) 

LANDMARK. (Prov. xxii. 28.) 
It was the manifost intention of 
Jehovah, in bringing his people 
into Canaan, to make them a na¬ 
tion of agriculturists. For this 
purpose, every citizen had allotted 
to him a piece of ground, which 
he was to cultivate and leave to 
his descendants. This he could 
not entirely alienate; for even if 
sold, it returned to him or his na¬ 
tural heirs at the next jubilee. 
(See Jubilee.) He also had a 
right to reclaim or redeem land 
thus sold when he was in strait¬ 
ened circumstances, even before 
the jubilee. 

The importance of preserving 
accurately the boundaries of in¬ 
dividual or family possessions is 
very obvious; and hence the se¬ 
vere penalty threatened for their 
removal. (Deut. xix. 14; xxvii. 
17 ; Prov. xxiii. 11.) 

Subsequently to the ordinances 
given by Moses, the land was di¬ 
vided by lot and measurement 
among the tribes, families and 
individuals of the nation, under 
Joshua. For this purpose, a cord 
or measuring line was used. (Ps. 
rxxviii. 55.) This measuring line 
is often used in figurative lan¬ 
guage, when the providential as- 
jjgnment of man’s lot or condi¬ 
tion is mentioned. (Ps. xvi. 6. 
See Lines.) 

LANGUAGE (Gen. xi. 1.) 
It is generally supposed that 
Adam was enaued with the power 

412 


LAO 

of speech, and furnished with a 
language, at his creation, and 
that it was sufficiently perfect and 
compiehensive for all the purpo¬ 
ses of his being. This was the 
language of the whole earth foi 
nearly 2000 years, or until about 
a century after the flood. It was 
then that the tower of Babel waa 
erected; and, for the purpose of 
confounding that presumptuous 
enterprise, God caused a confu¬ 
sion of languages, so that the va¬ 
rious companies or tribes should 
be incapable of understanding 
each other, and of course incapa¬ 
ble of prosecuting their plans. 
This caused a division and dis¬ 
persion of mankind over the face 
of the earth. Many learned men 
suppose that the Hebrew was the 
original language given by God 
to Adam, and that all the other 
languages are derived from that 
as the root. 

LANTERNS, (John xvffl. 3.) 
Probably some kind of covered 
torch. 

LAODICEA. (Rev. i. 11.) A 
city of Phrygia, upon the river 
Lycas, near Colosse, and about 
forty miles east of Ephesus. Eski- 
hi88ar is the name of the town 
upon or near the curious and mag¬ 
nificent ruins of this once proud 
and flourishing city. 

There was a church here, to 
which Paul sent affectionate mes¬ 
sages, and wished the Colossians 
would let them see the letter, 
which he had addressed to them 
when they had done with it. 
(Col. iv. 13-16.) And it was this 
church that was so severely re¬ 
proved by Christ. (Rev. iii. 14- 
22.) Of its reiection and aban¬ 
donment, according to the inspired 
declaration in these passages, tra¬ 
vellers furnish abundant evidence. 



LAP 

“ It is even more solitary than 
Ephesus,” says one; “ sitting in 
widowed loneliness, its walls 
grass-grown, us temples desolate, 
its very name perished ! Ms crime 
was pride, its punishment desola¬ 
tion. The threatening is accom¬ 
plished; it now stands rejected of 
God, and deserted of man; its 
glory a ruin, its name a re¬ 
proach !” 

LAPPETH. (Judg. vii. 5.) We 
are told that the Eastern people 
are accustomed to take up water 
in the hollow of the hand, and 
that they do it with surprising 
agility. It is inferred that when 
Gideon’s army came to the water 
side, they drank of it with the hand 
as fast as they could, to be ready 
without delay to follow Gideon; 
while the thousands of faint¬ 
hearted, that were sent away, 
either stooped down to drink, or, 
at all events, drank with so much 
tardiness and ceremony, as to 
show that their hearts were not 
with Gideon in his contemplated 
enterprise. The three hundred 
showed themselves men of alac¬ 
rity and promptness, and there¬ 
fore fit for the work. 

LAPWING. (Lev. xi. 19.) A 
very beautiful but filthy bird, un¬ 
clean by the Levitical law. The 
lapwing of the Bible is supposed, 
however, to be the hoopoe of mo¬ 
dern days. It is about the size 
<>f a pigeon. 

LASEA. (See Crete.) 

LATCIIET. (See Clothes.) 

LATTICE. (See Dwellings.) 

LAUGH, LAUGHTER. (Gen. 
%viii. 13; Ps. lix. 8; cxxvi. 2.) 
These terms are employed by the 
sacred writers, to denote joy, in¬ 
sult, mockery, assurance, admira¬ 
tion, <fcc. The meaning can usu¬ 
ally be determined by the con- 
35* 


LAW 

Bection. When they are used 
concerning God, as in Prov. i. 26, 
they signify that he despises or 
pays no regard tc the persons or 
subject. 

LAVER. (Ex. xxx. 18.) A 
circular vessel, used in the taber¬ 
nacle service, and formed of the 
polished brass which served for 
looking-glasses, (Ex. xxxviii. 8,} 
and which was presented for the 
purpose by the devout woraei 
who attended at the door of the 
tabernacle. The laver stood be¬ 
tween the altar and the taber¬ 
nacle, a little to the south ; and 
the priests washed their hands in 
it before they officiated. (See 
Temple.) 

LAW. (Ps. xix. 7.) This wore! 
has various significations. The 
psalmist used it generally to de¬ 
note the whole will of God. It is 
applied to the Mosaical institu¬ 
tions, in distinction from the gos¬ 
pel, (Heb. x. 1-18,) and some¬ 
times to the ritual, strictly speak¬ 
ing. (Eph. ii. 15.) It denotes 
the ten commandments given to 
the Israelites, (Ex. xx.,) and con¬ 
firmed by Christ, (Matt. v. 17,) 
and opened and explained in their 
infinite comprehension and spi¬ 
rituality, by him and his apostles, 
throughout the New Testament. 
(Luke x. 27 ; Rom. iii. 20 ; Gal. 
iii. 10, 13, 19-25.) 

The term is also used to signify 
the five books of Moses. (Luke 
xxiv. 27, 44; Acts xiii. 15.) This 
was what was read in the syna¬ 
gogues; and a copy of it was de¬ 
posited in the side of the ark to 
preserve it from injury. (Deut. 
xxxi. 26. See Ark of tee Co¬ 
venant.) 

When it is said erf believers 
that they are not under the law, 
but under grace, (Rom. vi. 14,) 
413 



LAW 

the meaning is that they do not 
depend on obedience to the law 
for justification before God, but 
on the grace o f God as revealed 
m the gospel. 

The ceremonial or ritual law, 
which stood in meats and drinks 
and carnal ordinances, (Heb. ix. 
10,) was abolished by the intro¬ 
duction of the gospel; but the 
law, properly speaking, is eternal 
and unchangeable in its obliga¬ 
tions and sanctions. It was ful¬ 
filled rather than abrogated by 
the gospel ; and obedience to it is 
made by the gospel the only evi¬ 
dence of justifying faith. (Matt, 
v. 17, 18; Rom. iii. 28; vi. 15, 
16 ; James ii. 18, 26.) 

'L AWYERS, (Luke vii. 30,) 
or DOCTORS OF THE LAW, 
(Luke v. 17,) were a class of men 
who devoted themselves to the 
study and interpretation of the 
Jewish law. They are supposed 
to have been charged with tran¬ 
scribing the law, and in many 
instances, with the decision of 
questions .arising under it; whence 
they are called Scribes. (Ezra vii. 
6, 11.) Many of them were mem¬ 
bers of the sanhedrim. Their 
influence was great, and they are 
often mentioned under the name 
of scribes, in connection with the 
chief priests and elders. 

LAZARUS. 1. (John xi. 1.) A 
citizen of Bethany, residing with 
his two sisters, of whose family 
Christ was a frequent guest. He 
was raised from the grave by the 
power of Christ, in sight of the 
city of Jerusalem, in the presence 
of the family and a number of 
Jews, after he had been dead four 
lays. This is one of the most stu¬ 
pendous and interesting miracles 
which our divine Saviour wrought, 
a3 it provod his complete power 
414 


LAZ 

over death and the grave, which 
was afterwards so fully corrobo¬ 
rated in his own person. So in¬ 
censed were the Jews at this in¬ 
disputable exhibition of Christ’s 
power, that they sought not only 
to kill him, but Lazarus himself, 
because, in consequence of the 
miracle, so many believed. 

The history of this transac¬ 
tion, given by the sacred histo¬ 
rian, is intensely interesting. On 
no occasion, perhaps, were the 
sympathy, dignity and power of 
Christ, in his humiliation, more 
conspicuous; and the domestic 
scenes which are connected with 
the story are related with beauti¬ 
ful simplicity. (See Susan Ell- 
maker, pp. 72-74.) 

2. (Luke xvi. 20.) In the para¬ 
ble by which our Saviour illus¬ 
trates the retributions of eternity, 
one of the parties is named Laza¬ 
rus. The word Lazarus in the ori¬ 
ginal signifies a poor, needy man; 
and the probability is, that the 
story is designed to illustrate a 
general truth by a natural ar¬ 
rangement and issue of circum¬ 
stances constantly occurring on 
all sides of us. 

It is worthy of observation in 
this parable, (1.) That no positive 
sin is charged upon the rich man; 
nor does it appear that he was 
guilty of any particular neglect 
of the poor man ; for he was not 
a beggar, (as our translation has 
it,) but simply in need, and he 
was laid at the rich man’s gate to 
excite the sympathy of those w ho 
should pass in and out. 

(2.) That while the rich man 
was buried probably with much 
pomp, the poor man suffers that 
utmost disgrace (as the Jews 
teem it) of being without burial 
(See Burial.) 



LEA 

(3.) To be with Abraham] was, 
to the Jew, to be blessed indeed, 
(Matt. iii. 9;) and to be in his 
bosom imported the greatest inti¬ 
macy. (See Bosom.) 

(4.) The word hell denotes a 
place where the wicked suffer in¬ 
tolerable anguish, without the 
least mitigation, forever and 
ever. 

(5.) The amazing contrast be¬ 
tween the respective conditions of 
the righteous and the wicked in 
this world, and their respective 
conditions in the world to come. 
A comparison of the various cir¬ 
cumstances in the history of each, 
as they are set down in the para¬ 
ble, puts this feature of the story 
in a most striking light. 

LEAD. (Job xix. 24.) A very 
heavy metal, known to the an¬ 
cients from a very early period, 
(Ex. xv. 10 ; Num. xxxi. 22; Zech. 
v. 6-8,) and abounding in the 
western parts of the United States. 
Lead was formerly used in the 
process of refining gold and sil¬ 
ver. Hence the figurative allu¬ 
sions, (Jer. vi. 29, 30 ; Ezek. xxii. 
17-22.) 

LEAF. (Isa. lxiv. 6.) The 
bright fresh colour of the leaf of a 
tree or plant shows that it is richly 
nourished by a good soil. Hence 
it is emblematical of prosperity. 
(Ps, i. 3 ; Jer. xvii. 8; Ezek. xlvii. 
12.) A faded leaf, on the con¬ 
trary, shows the lack of moisture 
and nourishment, and becomes a 
fit emblem of adversity and de¬ 
cay. (Job. xiii. 25.) 

LEAH. (Gen. yxix. 16.) The 
wife of Jacob, and eldest daugh¬ 
ter of Laban. Jacob desired to 
marry Rachel, Leah’s sister, and 
served her father seven years that 
he might obtain her as his wife. 
When the }>eriod was accomplish- 


LEB 

ed, Leah was imposed upon him 
instead of Rachel, and he was 
compelled to serve seven yearh 
longer for her. (See Jacob ani 
Joseph, chap, iii., and Histok* 
of the Patriarchs, $ xvii.) 

LEASING. (Ps. iv. 2.) Lies oi 
falsehoods. 

LEAVEN. (Ex. xii. 15.) Fer¬ 
ment mixed with dough, to make 
it light; or a piece of dough oi 
bread thus mixed and used to 
lighten a larger mass. It makes 
a thorough change in the whole ; 
and hence the force of the para¬ 
ble, (Matt. xiii. 33,) by which the 
silent influence of the gospel on 
the heart of man is beautifully 
illustrated. And so also it figu¬ 
ratively denotes the influence oi 
false and corrupt doctrines, (Matt, 
xvi. 6,) as well as the evil pas¬ 
sions of the depraved and unre¬ 
generate heart. (1 Cor. v. 7, 8.) 
The disuse of it on certain occa¬ 
sions was an important part of 
the Jewish ritual. (Ex. xii. 15, 
19.) 

Dough kept until it^is grown 
sour is used in Eastern countries 
as a ferment for fresh dough; and 
it is said that in the wine coun¬ 
tries the lees of wine are used as 
we use yeast. 

LEBANON. (Isa. xxxiii. 9.) 
A celebrated range of mountains 
in Syria, north of Palestine, run¬ 
ning northeast and southwest, in 
two parallel chains, in crescent 
form, and pursuing nearly the 
course of the shore of the Medi¬ 
terranean. 

Some of the most elegant Scrip, 
ture imagery is derived from this 
mountain, or, rather, range of 
mountains and its scenery. Its 
trees, its fruits, its fragrance, its 
cattle, its snows and its cooling 
streams, have furnished the sa- 
415 



LEB 

wed writers with abundant mate¬ 
rial for the exhibition of what¬ 
ever is august, dignified or sub¬ 
lime. 

The southeastern chain is called 
Anti-Libanus, opposite to Libanus, 
cr Lebanon proper. Between 
these ranges is Coele-Syria, or the 
valley of Lebanon. (Josh. xi. 17.) 
Some of its eastern and north¬ 
eastern branches were called Her- 
mon, (Deut. iii. 9,) Sion, (Deut. 
iv. 48,) and Amana. (Sol. Song 
iv. 8.) Its summits (which some 
travellers have stated to be higher 
than the Alps or Pyrenees) and 
ravines are covered with snow 
during the year, and its rock is a 
white limestone, from which issue 
pure, limpid streams. (Jer. xviii. 
14.) It is described by travellers 
as a multitude of mountains, se¬ 
parated by deep ravines, and co¬ 
vered pretty thickly with pine 
and fruit trees, although not so 
densely as the forests of America. 
Its ascent is steep and rocky. 

Dr. Kitto remarks that more 
cedars are now growing in Eng¬ 
land than in the whole of Mount 
Lebanon. 

Dr. Robinson, referring to the 
somewhat secluded position of the 
ancient cedars now remaining, 
says, “ They stand in a hollow, as 
if ashamed,” verifying the pro¬ 
phetic allusion, (Isa. xxxiii. 9,) 
“ Lebanon is ashamed.” And 
Elliot informs us that the modern 
cedars are never allowed to attain 
any considerable size, the moun¬ 
taineers cutting them down for 
the sake of the charcoal and tar. 
(See Isaiah x. 16, 18.) 

The balsamic odour of these 
cedars is alluded to IIos. xiv. 6; 
Sol. Song iv. 11; and so many 
of them were used in building 
Solomon’s palace, as to give it the 
416 


LEB 

name mentioned, 1 Kings yii. 2, 
and x. 17. The same timber was 
used for shipbuilding. (Ezek. 
xxvii. 5. See Cedar.) 

Another traveller thus describes 
the mountain and its scenery: 
The highest elevation of the 
mountains of Lebanon is to the 
southeast of Tripoli, and Ihoir 
summits, capped with clouds and 
covered with snow, are discerned 
at the distance of thirty leagues. 
The Orontes, which flows from the 
mountains of Damascus, and loses 
itself below Antioch ; the Kasmia, 
which from the north of Balbeck, 
takes its course towards Tyre; 
the Jordan, which sends its wa¬ 
ters towards the south, all prove 
the altitude of the region from 
which they derive their source. 
Lebanon, which gives its name 
to the extensive range of the Kes- 
ruan, and the country of the 
Druses, presents to the traveller 
the spectacle of its majestic moun¬ 
tains. At every step he meets 
with scenes in which nature dis¬ 
plays beauty or grandeur, some¬ 
times romantic wildness, but al¬ 
ways variety. When he lands on 
the coast of Syria, the loftiness 
and steep ascent of this magnifi¬ 
cent rampart, which seems to en¬ 
close the country, and the gigantic 
masses which shoot into the 
clouds, inspire astonishment and 
reverence. Should he climb these 
summits which bounded his view, 
and ascend the highest point of 
Lebanon, the Sannin, the immen¬ 
sity of space which he discovers 
becomes a fresh subject of admi¬ 
ration. On every side he beholds 
an horizon without bounds ; while 
in clear weather the sight is lost 
over the desert which extends to 
the Persian Gulf, and over tho 
sea which washes the coasts of 



LEE 

Europe. The mind seems to em¬ 
brace the world. A different tem¬ 
perature prevails in different parts 
of the mountain. Hence the ex¬ 
pression of the Arabian poets, 
that “ the Sannin bears winter on 
his head, spring upon his shoul¬ 
ders, and autumn in his bosom, 
while summer lies sleeping at his 
feet.” 

This description of the moun¬ 
tains of Lebanon enables us to 
perceive the reason why mention 
is so often made of them in the 
writings of the prophets. Le¬ 
banon and Carmel, being the 
most remarkable among the 
mountains of Palestine, are fre¬ 
quently celebrated in sacred 
poetry. The one remarkable as 
well for its height as for its mag¬ 
nitude, and the abundance of the 
^ cedars which adorned its summit, 
exhibiting a striking and sub¬ 
stantial appearance of strength 
and majesty : the other, rich and 
fruitful, abounding with vines, 
olives, and delicious fruits, in a 
most flourishing state both by na¬ 
ture and cultivation, and display¬ 
ing a delightful appearance of fer¬ 
tility, beauty and grace. The 
different form and aspect of these 
two mountains are most accu¬ 
rately defined by Solomon, when 
he compares manly dignity with 
Lebanon, and the beauty and de¬ 
licacy of the female with Carmel. 
(Sol. Song v. 15; vii. 5.) Each 
of them suggests a different ge¬ 
neral image, which the Hebrew 
Doets adopt for different purposes, 
jxpressing that by a metaphor 
which more timid writers would 
delineate by a direct comparison. 
Thus Lebanon is used, by a very 
bold figure, for the whole people 
of the Jews, or for the state of 
the church, (Isa. xxxv. 2; Hos. 

2 


LEH 

xiv. 5;) for Jerusalem, (Isa. 
xxxvii. 24; Jer. xxii. 6, 23;) for 
the temple, (Zech. xi. 1;) tor tba 
king of Assyria, (Isa. x. 34;) for 
whatever, in a word, is remark¬ 
able, august and sublime, (Isa. Ix, 
13; Ezek. xxxi. 3-8, 15, 16.) 
Hence whatever possesses much 
fertility, wealth or beauty, is 
called Carmel. (Isa. xxxv. 2; 
Jer. xlvi. 18; Mic. vii. 14.) 

Its population is from 100,000 
to 150,000, consisting of Syrian 
and Armenian Catholics, Greeks 
and Greek Catholics, Druses and 
Maronites. The wine of Lebanon 
(Hos. xiv. 7) is still celebrated, 
and its air pure, and its prospects 
enchanting. Some of Isaiah’s 
most elegant imagery is derived 
from this mountain and its ap¬ 
purtenances. (See Eagle.) 

LEBBEUS. (See Jude.) 

LEEK. (Num. xi. 5.) A bul¬ 
bous vegetable like the onion, a 
particular species of which has 
been cultivated in Egypt from a 
very early period. In the pas ¬ 
sage cited, it is supposed that 
lettuce, salads or savoury herbs 
generally, may be intended, as 
the original word in the Old Tes¬ 
tament is twelve times rendered 
grass, and once herb. 

LEES. (Isa. xxv. 6.) The 
dregs of wine settled to the bot¬ 
tom. Hence the expression wine 
on the lees denotes old and pure 
wine. It is used figuratively for 
indolence and sin. (Zeph. i. 12.) 

LEGION. (Matt. xxvi. 53.) 
A band of soldiers in the Roman 
army, consisting of from 6000 tc 
7000 men; the original number 
was 6200 foot and 730 horse. In 
this passage, and also in Mark v. 
9, 15, it means a large but inde¬ 
finite number. 

LEIIABIM. tSee Lvbia.) 

B ' +17 



LEN 


LENTILES. (2 Sam. xxiii. 
11 .) A species of pulse not unlike 
the pea in its general appearance. 



food in Egypt, being dressed like 
beans, or stewed with oil and 
garlic, and forming what is called 
red pottage. (Gen. xxv. 29, 30.) 
Probably they grew wild, and 
were found in fields of grain. 
(Comp. 2 Sam. xxiii. 11, with 
1 Chron. xi. 13.) 

LEOPARD. (Isa. xi. 6.) An 
animal of the cat tribe, which it 
is supposed abounded in the 
countries of the Bible, from the 
fact that it is so often mentioned 



Leopard. 


by the sacred writers. The He¬ 
brew name is nimrah. (Num 
xxxii. 3.) Beth-nimrah (Num. 
xxxii. 36) means the home of the 
leopards; and in Sol. Song iv. 8, 
are mentioned the mountains of 
the leopards. Allusions are made 
in the Bible to its manner of 
watching for its prey, (Jer. v. 6; 
Hos. xiii. 7;) its fleehness, (Hab. 

418 


LEP 

i. 8;) its fierceness and cruelty, 
(Isa. xi. 6;) and in Dan. vii. 6, 
it is made the emblem of power. 

LEPER, LEPROSY. (Lev. 
xiii. 42, 45.) The leprosy is a 
loathsome and infectious disease 
still prevalent throughout al 
Syria, and corresponding in ita 
general characteristics with that 
of former ages. It is called dis¬ 
tinctively the stroke or wound of 
the Lord. The bones and the 
marrow are pervaded with the 
disease, so that the joints of the 
hands and feet lose their power, 
the limbs of the body fall toge¬ 
ther, and the whole system as¬ 
sumes a most deformed and loath¬ 
some appearance. The progress 
and effects of the disease are sup¬ 
posed to be described in Job ii. 7, 
8, 12, and vi. 2, and vii. 3-5, and 
xix. 14-21. 

There were various kinds of le 
prosy; but in whatever form it 
appeared, it was regarded as a 
judgment from the hand of God. 
We know it was frequently em¬ 
ployed for this purpose, as in the 
cases of Miriam, (Num. xii. 10,) 
Gehazi, (2 Kings v. 27,) and Uz- 
ziah, (2 Chron. xxvi. 16-23;) but 
whether it ordinarily differed from 
other diseases and calamities in 
this respect we have reason to 
doubt. 

Although the laws respecting 
this disease which we find in the 
Mosaic code are exceedingly rigid, 
it is by no means clear that the 
leprosy was contagious. The 
horror and disgust which was 
felt towards a disease so foul and 
loathsome might be a sufficient 
cause for such severe enactments. 
(For a particular account of the 
leprosy, its symptoms, treatment, 
<fcc. see Biblical Antiquities 
vol. i. chap. vii. § 1.) 



LES 

With respect to the leprosy of 
houses and clothes, (Lev. xiv. 55,) 
gume have supposed that the ex¬ 
pression was only analogical—the 
spots and disfigurations which ap¬ 
peared upon the walls and articles 
of clothing resembling the leprous 
s.pots. Others suppose it was a 
species of mould or mildew, in¬ 
dicating a great degree of damp¬ 
ness, corrupting the air, injurious 
to health, and often the occasion 
and precursor of fatal diseases. 
The expressions of the sacred 
history are hardly borne out, 
however, by such an interpreta¬ 
tion as the last. 

LESBOS. (See Mitylene.) 
LESHEM. (See Dan.) 

LETTER. (2 Sam. xi. V ) 
The letters mentioned by the sa¬ 
cred writers were in the form of 
rolls, not unlike 
those used in the 
East at the present 
day. Niebuhr tells 
us that the Arabs 
roll up their letters, 
and then flatten 
them to the breadth 
of an inch, and 
paste up the end of 
them, instead of 
sealing them; and 
the Persians, we 
know, make up 
their letters in the 
form of rolls, about 
six inches long,and 
paste a bit of pa¬ 
per around it with 
gum, and seal it 
with an impres¬ 
sion of ink. When 
sen* to inferiors, 
they were often 
sent open, (Neh. vi. 
5,*) hut when sent to equals or su¬ 
periors, they were enclosed in a 


LEV 

purse or bag, as in the cut. 

Seal.) 

A modern traveller mentions 
having seen a letter from the 
king of Pei'sia to the governor- 
general of India. The letter was 
in the form of a roll, enclosed io 
a bag woven with gold thread 
and crimson silk. It was tied at 
the neck with gold lace, which, 
after being knotted, passed 
through .an immense red seal, 
four inches in diameter, and about 
an inch thick of red wax. The 
seal was entirely covered with 
Persian characters, supposed to 
be titles of the king. To preserve 
the seal the bag was opened at 
the bottom; but the usual way 
is to melt the wax, or cut the laeo 
betwen the wax and the bag. 

LEVI. (Gen. xxix. 34.) Third 
son of Jacob and Leah. He was 
concerned in a bloody affair with 
the Shechemites, which occasion¬ 
ed the denunciatory and prophetic 
language of his father respecting 
him, (Gen. xlix. 5-7,) and which 
was fully verified in the history 
of his posterity. The opposition 
of his descendants to the idol-wor¬ 
ship, which was practised by 
others, was the occasion of the 
mitigation of their curse. (Ex. 
xxxii. 26-29; Deut. xxxiii. 9.) 
His descendants are called Le- 
vites. (See Levites, and Mat¬ 
thew.) 

LEVIATHAN. (Job xli. 1.) 
The Hebrew name of an animal 
minutely described in this chap¬ 
ter, but not known to modern na¬ 
turalists. The description an¬ 
swers most nearly to the crocodile. 
Probably he was the monster of 
the sea, as behemoth, described 
in the preceding chapter, was the 
monster of the land. The object, 
of the sacred writer evidently is, 
419 









































































LBV 

So represent to us An exceedingly 
itrong and intractable animal, ut¬ 
terly beyond the reach and con¬ 
trol of man, and yet created, pre¬ 
served and destroyed at God’s 
pleasure; thence he infers the 
weakness and insignificancy of 
man, and the folly of his calling 
in question the righteous judg¬ 
ments of God. What is man, 
(even in comparison with some of 
the inferior works of creation,) 
that God should he mindful of 
him ? 

The leviathan is figuratively 
mentioned as an emblem of 
strength and destructiveness. (Ps. 
Ixxiv. 14; Isa. xxvii. 1.) 

LEVITES. (Ex. iv. 14.) All 
the descendants of Levi may be 
comprised under this name; but 
chiefly those who were employed 
in the lower services in the tem¬ 
ple, by which they were distin¬ 
guished from the priests, who 
were of the race of Levi by Aa.ron, 
and were employed in higher of¬ 
fices. The Levites were the de¬ 
scendants of Levi by Gershom, 
Kohath and Merari, excepting 
only the family of Aaron; for the 
children of Moses had no part in 
the priesthood, and were only 
common Levites. God chose the 
Levites instead of the first-born 
of all Israel for the service of his 
tabernacle and temple. (Num. 
iii. 6, <&c.) They assisted the 
priests in the ministrations of the 
temple, and sung and played on 
instruments in the daily services, 
&c. They studied the law, and 
were the ordinary judges of the 
country; but subordinate to the 
priests. God provided for the 
subsistence of the Levites, by 
giving to them the tenth of corn, 
fruit and cattle; but they paid 
to the priests the tenth of all they 
420 


LEV 

received; and as the Levites pos¬ 
sessed no estates in land, the 
tithes which the priests thus re¬ 
ceived from them were considered 
as the first-fruits which they were 
to offer to the Lord. (Num. xviii. 
21-24.) 

God assigned for the habitation 
of the Levites forty-eight cities, 
with fields, pastures and gardens. 
(Num. xxxv.) Of these, thirteen 
were given to the priests, six of 
which were cities of refuge. (Josh, 
xx. 7-9; xxi. 19, <fcc.) While the 
Levites were actually employed 
in the temple, they were sup¬ 
ported out of the provisions kept 
in store there, and out of the daily 
offerings. (See Deut. xii. 18,19; 
xviii. 6-8.) 

The Levites were divided into 
different classes; the Gershomites, 
Kohathites, Merarites, and the 
Aaronites, or priests; to each of 
which were assigned specific du¬ 
ties. (Num. iii. 14, &c.) They 
were not to enter upon their ser¬ 
vice at the tabernacle till they 
were twenty-five years of age. 
(Num. viii. 24.) But David fixed 
the time of service at twenty 
years. The priests and Levites 
waited, by turns, weekly in the 
temple. (1 Chron. xxiii. 24; 2 
Chron. xxiii. 4-8; xxxi. 17; Ezra 

iii. 8.) 

There is much of deep interest 
in the history, office, <fcc. of this 
order of Jewish ecclesiastics; for 
a particular account of which see 
Biblical Antiquities, vol. ii. ch. 

iv. $ 1 and 2. 

LEVITICUS, book of, the 
third book of the Bible, was writ¬ 
ten by Moses, and contains twen¬ 
ty-seven chapters, divided into 
four principal sections—(1.) The 
laws concerning sacrifices; (2.) 
The consecration of the high- 



LEW 

priests; (3) Purification, <fcc. (4.) 
Sacred festivals. It is called Le¬ 
viticus, because the Levites were 
the divinely appointed ministers 
by whom these sacred services 
were in part conducted. 

It contains, also, many of the 
laws by which the civil depart¬ 
ment of the government was to 
be administered, besides many 
remarkable prophecies. 

LEWDNESS. (Acts xviii. 14.) 
This word is not used here in its 
present common acceptation, but 
rather denotes the daring, flagrant 
offence of one who is skilled in 
deeds of iniquity, or an old of¬ 
fender. 

LIBERTINES. (Acts vi. 9.) 
A Jewish sect, said to be com¬ 
posed of such as were proselytes or 
free citizens of Rome; but whe¬ 
ther called libertines from some 
circumstance in their history and 
civil relations, or from the town 
or province which they inhabited, 
is uncertain. They had a place 
of worship at Jerusalem for the 
accommodation of those of their 
sect who might be dwelling in the 
citv. (See Alexandrians.) 

LIBNAH. (Josh. xxi. 13.) A 
city in the western part of Judah, 
(Josh. xv. 42,) assigned to the 
priests, and a city of refuge. (1 
Chron. vi. 57.) Its inhabitants 
revolted from Joram, (2 Kings 
viii. 22,) and were defeated by 
the Assyrians. (2 Kings xix. 8.) 
Another Libnah was situated 
near mount Sinai, (Num. xxxiii. 
20;) and a third in the country 
of Asher, (Josh. xix. 26,) called 
there Shihor Libnatli. 

LIBYA. (See Lybia.) 

LICE. (Ex. viii. 16.) The 
third plague of the Egyptians 
was the turning of the dust of the 
land into lice; and when it is 
36 


LIC 

considered how universally th« 
Egyptians abhorred vermin, and 
especially how strongly their con¬ 
tact was deprecated by the priests, 
the affliction will appear the more 
severe. 

The Jewish, and most of the 
Christian commentators, render 
the original word by this term; and 
learned biblical critics have ex¬ 
hausted their ingenuity to prove 
that this is the correct interpreta¬ 
tion. The Septuagint translators, 
however, were in favour of gnats, 
as the animal designated by Mo¬ 
ses among the plagues of Egypt; 
and Jerome follows them in both 
passages where the word is used; 
and, in things of this kind, the 
ancients are much more worthy of 
confidence than the moderns. 
The learned men above named 
offered several weighty, if not 
conclusive objections to this ren¬ 
dering; as, (1.) These insects 
originated, not from the water, as 
do gnats or mosquitoes, but from 
the dust. (2.) They were on 
both men and cattle, but gnats do 
not take up their residence on 
any animal. (3.) The Hebrew 
word signifies to be fixed or firm, 
which does not agree to gnats, 
which are ever on the wing. (4.) 
And, finally, the plague of flies 
came afterwards, in which gnats 
would be included. Others, how¬ 
ever, dissent from both these opi¬ 
nions, and are disposal to think 
the tick is the animal here signi¬ 
fied, which sticks its claws into 
man and beast, so fast, that it 
never lets go its grasp but by 
leaving them in the flesh In 
some parts of the United States, 
there is a species of tick so small 
as to be almost invisible, and so 
numerous* that millions are often 
grouped on a single spire of grass. 

421 





LIE 

LIEUTENANTS. (Ezra viii. 
36.) A general name for de¬ 
puties. 

LIGHT. (Gen. i. 2-4.) The 
element by means of which ob¬ 
jects and their shape, size and 
colour are discovered. Its mo¬ 
tion is extremely quick, and is 
estimated to be about ten mil¬ 
lions of miles in a minute. 

Whether light really emanates 
from the sun, or whether it is a 
fluid universally diffused through 
the universe, which the sun 
causes to radiate, or to exercise a 
vibratory motion, is not agreed. 
Light was created on the first 
day, although the celestial lumi¬ 
naries did not appear until the 
fourth. There is every reason to 
suppose that the sun was created 
as early as any part of the planet¬ 
ary system. Light is an emblem 
much used in the language of 
Scripture. Christ is often called 
a light, and God is said to dwell 
in light, which no man can ap¬ 
proach ; yea, God is light, and in 
him is no darkness at all. (1 
John i. 5.) It is constantly used 
as the emblem of knowledge and 
of joy. The holy lives of Chris¬ 
tians are also represented by light. 
The following references show a 
variety of figurative uses of the 
word:—Ps. iv. 6, and xxvii. 1; 
^rov. iv. 18; Eccl. xi. 7 ; Isa. ii. 
5, and x. 17 ; Hos. vi. 5; Matt, 
tv. 16; v. 16; Eph. v. 8; Col. i. 12. 

LIGHTNING. (2 Sam. xxii. 
15.) The terrors of the divine 
tvrath are often represented by 
thunder Mid lightning; and 
thunder, on account of its awful 
impression on the minds of mor¬ 
tals, is often spoken of in Scrip¬ 
ture as the voice of the Lord. 
(Job. xxviii. 26; xxxvii. 4, 5; 
xxxviii. 25; x. 9.) 

422 


LIN 

LIGN-ALOES. (See Aloes.J 

LIGURE. (Ex. xxviii. 19.) 
This was one of the precious stones 
in the breastplate of the Jewish 
priests. It is said to have re¬ 
sembled the carbuncle, but it is 
not among any class of gems 
known in modern science. 

LILY. (Matt. vi. 28.) A beau¬ 
tiful flower, of a great variety of 
species, the most beautiful of 
which are found in Eastern coun¬ 
tries, and are often mentioned by 
travellers. Their gorgeous ap¬ 
pearance is alluded to in the pas¬ 
sage above cited, as is also the 
fact that the dry stalks were used 
as fuel. 

In Sol. Song ii. 1, reference is 
probably made to some species of 
the lily that grew spontaneously 
in the fields, and was seldom ad¬ 
mired because seldom noticed; 
and in Sol. Song v. 13, reference 
is supposed to be had to the Per¬ 
sian lily, within whose flower-cup 
is found a collection of fluid not 
unlike myrrh. The lily afforded 
a pattern for much of the orna¬ 
mental work of the temple. (1 
Kings vii.; 2 Chron. iv.) 

LIME. (Isa. xxxiii. 12.) A 
well-known substance, obtained 
by burning limestone, bones, 
shells, <fcc., and used for plaster 
or the cement of brick-work, &o. 
It is inferred from the above pas¬ 
sage, and from Amos ii. 1, that 
the modern mode of manufactur 
ing this article was known to the 
ancients. Untempered mortar is 
that which is so imperfectly or 
unskilfully mixed that it cannot 
be worked. (Ezek- xiii. 10, 11.) 
It is by no means certain that 
lime was a component part of the 
plaster mentioned Deut. xxvii. 2. 

LINEAGE. (Luke ii. 4.) Fa¬ 
mily or race. 



LIN 

LINEN. (Lev. xiii. 47.) A 
jloth made of flax. It was much 
valued and used in ancient as it 
is in modern times. Fine white 
linen is, in Scripture, the emblem 
of innocence, or moral purity. 
(Rev. xv. 6.) 

The best linen was anciently 
made in Egypt, as that country 
afforded the finest flax, (Prov. 
vii. 16;) but, it is said, the most 
of their linen was coarse; and 
Solomon, it seems, bought linen- 
yarn in Egypt. (1 Kings x. 28.) 
It is supposed that linen was 
anciently used for writing on, 
and the letters formed with a 
pencil. 

This cloth, so celebrated in 
ancient times, is still found wrap¬ 
ped around mummies, and ap¬ 
pears to be of the quality of the 
common cotton sheeting. (See 
Flax.) 

LINES. (Ps. xvi. 6.) This ex¬ 
pression refers to the mode of 
measuring land with a cord or 
line, and is the same as if it was 
said, “ My portion is in a pleasant 
place*” (See Measures.) 



Lion. 


LION. (Gen. xlix. 9 ) A wild 
*nd ferocious animal, tco well 


LIZ 

known to require particular de 
scription. Lions formely inha¬ 
bited the marshy banks of the Jor¬ 
dan, and when driven thence by 
the annual freshet, were much 
enraged. (Jer. xlix. 19; 1.44.) Fi¬ 
gurative allusions to the qualities 
and habits of this animal abound 
in the Bible, but are so obvious 
in their application that they need 
not be explained. In the He¬ 
brew there are several different 
names for the lion, expressing the 
differences in his age and charac¬ 
ter, as, the lion’s whelp, (Deut 
xxxiii. 22; Ezek. xix. 2;) the 
young lion, Ps. xxxiv. 10; xci. 
13; Hos. v. 14;) the grown and 
vigorous lion. (Num. xxiii. 24; 
2 Sam. xvii. 10; Nahum ii. 11, 
12 .) 

LIPS. (Lev. xiii. 45.) This 
word has various peculiar signi¬ 
fications in the Scriptures : 

Unclean Lips (Isa. vi. 5) are 
lips polluted by sinful words. 

Calves of our lips. (See 
Calves.) 

Burning lips. (Prov. xxvi. 
23.) Lips through which the ex¬ 
pressions of malice, envy, and 
other malignant passions are con¬ 
tinually passing, (Acts ix. 1;) or, 
as it is oftener interpreted, buy¬ 
ing with false professions of piety 
and friendship; as the potsherd, 
covered with silver dross, appears 
with burning brightness, though 
it is in truth but a potsherd. 

Covering the lip (Ezek. xxiv. 
22) or chin with the outer gar¬ 
ment was a token of mourning. 

LIZARD. (Lev. xi. 30.) It is 
quite uncertain what species of 
the animal known to modern na¬ 
turalists by this name is intended 
by the sacred writers. The ori¬ 
ginal would indicate that which 
adheres closely to the earth. It 
423 





LOC 



Lizard. 

was unclean by the ceremenial 
law. 

LOCK. (Judg. iii. 23.) The 
doors of the ancient Hebrews were 
secured by bars of wood or iron, 
though the latter were almost en¬ 
tirely appropriated to the entrance 
of fortresses, prisons and towns. 
Thus we find it mentioned in 1 
Kings iv. 13, as something re¬ 
markable concerning Bashan, that 
there were threescore great cities, 
having walls and brazen bars. 
See also Isa. xlv. 2. These were 
almost the only locks known in 
early times, and they were fur¬ 
nished with a large and clumsy 
key, which was applied to the 
bar through an orifice from the 
outside, by means of which the 
bar or bolt was slipped forward 
as in modern locks. There were 
smaller contrivances for inner 
doors, (Judg. iii. 24,) and pro¬ 
bably projecting pieces by which 
to push the bolt with the hand. 
(SoL Song v. 4, 5. See Dwell¬ 
ings, Key.) , 

LOCUST. (Nah. ii. 15.) An 
insect of the grasshopper species, 
remarkable for numbers and vo¬ 
raciousness, and hence one of the 
most dreadful scourges of Eastern 
countries. It is so often and va- 
424 


LOC 

riously mentioned in Scripture, 
that we feel bound to treat of it 
with some particularity. The 



Locust. 

eighth plague upon Pharaoh wag 
in the form of locusts, (Ex. x. 4- 
15; Ps. lxxviii. 46; cv. 34,) and 
they are frequently alluded to as 
instruments of divine judgment. 
(Deut. xxviii. 38-42; 1 Kings 
viii. 37; 2 Chron. vi. 28.) Many 
facts have been related by travel¬ 
lers and historians of veracity, to 
show the immensity of the num¬ 
bers of locusts which have been 
observed to pass over some coun¬ 
tries. In 873, in Germany, clouds 
of locusts came from the East, and 
continued to darken the air for 
two months; and in one hour 
would consume every green thing 
on a hundred acres of land; and 
when driven back into the sea by 
the wind, they occasioned a dread¬ 
ful pestilence. Even the heathen 
viewed the locusts as a dreadful 
judgment from heaven. Pliny 
says, “ This plague is considered 
a manifestation of the wrath of 
the gods; by their number they 
darken the sun, and the nations 
view them with anxious surprise; 
their strength is unfailing, so that 
they cross oceans, and pervade 
immense tracts of land. They 
cover the harvest with a dreadful 
cloud; their very touch destroy¬ 
ing the fruits of the earth, and 
their bite utterly consuming every 
thing.” The celebrated traveller 
Volney undesignedly illustrates 










Lily. 


















LOC 

She sacred Scriptures in relation 
to this plague, as he does respect¬ 
ing many other things: “ Syria, 
as Egypt and Persia/’ says he, 
“and almost all the south of Asia, 
is subject to a calamity not less 
dreadful than that of volcanoes 
and earthquakes, I have men¬ 
tioned ; I mean those clouds of 
locusts so often mentioned by 
travellers. The quantity of these 
insects is incredible to all who 
have not themselves witnessed 
their astonishing numbers. The 
whole earth is covered with them 
for the space of several leagues. 
The noise they make in browsing 
on the trees may be beard at a 
great distance. The Tartars them¬ 
selves are less destructive than 
these little animals. One would 
imagine that fire had followed 
their progress. Wherever their 
myriads spread, the verdure of 
the country disappears: trees 
and plants stripped of their leaves 
give the appearance of winter to 
the spring. When clouds of 
them take their flight, the heavens 
are literally obscured by them.” 
The prophet Joel, under a figura¬ 
tive prediction of the invasion of 
Judea by the Chaldeans, de¬ 
scribes with wonderful exactness 
the movements and depredations 
of this insect. (Joel ii. 1-11.) 
It is suppossd that the palmer- 
worm, canker-worm and caterpil¬ 
lar, (J )el i. 4,) are only various 
species of the locust. To illus¬ 
trate the abovo passage, the fol¬ 
lowing extract from the journal 
of an Eastern traveller is in 
point:— 

“ The locusts, properly so called, 
which are so frequently mentioned 
by sacred as well as profane au¬ 
thors, are sometimes gregarious 
bevond expression. Those which 
36* 


LOC 

I saw were much bigger than our 
common grasshoppers, and had 
brown spotted wings, with leg? 
and bodies of a bright yellow 
Their first appearance was to 
wards the latter end of March 
the wind having been some time 
from the south. In the middle 
of April, their numbers were so 
vastly increased, that in the heat 
of the day they formed themselves 
into large and numerous swarms, 
flew in the air like a succession 
of clouds, and, as the prophet 
Joel expresses it, they darkened 
the mil. When the wind blew 
briskly, so that these swarms 
were crowded by others, or thrown 
one upon another, we had a lively 
idea of that comparison of the 
Psalmist, (Ps. cix. 23,) of being 
tossed up and down as the locust. 
In the month of May, when the 
ovaries of these insects were ripe 
and turgid, each of these swarms 
began gradually to disappear, and 
retired into the Metijiah and other 
adjacent plains, where they de¬ 
posited their eggs. These were 
no sooner hatched, in June, than 
each of the broods collected itself 
into a compact body of an eighth 
of a mile square, and marching 
afterwards directly forward to¬ 
wards the sea, they let nothing 
escape them; eating up every 
thing that was green and juicy, 
not only the lesser kinds of vege¬ 
tables, but the vine likewise, the 
Jig-tree, the pomegranate, the palm, 
and the apple tree, even all the 
trees of the field, (Joel i. 12;) in 
doing which, they kept their ranks 
like men of war, climbing over, 
as they advanced, every tree or 
wall that was in their way; nay, 
they entered into our very houses 
and bed-chambers like thieves 
The inhabitants, to stop their pro- 
425 



LOC 

gress, made a variety cf pits and 
trenches all over the.r fields and 
gardens, which they filled with 
water; or else they heaped up 
therein heath, stubble, and such 
like combustible matter, which 
were severally set on fire upon 
the approach of the locusts. But 
this was all to no purpose, for the 
trenches were quickly filled up, 
and the fires extinguished by in¬ 
finite swarms succeeding one 
another, whilst the front was re¬ 
gardless of danger, and the rear 
pressed on so close, that a retreat 
was altogether impossible. A day 
or two after one of these broods 
was in motion, others were already 
hatched to march and glean after 
them, gnawing off the very bark 
and the young branches of such 
trees as had before escaped with 
the loss only of their fruit and fo¬ 
liage. So justly have they been 
compared by the prophet to a 
great army ; who further observes, 
that the land is as the garden of 
Eden before them, and behind them 
a desolate wilderness.” 

Another says, “ While seated in 
our tents about noon, we heard a 
very unusual noise, that sounded 
like the whistling of a great wind 
at a distance. On looking up, we 
perceived an immense cloud, here 
and there semi-transparent, in 
other parts quite black, that 
ipread itself all over the sky, and at 
Intervals shadowed the sun. These 
we soon found to be locusts, whole 
(warms of them falling about us. 
These were of a red colour, and 
I should suppose are the red pre¬ 
datory locusts, one of the Egyp¬ 
tian plagues; they are also the 
great grasshopper, mentioned by 
the prrmhet Nahum ; no doubt in 
contradistinction to the lesser. 
(Nah. iii. 17 ) As soon as they 
426 


LOC 

appeared, the gardeners and hua« 
bondmen made loud shouts to 
prevent their settling on their 
grounds. It is to this custom that 
the prophet Jeremiah, perhaps, 
alludes, when he says, Surely 1 
will fill thee toith men , as toith 
caterpillars, and they shall lift up 
a shout against thee. (Jer. li. 14.) 
They seem to be impelled by one 
common instinct, and moved in 
one body, which had the appear¬ 
ance of being organized by a 
leader. (Joel ii. 7.) Their strength 
must be very great, if we consider 
what immense journeys they have 
been known to make.’'. 

Some species of the locust are 
eaten at this day in Eastern coun¬ 
tries, and are even esteemed a 
delicacy when properly cooked 
(Comp. Lev. xi. 22; Matt. iii. 4.) 
After tearing off the legs and 
wings, and taking out the entrails, 
they stick them in long rows upon 
wooden spits, roast them at the 
fire, and then proceed to devour 
them with great zest. There are 
also other ways of preparing them. 
For example: they cook them and 
dress them in oil; or, having 
dried them, they pulverize them, 
and when other food is scarce, 
make bread of the meal. The 
Bedouins pack them with salt, in 
close masses, which they carry in 
their leathern sacks. From these 
they cut slices as they may need 
them. It is singular that even 
learned men have suffered them¬ 
selves to hesitate about under¬ 
standing these passages of the lite¬ 
ral locust, when the fact that these 
are eaten by the Orientals is so 
abundantly proved by the concur¬ 
rent testimony of travellers. One 
of them says they are brought tc 
market on strings in all the cities 
of Arabia, and that he saw an 



LOD 

Arab on mount Sumara, who had 
collected a sack full of them. 
They are prepared in different 
ways. An Arab in Egypt, of 
whom he requested that he would 
immediately eat locusts in his pre- 
Bence, threw them upon the glow¬ 
ing coals; and after he supposed 
they were roasted enough, he took 
them by the legs and head, and 
devoured the remainder at one 
mouthful. When the Arabs have 
them in quantities, they roast or 
dry them in an oven, or boil them 
and eat them with salt. The 
Arabs in the kingdom of Morocco 
boil the locusts; and the Bedou¬ 
ins eat locusts, which are collected 
in great quantities in the begin¬ 
ning of April, when they are 
easily caught. After having been 
roasted a little upon the iron plate 
on which bread is baked, they are 
dried in the sun, and then put 
into large sacks, with the mixture 
of a little salt. They are never 
served up as a dish, but every one 
takes a handful of them when 
hungry. 

In the book of Revelation we 
have a literal description of the 
?ymbolical locust, which gives us a 
terrific impression of their power, 
and which is curiously illustrated 
oy a passage from an Eastern tra¬ 
veller. An Arab from Bagdad, 
ao says, compared the head of the 
locust to that of the horse; its 
Oreast to that of the lion; its feet 
to those of the camel; its body to 
hat of the serpent; its tail to 
that of the scorpion; and S3 of 
flther parts. In like manner, the 
Italians still call locusts little 
horses; and the Germans call 
them hay-horses. (Bedouin 
Arabs, pp. 33-43, 65 ) 

LOD. (See Lydda.) 
LO-DEBAR. (2 Sam ix. 4; 


LOR 

xvii. 27.) A place in the tribe of 
Gad, not far from Mahanaim, 
north of the Jabbok. Here dwelt 
Machir the Ammonite, who as¬ 
sisted David when he retired from 
Absalom’s usurpation, in whose 
house lived Mephibosheth, Jona¬ 
than’s lame son, who sat at Da¬ 
vid’s table, and received from him 
all that pertained to Said and hia 
house. Some suppose it to be 
the same with Debir. (Josh. xiii. 
26.) 

LODGE. (See Garden.) 

LOG. (See Measures.) 

LOINS. (1 Rings xviii. 46.) 
The dress of the Oriental nations 
being loose, it was necessary when 
they were travelling or working, 
to gird up their garments, and 
fasten *hem about their loins; (see 
Clothes;) hence the expression 
is figuratively used (1 Pet. i. 13) 
to denote restraint or abstinence 
from worldly cares, thoughts and 
pursuits, whereby the soul would 
be entangled or hindered. 

LOOKING-GLASS. (Job. 
xxxvii. 18.) What is thus trans¬ 
lated was in fact a plate of metal, 
polished so finely as to produce a 
very perfect reflection of objects. 

LORD. (Gen. xxxix. 2.) This 
word, though sometimes applied 
as a term of reverence and re¬ 
spect, usually denotes the Su¬ 
preme Being; and in this last 
sense it is applied indiscriminately 
to the Father and the Son, (Acta 
x. 36; Rev. xix. 16,) especially in 
the epistles of Paul. In the com¬ 
mon English translation of th« 
Bible, the word LORD, when it 
stands for Jehovah, is printed in 
capitals. 

Lord’s-day, (Rev. i. 10,) or the 
Christian Sabbath, was distin¬ 
guished by this name from the 
Sunday of the Pagans, and the 
427 




L02 

Sabbath of the Jews. The early 1 
Christian writers generally made 
this distinction ; and the Christian 
emperors used the term Lord’s - 
day, or Sunday, according to the 
persons they addressed, i. e. whe¬ 
ther they were Pagans or Chris¬ 
tians. Lord’s-day was the favour¬ 
ite name of the day in the time 
of the apostles and first Chris¬ 
tians ; and Sunday was used only 
in accommodation to the popular 
usage of the Pagans around them. 
(See Feast.) 

Lord’s supper. (1 Cor. xi. 
20.) The night preceding his 
crucifixion, the Lord Jesus, after 
eating the paschal supper with his 
disciples, presented each of them 
with a portion of broken bread, 
and a portion of the fruit of the 
vine ; and declared to them that 
as often as they should eat of that 
bread and drink of that cup in 
remembrance of him, they would 
show forth or illustrate his death 
and their faith in its atoning effi¬ 
cacy, till he should come. The 
great majority of Christians hold 
this ordinance to be binding on 
the church till the end of the 
world; and that it is the privi¬ 
lege arid duty of all the disciples 
of Christ to observe it. (See Com¬ 
munion.) 

LOT. 1. (Gen. xi. 31; xix. 37, 
38.) The son of Haran, and ne¬ 
phew of Abraham. (See Abra¬ 
ham.) 

2. A portion or share of any¬ 
thing, particularly an inheritance. 
(Josh. xv. 1; Ps. cxxv. 3; Isa. 
xvii. 14; lvii. 6; Acts viii. 21.) 

3. (Prov. xviii. 18.) Amethxl 
used to determine chances or pre¬ 
ferences, or to decide a debate. 
The decision by lot was often re¬ 
sorted to in former times, but al¬ 
ways with the strictest reference 

428 


LOT 

| to the interposition of God ; as in 
the choice of the apostle Matthias 
(Acts i. 26,) and in the cases of 
Saul and Jonathan, and Jonab 
and his companions, to determine 
who had oifended God, (1 Sam 
xiv. 41, 42; Jonah i. 7;) and in 
the division of the promised land 
among the tribes of Israel, the 
use of the lot was expressly com¬ 
manded by God himself, it being 
understood that the extent of ter¬ 
ritory should be proportioned to 
the population of each tribe. 
(Num. xxvi. 55.) So the selection 
of the scape-goat was to be de¬ 
termined by lot. (Lev. xvi. 8.) 
Property was divided in the same 
way. (Ps. xxii. 18; Matt, xxvii. 
35.) The orders of the priests 
and their daily service was also 
assigned by lot. (1 Chron. xxiv. 
xxv.) 

As co the manner of casting 
lots, we have no certain informa¬ 
tion. It is supposed by some that 
the stones or marks which were 
used in determining the lot were 
thrown together into the lap or 
fold of a garment, or into an urn 
or vase, and that the person hold¬ 
ing them shook them violently, 
so that there should be a perfect 
mingling of the whole contents, 
to prevent all preference by the 
hand of him who should draw; 
so that the passage, Prov. xvi. 33, 
is paraphrased thus: “ In a lot- 
vase the lots are shaken in all di¬ 
rections; nevertheless, from the 
Lord is the whole decision oi 
judgment.” • 

The use of lots without a dis¬ 
tinct reference to the providence 
of God in determining the matter, 
or in any case where the solution 
of doubt is possible in any other 
way, is condemned, a’ much by 
reason as by religion. A case caa 



10V 

scarcely be imagined at the pre- 
•ont day, in which a reference of 
any matter to a decision by lot 
would be justifiable. At any rate, 
recourse to the use of lots, or any 
similar mode of determining rights 
or claims, must always imply the 
most solemn appeal to the Dis¬ 
poser of all events, or an entire 
and criminal disregard and denial 
of his particular providence. 

Lot's wife. (Luke xvii. 32.) 
The allusion in this passage to 
the history of Lot’s wife, refers 
either to the attempt to return, 
(which some suppose she made,) 
or to the mere looking back with 
a desire to return. For her of¬ 
fence it is said she was turned 
into a pillar of salt. She was 
probably made a monument of 
the divine displeasure, but in 
what precise form is not known. 
(See Salt.) 

LOVE. (1 John iv. 8, 16.) 
This term signifies one of the con¬ 
stituent principles of our nature ; 
and in the perfect exercise of it 
is comprehended the whole of our 
duty to God and to our fellow- 
creatures. (Matt. xxii. 37-40; 
Rom. xiii. 8, 10; Gal. v. 14; 
James ii. 8.) Hence it evidently 
comprehends all holiness of heart 
and life. The highest and most 
glorious display of the divine cha¬ 
racter which has ever been made 
to man, is the love of God in Jesus 
Christ, (Rom. v. 8,) and the great 
principle and fruit of both faith 
and obedience consist in the pos¬ 
session and exercise of love. 
(John xiii. 34, 35.) 

LUBIM. (See Lybia.)' 

LUCIFER. (Isa. xiv. 12.) This 
word, signifying light-giver, oc¬ 
curs but once in our Bibl9, and is 
then applied to the king >f Baby- 
ion to indicate his glory as that 


LUK 

of a morning star, or, figuratively 
a son of the morning. Tertullian 
and some others suppose the pas¬ 
sage to relate to the fall of Satan; 
and hence the term is now usu¬ 
ally applied in that way; though, 
as it seemg without sufficient war¬ 
rant. 

LUD. (Gen. x. 22, A son of 
Shem, from whom the Lydians of 
Asia Minor are supposed to have 
descended. 

LUDIM. (Gen. x. 13.) Son of 
Mizraim, whose posterity, also call¬ 
ed Lydians, (Jer. xlvi. 9,) settled 
on the continent of Africa, as we 
infer from the connection in which 
they and their country are men¬ 
tioned, Isa. lxvi. 19 ; Ezek. xxvii. 
10; xxx. 5. Their precise loca¬ 
tion is unknown. 

LUKE, (Col. iv. 14,) or LU¬ 
CAS. (Phile. 24.) The author of 
one of the gospels, and also of the 
book of Acts. He was a physi¬ 
cian, (Col. iv. 14;) but his parent¬ 
age, nativity and precise connec¬ 
tion with our Saviour and his 
apostles, are uncertain. It is evi¬ 
dent that he was well acquainted 
with every thing relative to our 
Saviour, and to his ministry upon 
sarih. He wrote his gospel in 
Achaia, about a.d. 63. And the 
Acts of the Apostles within a year 
or two afterwards. Both these 
books were dedicated to Thoophi- 
lus, a distinguished Christian, and 
supposed to have been an Egyp¬ 
tian. He travelled much with 
Paul, and was with him on his 
first visit to Rome, whither he 
went as a prisoner. (2 Tim. iv. 
11; Phile. 24.) By some he is 
thought to have been a Greek, 
and by others a Syrian, and that 
he was converted at Antioch, from 
which place he commenced his 
travels with Paul. Some sup- 
429 




LUN 

pose ao suffered martyrdom; but 
of tte time and manner of his 
death we have no authentic infor¬ 
mation. 

Gospel by, contains many 
things which are not found in the 
other gospels; among which are 
the following: the birth of John 
the Baptist; the Roman census 
in Judea; the circumstances at¬ 
tending Christ’s birth at Bethle¬ 
hem ; the vision granted to the 
shepherds; the early testimony 
of Simeon and Anna; Christ’s con¬ 
versation with the doctors in the 
temple when he was twelve years 
old ; the parables of the good Sa¬ 
maritan, of the prodigal son, of 
the rich man and Lazarus, of the 
wicked judge, and of the publican 
and Pharisee; the miraculous 
cure of the woman who had been 
bowed down by illness eighteen 
years; the cleansing of the ten 
lepers; and the restoring to life 
the son of a widow at Nain; the 
account of Zaccheus, and of the 
penitent thief; and the particu¬ 
lars of the journey to Emmaus. 
It is very satisfactory that so 
early a writer as Irenseus has no¬ 
ticed most of thecs peculiarities ; 
which proves not only that 
Luke’s gospel, but that the other 
gospels also, are the same now as 
they were in the second century. 

LUNATIC. (Matt. iv. 24.) It 
was formerly supposed that the 
changes of the moon ( luna ) had an 
influence upon certain diseases of 
the mind; and persons affected 
with those diseases were therefore 
oalled lunatics; and hence, too, 
distracted persons, who are sane 
at intervals, are still called luna¬ 
tics, though the idea of their be¬ 
ing at all under the influence of 
the moon is generally regarded as 
irrational. 

430 


LYO 

LUSTS. I. Unlawful passion* 
and desires. (1 Cor. x. 6; 1 Pet. 
ii. 11; iv. 2; 2 Pet. ii. 10.) 2. The 
corruption of the heart, which in 
dines to evil, and is both the ef¬ 
fect and cause of sin. (James i. 
14, 15.) 3. The desire of food 

to sustain life. (Deut. xii. 15.) 

LUZ. (Judg. i. 26.) A city in 
the land of the Hittites, built by 
a man of Bethel, who was per¬ 
mitted to go free by the Ephraim* 
ites, as a reward for making 
known to them a secret passage 
into the town, by which they 
entered and took it. (See Be¬ 
thel.) 

LYBIA, or LYBYA, (Acts ii. 
10,) was anciently among the 
Greeks a general name for Africa, 
but properly it embraced only so 
much of Africa as lay west of 
Egypt, on the southern coast of 
the Mediterranean. Profane geo¬ 
graphers call it Lybia Cyrenaica, 
because Cyrene was its capital, 
(See Cyrene.) It was the coun¬ 
try of the Lubims (2 Chron. xii. 
3) or Lehabim of the Old Testa¬ 
ment, from which it is supposed 
to have derived its name. 

LYCAONIA. (Acts xiv. 6,11.) 
A province of Asia Minor, which 
the apostle Paul twice visited. It 
was separated from Phrygia and 
created into a Roman province 
by Augustus, and was bounded 
north by Galatia, east by Cappa¬ 
docia, south by Cilicia, and west 
by Pisidia and Phrygia. Its chief 
towns were Iconium, Derbe and 
Lystra. It is now a part of Cara- 
mania, and subject to the Turks. 

The speech of this province 
(Acts xiv. 11) is supposed to have 
been either the old Assyrian lan¬ 
guage, or a corruption of the 
Gr6©k 

LYCIA. (Acts xxvii. 5.) A 




LYD 

southwestern province of Asia Mi¬ 
nor, bounded north by Phrygia, 
east by the sea and country of 
Pamphylia, south by the Medi¬ 
terranean, and west by Caria and 
the gulf of Glaucus, now that 
part of Anatolia embraced be¬ 
tween the bays of Macri and Sa- 
talia. Its chief cities were Patara 
and Myra. 

LYDDA, (Acts ix. 32, 38,) or 
LOD ; in Hebrew, Lud, (Ezra ii. 
33.) A city inhabited by Ben- 
jamites after the captivity, was a 
few miles east of Joppa, on the 
way to Jerusalem. Here Peter 
cured Eneas of the palsy. It was 
burnt by the Romans in the war 
of Judea ; but was rebuilt, and 
called by the Greeks Diospolis, 
the city of Jupiter. It is now in 
ruins, although in the twelfth cen¬ 
tury it was the see of the Bishop 
of St. George, who is said to have 
Buffered martyrdom there in the 
early persecutions of the church, 
and over whose grave a cathedral 
was erected. 

LYDIA. 1. A person. (Acts 
xvi. 14,15.) A woman of Thya- 
tira, who dwelt in the city of 
Philippi, in Macedonia, and was 
converted under Paul’s ministry. 
She opened her house to entertain 


LYS 

the apostles, constraining them to 
partake of her hospitality. 

She is described as a seller of 
purple ; which means, either that 
she sold the colouring matter or 
the fabric already dyed. (Comp, 
Ezek. xxvii. 7, 16. See Purple.) 

2. A place. (Ezek. xxx. 5.) 
There was a celebrated kingdom 
of Asia Minor known by this 
name, of which Sardis was the 
capital. It is supposed to have 
been settled by the posterity of 
Lud, a son of Shem. It had My- 
sia on the north, Phrygia on the 
east, Caria on the south, and the 
Egean Sea on the west. It was 
once under the dominion of Cioe- 
sus, the wealthiest monarch of 
his age. It was in the time of 
the apostles a province of the Ro¬ 
man empire. The Lydia of the 
above-cited passage is supposed to 
refer to a place or a people in Af¬ 
rica. (See Ludim.) 

LYRE. (See Harp.) 

LYSANIAS. (See Abilene.) 

LYSIAS. (See Claudius.) 

LYSTRA. (Acts xiv. 6, 8, 21.) 
A city of Lycaonia, where Ti¬ 
mothy was circumcised, (perhaps 
born,) and where Paul performed 
a surprising miracle upon a man 
lame from his birth. 


MAA 

AACAH. (2 Sam.iii. 3.) The ! 
daughter of Talmai, king of 
Geshur, and the mother of Absa¬ 
lom and Tamar. The same name 
occurs elsewhere, and designates 
different individuals of both sexes; 
as in 1 Kings xv. 1, 2, 7, 8,10, the 
daughter of Abishalom, and the 
wife of Abijam, and the mother 
of King Asiw in 1 Kings ii. 39, 
it designates a king of Gath; in 


MAA 

' 1 Chron. xxvii. 16, it designate* 
the father of Shephatiah; and in 
Gen. xxii. 24, it is a daughter of 
Nahor. In 1 Kings xv. 1, 2, Ma- 
achah, the daughter of Abisha¬ 
lom, is called Abijah’s mother; 
and in 2 Chron. xiii. 2, Abijah’s 
mother is said to have been a 
daughter of Uriel of Gibeah; 
and again, in 1 Kings xv. 10, Ma- 
achah is called the mother of 
431 









maa 

Asa, wfio was Abijah’s second son, 
and of course Maachah was his 
grandmother, and not his mother. 

An attempt has been made to 
reconcile these apparent incon¬ 
sistencies between 1 Kings xv. 2, 
and 2 Chron. xiii. 2, by supposing 
that different persons are intend¬ 
ed. The relation, it is said, is 
not the. same in both cases ; that 
the king’s mother was a title of 
dignity, and not of consanguinity, 
distinguishing her rank at court, 
and not her relation to the king. 
Thus Maachah, Rehoboam’s wife 
and Abishalom’s daughter, (1 
Kings xv. 2,) was the natural 
mother of Abijah, or Abijam. 
When her son, Abijah, ascended 
the throne, the rank of king’s 
mother was given to Michaiah, 
the daughter of Uriel of Gibeah, 
(2 Chron. xiii. 2;) but, at her 
death, that title devolved on Ma¬ 
achah, Rehoboain’s wife, and she 
enjoyed it at the accession of Asa, 
her grandson, (1 Kings xv. 10 ;) 
and hence, though she was Asa’s 
grandmother, she is called by her 
title of honour, the king’s mother. 
In confirmation of this opinion, 
the passage 1 Kings ii. 19 is re¬ 
lied upon ; and it is also said that 
a dignitary with such a title is 
still found in some of the Eastern 
courts. Without determining the 
value of this suggestion, it is suf¬ 
ficient to say that in a political 
and ecclesiastical history nearly 
3000 years old, it would be sur¬ 
prising (if not suspicious) should 
there be found that accuracy in 
the orthography of proper names, 
and the precise relations of fami¬ 
lies and individuals, which would 
prevent all difficulty and confu¬ 
sion. 

MAACHAH, or MAACHATHI. 
fDeut. iii. 14.) A city and region 
432 


MAG 

of Syria, east and north of the 
sources of the Jordan, and not 
far from Geshur, at the foot of 
mount Hermon. The Israelites 
would not destroy the Waacha- 
thites, but permitted them to 
dwell in the land, (Josh. xiii. 13 ;) 
and their king assisted the Am¬ 
monites against David. (2 Sam. 
x. 8.) The lot of the half tribe 
of Manasseh, beyond Jordan, ex¬ 
tended to this country. (Josh 
xii. 5.) 

MAALEH-AKRABBIM. (See 
Akrabbim.) 

MACEDONIA. (Acts xvi. 9.) 
An extensive district of Greece, 
west of the Egean Sea, south of 
Thrace, and north of Thessaly, 
supposed to have been settled ori¬ 
ginally by the posterity of Chit- 
tim, the son of Javan. It'be¬ 
came celebrated in the days of 
Philip and his son Alexander the 
Great, under whose reigns Greece 
was subdued, and Macedonia be¬ 
came one of the most powerful 
nations of antiquity. Macedonia 
received the gospel before any 
other part of Europe. It was at 
that time a Roman province ; the 
Romans under Paulus Emilius, 
having conquered the country,- 
afterwards divided the whole of 
Greece and Macedonia into two 
great provinces, which they call¬ 
ed Macedonia and Achaia. (2 
Cor. ix. 2.) It remained a Roman 
province for nearly six hundred 
years, when it was conquered by 
the Turks, and is still subject to 
them. Among its chief cities 
were Philippi and Thessalonica. 

A sketch of the apostle Paul’s 
missionary tour through Mace¬ 
donia, in the words of a modern 
missionary travelling over the 
same ground, is not inappropriate 
to this work and this article: 



MAC 

We stopped in our room. In 
the morning we read together 
the history of Paul’s visit here, 
and his two epistles to the Chris¬ 
tian church of this place, (Thes- 
salouians,) whose spiritual father 
he was. How much more do we 
feel and realize the contents of 
the Bible, especially of its sacred 
history, when we read on the 
spot! How lively every circum¬ 
stance, every link in the chain, 
appears there! Paul and Silas 
start from Antiochia. It is Paul’s 
second missionary tour. At Derbe 
young Timotheus joins them. 
They pass through Phrygia and 
Galatia, into Mysia, purposing to 
go to Bithynia; but the Spirit 
suffered them not. They turn aside 
to Troas. Paul is divinely in¬ 
structed to proceed to Europe ! 
What an eventful moment! How 
worthy of a divine revelation! 
Then Luke, a pious physician, 
unites with the missionary band; 
for it is at this period that Luke 
begins to speak in the first per¬ 
son plural. (Actsxvi.il.) His 
profession was evidently calcu¬ 
lated to give him access to the 
people, where the rest of the mis¬ 
sionaries might be excluded. 
They forthwith take passage; 
they touch upon Samothracia, the 
romantic, imposing rock ; thence, 
the following day, they go to Nea- 
polis and to Philippi. At Phi¬ 
lippi, a little flock is gathered; 
persecution breaks out; Paul and 
Sila3 are put into prison and 
beaten ; the keeper of the prison 
is converted, and the missionaries 
are honourably released. Timothy 
and Luke, who had excited no 
ill-will against themselves, re¬ 
main at Philippi; while Paul and 
Silas, after a farewell meeting in 
Lydia’s bouse, leave for Thessa- 
37 2 


Mac 

I lonica, passing through Amphi 

| polh and Apollonia. At Thessa- 
lonica a church is planted ; the 
fire of persecution is again kin¬ 
dled up; Paul and Silas flee tc 
Berea; there Timotheus joins 
them again. (Acts xvi. 19-40 ; 
xvii. 4-10.) ‘Luke overtakes them 
still later. At Thessalonica, Paul, 
as usual, commences by preach¬ 
ing in the regular place of wor¬ 
ship; for while at Philippi they 
were constrained to worship at 
the river’s side, there being no 
synagogue there. At Thessalo¬ 
nica there was one at least. (Acts 
xvii. 1, 2.) But not contented 
with a weekly proclamation of the 
truth, Paul spoke as he had op¬ 
portunities to the heathen popu¬ 
lation and their families, and met 
with abundant success, as well 
among the proselytes (Acts xvii. 4) 
as among the idolaters, (1 Thess. 

i. 9;) and then concluded by ex¬ 
horting and comforting them pri¬ 
vately and personally. (1 Thess. 

ii. 10,11.) 

MACHPELAH (Gen. xxiii. 9, 
17.) A field and cave near to 
Hebron, which Abraham pur¬ 
chased for a burial-place, and 
where he and his wife and several 
of his children were buried. 

An American missionary visit¬ 
ed the spot in the spring of 1835. 
He tells us it is situated on the 
side of a high hill, sloping to the 
southwest, and that over the cavo, 
which is supposed to ha vo been the 
burial-place of the patriarchal fa¬ 
mily, is built a mosque. It is a no¬ 
ble structure, and regarded as pe¬ 
culiarly sacred. It was built by 
Helen, the mother of Constan¬ 
tine, though the Moslems say it 
was built by Solomon. From the 
summit, of the hill is a fine view 
of the plains of Mamre. Here 
C 433 



MAD 

the missionary and his friends 
thought and conversed of the fa¬ 
ther of the faithful, who traversed 
these plains three thousand years 
before, and here they read in Ara¬ 
bic to the natives around them 
the twenty-third chapter of Ge¬ 
nesis. (See Hebron.) 

MADAI. (See Media.) 

MADIAN. (See Midian.) 

MAGDALA, coasts of. (See 
Dalmanutha.) 

MAGICIANS. (Gen. xli. 8.) 
Interpreters of hieroglyphics, or, 
as some suppose, interpreters of 
dreams. In later times, it de¬ 
noted necromancers and enchant¬ 
ers. 

To consult magicians was for¬ 
bidden by the Mosaic law, under 
the penalty of death. (Lev. xix. 
31; xx. 6. See Wise Men.) 

MAGOG. (See Gog.) 

MAHANAIM. (Gen. xxxii. 2.) 
A town in the territory of Gad, 
on the north bank of the river 
Jabbok. It is called Mahanaim 
(or the host, or two hosts) from the 
vision which occurred to Jacob 
on that spot, as recorded in the 
above-cited passage. 

It was distinguished as Ishbo- 
sheth’s capital, (2 Sam. ii. 8-12, 
29,) and as the place to which 
David repaired during the rebel¬ 
lion and usurpation of Absalom. 
(2 Sam. xvii. 24.) 

MAKKEDAH, (Josh. x. 10,) 
one of the principal cities of the 
Canaanites, was allotted to Judah, 
and lay southwest of Jerusalem. 
There was a remarkable cave 
here, in which five petty kings 
concealed themselves, but were 
discovered by Joshua, and put to 
an ignominious death. 

MAKTESH (Zeph. i. 11) is 
generally supposed to refer to 
gome street or squara in the E wer 
434 


MAM 

part of the city of Jerusalem, 
which was chiefly inhabited by 
merchants, or occupied for com¬ 
mercial purposes. 

MALACHI. (Mai. i. 1.) Many 
Jews affirm that Malachi signifies 
only an angel or messenger, (. Ma¬ 
lachi Jehovah, the Lord's messen¬ 
ger, as in Hag. i. 13; Mai. iii. 1,) 
and that the author of this book 
is Ezra himself; but the general 
opinion is, that Malachi lived 
about four hundred years before 
Christ, and was the last of the 
inspired prophets of the old dis¬ 
pensation. 

Prophe<®f of, is last in the or¬ 
der of the books of the Old Tes¬ 
tament; and it contains sharp 
rebukes of the sin and folly of the 
Jews; the most glowing repre¬ 
sentations of the Messiah’s ad¬ 
vent ; and predicts the prepara¬ 
tion of his way by the preaching 
of John the Baptist. Malachi is 
supposed to have been contempo¬ 
rary with Nehemiah. 

MALLOWS. (Job xxx. 4.) 
Supposed to be a kind of bramble 
without thorns, the young leaves 
of which, resembling lettuce, are 
gathered, and boiled by the poor 
as food. We are told that at Bag¬ 
dad quantities of this vegetable 
are hawked about, while those 
who carry it cry Molachia, Mola- 
chia, which differs little from the 
Hebrew word. Many saline plan ta 
are found in the deserts of Arabia, 
and some are of opinion this is a 
general name for the class. Others 
think that the real plant intended 
is a species of salt-wort; to which 
opinion the Greek version of the 
word gives some countenance. 

MAMMON (Matt. vi. 241 is a 
Syriac word, signifying riches. 

Mammon of unrighteousness, 
(Luke xvi. 9,) as it stands con- 



MAM 

nected in this passage, may mean 
that we should so wisely use the 
mammon of unrighteousness or the 
unsatisfying riches of this world, 
that we may secure friends in God 
and Christ, and in sinners saved 
and blessed by our instrument¬ 
ality. 

MAMRB. (See Hebron.) 

MAN, (Gen. i. 26,) in his phy¬ 
sical nature, is the head and lord 
of the animal creation. (Gen. i. 
26-28.) Though of one blood, 
(Acts xvii. 26,) yet, as a race, man¬ 
kind are divided into various na¬ 
tions and tribes, distinguished by 
colour, stature, physiognomy, &e. 
&c., and inhabiting such portions 
of the earth as G od in his wise pro¬ 
vidence has assigned to them re¬ 
spectively. Man was created in 
the image and after the likeness 
of God. He was formed of the 
dust of the ground; and, besides 
the life which was given him in 
common with other animals, he 
received immediately from his 
Creator a rational and immortal 
soul, distinguishing him from, 
and elevating him incomparably 
above, all other creatures upon 
earth; assimilating him to the Au¬ 
thor of his being, and enduing 
him with moral affections, dispo¬ 
sitions and capacities. 

We are told that God breathed 
into his nostrils the breath of life, 
(or lives ;) which probably means 
not only the power of respiration, 
by which animal life is sustained, 
but that he was at the same time 
furnished with those high spirit¬ 
ual faculties wmch constitute him 
a living soul. (See Adam.) 

Thus created in the image and 
after the likeness of God himself, 
man was placed under the re¬ 
straints of the divine law; but, 
by the force of temptation, he was 


MAN 

led to break through those re¬ 
straints?, and so become an object 
of the divine displeasure; where¬ 
by all his relations and prospects 
were completely changed. From 
this time, the character of tne 
first man and the character of 
God were placed in direct oppo¬ 
sition to each other: the one be¬ 
ing sinful, and the other infinitely 
holy. And th'is dreadful event 
has in like manner changed the 
condition and prospects of the 
whole race; for, since that hour, 
sin has been the universal cha¬ 
racteristic of every son and daugh¬ 
ter of Adam, (see Sin ;) and death 
has reigned over all but two of 
them. 

Man is still upon the earth as a 
probationer. He is under the 
moral and providential govern¬ 
ment of the divine Being, and is 
required to love the Lord his 
God with all his heart, and soul, 
and mind, and strength, and his 
neighbour as himself. 

Such is the strength of the de¬ 
pravity of his heart, that he feels 
no inclination to obey this law, 
but readily yields to the tempta¬ 
tions which assail him to disre¬ 
gard and violate it. If he has 
correct views of its strictness and 
spirituality, he finds, that how¬ 
ever it may be with him in the 
outward act and in the sight of his 
fellow-men, there are thoughts 
and intents of hia heart which it 
condemns. 

To save men in this hopeless 
extremity, God sent his own Sou 
into the world, who not only ren¬ 
dered perfect obedience to the di¬ 
vine law, but bore the penalty of 
its violation, and thus made an 
atonement for hi* and opened 
the way by which believing peni¬ 
tents may approach unto Go<F 
435 



MAN 

receive the forgiveness of their 
sins, and be restored to the di¬ 
vine favour. And not only has 
he thus made an atonement for 
ein, but. upon his ascension to 
glovy, he sent down the precious 
in due aces of the Holy Spirit to 
renew and sanctify the soul, while 
he himself ever lives to make in¬ 
tercession for us. 

Though mankind, therefore, 
have lost the image of God, in 
which they were created, and 
have exposed themselves to the 
dreadful penalty of the divine 
law; yet, by repentance and faith 
in Jesus Christ, the mediator be¬ 
tween God and man, we obtain 
forgiveness of sin, and, through 
free, sovereign, boundless grace, 
we are delivered from the bond¬ 
age, guilt, and pollution of sin, 
into the glorious liberty of the 
children of God, and are made 
heirs of God and joint-heirs with 
Christ. 

Obedience to God’s commands, 
and entire, cheerful submission to 
his authority, constitute the evi¬ 
dence or fruits of this faith; but 
are not, in any sense or degree, 
the ground or primary cause of 
our justification in the sight of 
God. 

Thus we have presented to us, 
in the history of man, a creature 
once pure, perfect and immortal; 
then debased, polluted and ruin¬ 
ed by sin; and finally restored 
to favour, and made a partaker 
of endless glory and blessedness, 
by a scheme of mercy which not 
only preserves unsullied the cha¬ 
racter and government of the di¬ 
vine Being, but gloriously illus¬ 
trates his infinite attributes, and 
at the same time requires of the 
sinner the exercise of all his 
powers in God’s service, tbs re 
4-36 


MAN 

nunciation of all merit and right¬ 
eousness on his own part, and a 
cheerful, unreserved submission 
of himself, and all that he is and 
has, to the disposal of his Creatoi. 

In this state of probation os 
trial, all men are subject to afflic¬ 
tion and temptation, sickness anil 
death; but after this state is 
passed, all will be judged accord¬ 
ing to the deeds done in the bo Jy: 
the righteous, or those who, hav¬ 
ing been pardoned and sanctified, 
have loved and served God, will 
be received into his presence, 
where is fulness of joy and plea¬ 
sures for evermore; while those 
who neglect the means and refuse 
the offer of salvation, will be driv¬ 
en away in their wickedness into 
outer darkness, where are weep¬ 
ing and wailing and gnashing 
of teeth: and these will be re¬ 
spectively the eternal and un¬ 
changeable portion of each class. 
(See Christ. See also The 
First Man, and Sketches from 
the Bible.) 

Man of sin. (See Antichrist.) 

MAN, son of. (See Son of 
Man. See also Acts vii. 56.) 

MANASSEH. 1. (Gen. xli. 
51.) The first-born of Joseph. 
When he and his brother Ephraim 
were boys, and Jacob their grand¬ 
father was about to die, Joseph 
took them into the patriarch’s 
presence to receive his blessing. 
On this occasion he adopted them 
into his own family, as his own 
children, and in a most significant 
and interesting manner predicted 
the superiority of Ephraim over 
Manasseh,as it respected numbers, 
<&c. (Gen. xlviii. 5-20. Comp. 
Nura. i. 32, 33, 35, and ii. 18, 20; 
Ps. lxxx. 2.) 

On their way to Canaan, the 
Israelites conquered a large ter- 




MAN 

ntory east of the Jordas; and 
gome of them, whose possessions 
were chiefly in cattle, desired to 
have their portion assigned them 
among the rich pastures and fruit¬ 
ful hills of Bashan and the sur¬ 
rounding country. This request 
was granted; and half the tribe 
of Manasseh received the territory 
Stretching from near to Cesarea 
Phillippi along ihe Jordan down 
nearly to Mahanaim. 

The other half had its portion 
on the west of the Jordan, be¬ 
tween Ephraim and Issachar, 
across the country from the Jor¬ 
dan to the Mediterranean. This 
tribe possessed small tracts within 
the bounds of Issachar and Asher. 

2. (2 Kings xx. 21.) Son and 
successor of Hezekiah, king of 
Judah, ascended the throne at 
the age of twelve years. The 
former part of his reign was dis¬ 
tinguished for acts of daring im¬ 
piety and wanton cruelty; which 
are particularly detailed by the 
Bacred historian. (2 Kings xxi.) 
For these sins, in which he per¬ 
suaded his subjects to participate, 
the country was visited with 
God’s judgments; and their se¬ 
verity and desolation are de¬ 
scribed in the strongest figurative 
language. (2 Kings xxi. 13.) He 
was at last taken captive by the 
Assyrian king, and ignominiously 
transported to Babylon. Upon 
his repentance and prayer, how¬ 
ever, he was liberated, and re¬ 
turned to his capital, wher« he 
died, after having done much to 
repair the evils of his former life. 
The term of his reign was fifty- 
five years. (2 Chron. xxxiii. 1-20.) 

MANDRAKES. (Sol.Songvii. 
13.) It is uncertain what plant 
is intended by the Hebrew word, 
which is translated mandrakes in 
37* 


MAN 

the above passage, and in Jien 
xxx. 14-16. 

What is generally called thr 
May-apple is also often called 
mandrake, and bears a fruit some¬ 
what resembling lemons. 

We know that a plant of this 
name is now common in the East. 
Its fruit ripens from May to June, 
and is of the size of small apples, 
and in its general appearance like 
a melon. To what degree (if 
any) it possesses the properties 
ascribed to it by the ancients we 
know not; certainly no such pro¬ 
perties belong to what we call the 
mandrake. 

MANEH. (See Measures.) 

MANNA. (Ex. xvi. 15.) A 
substance miraculously furnished 
to the children of Israel on their 
journey through the wilderness, 
and designed as a substitute for 
bread, the material for which they 
could not raise during their wan¬ 
derings. It is called the bread 
rained from heaven, Ex. xvi. 4. 

The most remarkable things 
about the manna of the Israelites 
were, (1.) That double the quan¬ 
tity was supplied on the day pre¬ 
ceding the Sabbath, or seventh 
day; (2.) That on the Sabbath, 
or seventh day, none was fur¬ 
nished; (3.) That what they kept 
from the sixth day to the seventh 
was sweet and good, while what 
they kept from any other day to 
the next dsw bred worms, and be¬ 
came offensive. These miracles, 
it should be remembered, were all 
wrought in attestation of the 
sanctity of the Sabbath. 

The manna of the Jews is de¬ 
scribed as a small, round thing, as 
small as the hoarfrost on the 
ground; that it was like coriander 
seed, white, and the taste of it like 
wafers made with honey. (Ex* 
437 



MAN 

su 14, 31.) Wafers were small, 
thin cakes of fine flour, mingled 
with oil, and used in various 
offerings. (Lev. ii. 4; vii. 12.) 
If to this mixture was ad¬ 
ded a portion of honey, there 
would be the nourishment of the 
flour, the flavour of fresh oil and 
the sweetness of honey. The 
original word furnishes no clew 
fco the nature of the substance. 
It is said, that when the Israelites 
first saw it, they exclaimed, It is 
manna; for they knew not what 
it was. Some have interpreted 
it to mean prepared food. Of 
course, we must be satisfied with 
the description given by the sa¬ 
cred historian. As to the size 
and colour, it was probably that 
of the coarsest particles of white 
frost, or the finest hailstones, 
nearly resembling sleet. It was 
ground in mills, or beaten in a 
mortar, then placed in pans in 
the shape of cakes, and baked. 
In gathering this food, each was 
permitted to take what was ne¬ 
cessary for his own use, not ex¬ 
ceeding an omer, or about three 
quarts, for each member of the 
family. If more than this should 
be collected by extraordinary in¬ 
dustry, the surplus was to be dis¬ 
tributed to those who had less. 

For forty years this miraculous 
supply of food was furnished daily 
to between three an# 1 four mil¬ 
lions of people. (D^(k. xx x. 5, 
5.) It ceased while they were 
encamped at Gilgal, immediately 
after they had celebrated the pass- 
over for the first time in the land 
of promise. (Josh. v. 10, 12.) It 
is not improbable that the usual 
quantity of animal food was con¬ 
sumed. The innnna was a sub¬ 
stitute for br?ad, which is the 
staff of life. To commemorate 
438 


MAN 

this long-continued and wonder, 
ful miracle, Moses was instructed 
that a golden pot should be pro¬ 
vided, (Ex. xvi. 33; Heb. ix. 4,) 
and that an omer (or one man’s 
portion) of the manna should be 
put up for preservation, and placed 
in or near the ark, that succeed¬ 
ing generations might see with 
their own eyes the very substance 
on which their fathers were mi¬ 
raculously fed in their long and 
perilous journeyings from Egypt 
to Canaan. 

The substance known to us as 
manna is so called from its sup¬ 
posed resemblance to the manna 
of Israel. The best of it is brought 
from Syria, Arabia and Persia. 
It falls, or is drawn from a tree 
or shrub, in various ways; and 
the Arabs boil and strain it, and 
then use it as honey on their bread 
or cakes. The manna of Israel 
was essentially different from the 
natural manna in a variety of 
particulars. The natural manna 
is not found in the desert; it falls 
only in the spring; it is said not 
to melt in the sun ; it does not 
breed worms, and become offen¬ 
sive if kept from day to day. It 
cannot be ground or beaten in a 
mortar, as the manna of the Is¬ 
raelites was. It has medicinal pro¬ 
perties, which that had not; it is 
produced on every day alike ; and 
it comes at the very season of the 
year when the manna of Israel 
ceased. The Israelites never saw 
it before, nor has it ever appeared 
again, as we infer from comparing 
Deut. viii. 3, 16, with Ex. xvi. 
15, 32, 33. 

A very reputable Eastern tra¬ 
veller gives us the following ac- 
countof modern manna in Arabia: 

“ It is from the tamarisk, or 
tarfa, that the manna is obtained- 



MAN 

This substance is called by the 
Bedouins mann, and accurately 
resembles the description of man¬ 
na given in the Scriptures. In 
the month of June, it drops from 
the thorns of the tamarisk upon 
the fallen twigs, leaves and 
thorns, which always cover the 
ground beneath that tree in the 
natural state; the manna is col¬ 
lected before sunrise, when it is 
coagulated; but he says it dis¬ 
solves as soon as the sun shines 
upon it. The Arabs clean away 
the leaves, dirt, Ac. which ad- 
nere to it, boil it, strain it through 
a coarse piece of cloth, and put it 
in leathern skins. In this way 
they preserve it till the following 
year, and use it as they do honey, 
to pour over unleavened bread, 
or to dip their bread into. I 
could not learn that they ever 
made it into cakes or loaves. 
The manna is found only in years 
when copious rains have fallen ; 
iometimes it is not produced at 
%11. I saw none of it among the 
Arabs, but I obtained a small 
piece of the last year’s produce, 
,n the convent, (of mount Sinai,) 
rrhere, h*ving been kept in the 
coul sb-»Ie and moderate tempe¬ 
rature of that place, it had be¬ 
come quite solid, and formed a 
small cake; it became soft when 
kept some time in the hand; if 
placed in the sun for five minutes, 
it dissolved; but when restored 
to a cool place, it became solid 
again in a quarter of an hour. In 
the season at which the Arabs 
gather it, it never acquires that 
state of hardness which will al¬ 
low of its being pounded, as the 
Israeli'as are said to have done, 
in Num. xi. 8. Its colour is a 
dirty y Jlow ; and the piece which 
f saw was still mixed with bits 


MAN 

* 

of tamarisk leaves; its taste is 
agreeable, somewhat aromatic, 
and as sweet as honey. If eaten 
in any considerable quantity) it 
is said to be slightly medicinal. 
The quantity of manna collected 
at present, even in seasons when 
the most copious rains fall, is tn 
fling, perhaps not amounting to 
more than five or six hundred 
pounds. It is entirely consumed 
among the Bedouins, who con¬ 
sider it the greatest dainty which 
their country affords. The har¬ 
vest is usually in June, and lasts 
for about six weeks.” 

Manna is called the corn of 
heaven , and angels’ food, (Ps. 
lxxviii. 24, 25,) perhaps in allu¬ 
sion to the mode by which it was 
supplied. 

The phrase hidden manna (Rev. 
ii. 17) figuratively describes the 
support which Christ furnishes to 
the true believer, of which the 
world do not and cannot partake. 
(Comp. John vi. 49, 51.) 

MANOAH, (Judg. xiii. 2,) the 
father of Samson, was born at 
Zorah. In the absence of Ma- 
noah, an angel appeared to his 
wife, and predicted the birth of 
Samson, describing particularly 
the manner of his life, and the 
chief purpose for which he should 
be born. Manoah prayed for a 
repetition of the visit. The angel 
again appeared, and Manoah had 
an interview with him; and, 
when he was about to depart, 
proposed to prepare for him, 
that he might partake of the hos¬ 
pitality of his house; but the 
angel declined taking any food, 
and told him if the kid was for 
an offering, it must be to the Lord. 
The kid was prepared as a sacri¬ 
fice, and offered upon a rock. 
When the flame from this rude 
439 



MAf 

altar ascended towards heaven, 
the angel passed upward with it. 
Manoah and his wife, witnessing 
this wonderful scene, fell upon 
their faces to the ground. He 
was disposed to construe the visit 
of the angel unfavourably; but 
his wife more justly regarded the 
emblematical acceptance of the 
sacrifice as a token for good; and 
so it proved. 

MAON, (1 Sam. xxv. 2,) dis¬ 
tinguished as the residence of 
Nabal, was on the southern 
boundary of Judea. 

. Wilderness of, (1 Sam. xxiii. 
25,) was in the southern part of 
Judah, south of the wilderness of 
Ziph, and near the town of Maon, 
and extended to the mountains 
of Idumea. It was in the wil¬ 
derness of Maon that David con¬ 
cealed himself when the Ziphites 
were seeking his destruction. 

MARAH. (Ex. xv. 23.) A 
place on the line of the march of 
the Israelites, at which bitter 
water was made palatable by cast¬ 
ing into it a tree which God de¬ 
signated to Moses. Whether the 
effect was miraculous, or only the 
indication to Moses of a particu¬ 
lar tree which was capable of pro¬ 
ducing it, is uncertain. The word 
Marah, signifying bitterness, was 
adopted by Naomi, as applicable 
to herself, in view of her many 
sorrows. (Ruth i. 20.) 

The well of Hawara, on the 
eastern coast of the gulf of Suez, 
is spoken of by travellers as con¬ 
taining bitter water, and corres¬ 
ponds, in distance, Ac., to the 
Marah of the sacred history. (See 
Art. J O U UN EYING S OF ISRAEL.) 

MARANATHA (See Ana¬ 
thema.) 

MARBLE. (Rev. xviii. 12.) 
A species of limestone, remark- 

440 


MAR 

ablj for its durability, and capa¬ 
ble of receiving a high polish. 
It was probably used in <rery 
early times for building materials, 
(1 Kings vi. 7, 36; vii. 9-12, 
1 Chron. xxix. 2,) and for many 
kinds of vessels. The colours of 
marble are various and oeautifu), 
and pieces of all sizes may be 
wrought together so as to resemble 
a beautiful painling. Such was 
probably the pavement and co¬ 
lumns of the Persian palace, de- 
cribed in Esth. i. 6. 

MARCUS. (See John Mark.) 

MARESHAH. (Josh. xv. 44.) 
A town of Judah, famous as the 
scene of the battle between Asa 
king of Judah, and Zerak king of 
Ethiopia, with his numerous army. 
It was also the residence of the 
prophet Micah. (Mic. i. 15.) 

MARK. (Acts xii. 12.) Ge¬ 
nerally supposed to be the same 
with Marcus, (1 Pet. v. 13;) but 
whether he was the same with 
John Mark (Acts xv. 37-39; Col. 
iv. 10 ; 2 Tim. iv. 11) is not clear. 
(See John Mark.) 

Gospel by. The second in 
order of the books of the New 
Testament. It is supposed to 
have been written between a. d. 
56 and 65, and it contains the 
substance of the public discourses 
and private conversations of our 
Saviour, obtained in a great mea¬ 
sure, as some have supposed, from 
the lips of the apostle Peter, whose 
intimate companion he was for 
several years. It is not unlikely 
that the apostle himself had an 
opportunity to examine it, inas¬ 
much as many things commenda¬ 
tory of him, mentioned in the 
other gospels, are omitted in this. 
There are a sufficient number of 
important differences between 
this gospel and tbe other thre«, 



MAR 

to show that this is not an abridg¬ 
ment or compilation from them, 
or either of them; and among 
these we may mention two mira¬ 
cles which are not recorded in 
any other gospel; and yet there 
are but twenty-four verses in 
Mark which contain any impor¬ 
tant fact not mentioned by some 
other evangelist. 

MARKETS, (Matt. xi. 16,) or 
MARKET-PLACE. (Luke vii. 
32.) The markets of Eastern 
towns occupy one side of an area, 
the other sides being occupied by 
public buildings, temples, courts, 
and offices of various kinds. Hence 
they were the place of general 
concourse. Laws were promul¬ 
gated here ; questions of philoso¬ 
phy and public interest were dis¬ 
cussed; and, it being generally 
in or near the gate of the city, or 
the thoroughfare, as we might 
call it, judicial investigations were 
made here. (Acts xvi. 19; xvii. 
17. See Gate.) 

The country people would be 
found at this point in the greatest 
numbers, as well as judges and 
magistrates. Hence the force of 
the expression, Mark xii. 38. 

The market-places would em¬ 
brace the whole area; and here a 
crowd of children and idlers would 
be found amusing themselves. To 
reprove the inconsistency of the 
Pharisees, in rejecting Christ for 
doing, as they said, the very things 
which they rejected John for not 
doing, he compares them to a 
company of children who are imi¬ 
tating the customs of their elders 
on public occasions, as by a mock 
marriage or a mock funeral. On 
the former of these occasions, it 
was customary to express joy and 
congratulation by music and danc¬ 
ing : and on the latter, to em 


MAR 

ploy persons to lead in loud la¬ 
mentations. In the children’s 
sport, a few tried to persuade the 
rest to join in some joyful mea¬ 
sure, but they preferred to mourn: 
and then they commenced a la¬ 
mentation, but they preferred the 
music. So perverse and incon¬ 
sistent were they, that they could 
be pleased with nothing. 

The market-place was resorted 
to by labourers who sought em¬ 
ployment. An intelligent travel¬ 
ler tells us of a scene he witnessed 
in Persia, where a great number 
of peasants assembled in the mar¬ 
ket-place before sunrise, with 
their spades in their hands, wait¬ 
ing to be employed; and when 
he passed the same place at night, 
some of them were still there, 
waiting for something to do. (See 
Matt. xx. 1-16.) 

MARRIAGE (Matt. xxii. 2) 
is a divine institution. (Gen. ii. 
21-25.) It is also a civil contract, 
uniting one man and one woman 
together in the relation of hus¬ 
band and wife. Among the bene¬ 
fits of the institution are, (1.) 
Domestic comfort; (2.) Provision 
for the health, education and 
support of children; (3.) The 
distribution of society into fami¬ 
lies or small communities, with 
a master or governor over them, 
who has natural as well as legal 
authority; (4.) The security which 
arises from parental anxiety, and 
the confinement of children to 
permanent habitations; and, (5.) 
The encouragement of industry. 

No sins are more frequently 
and pointedly condemned by the 
Bible, than such as violate or im¬ 
pair the sacredness of the mar¬ 
riage relation; and nothing ig 
wanting to raise this to the high¬ 
est, purest and ns ost sacred rela 
441 




MAR 

tion in which two human beings 
can stand to each other, but obe¬ 
dience to the precepts of the Holy 
boriptures on this subject. 

In the celebration of marriages 
in the East at the present day, 
many of the peculiar customs of 
ancient times are observed. At 
a hindoo marriage, says a modern 
missionary, (the procession of 
which I saw some years ago,) the 
bridegroom came from a distance, 
and the bride lived at Serampore, 
to which place the bridegroom 
was to come by water. After 
waiting two or three hours, at 
length, near midnight, it was an¬ 
nounced, in the very words of 
Scripture, Behold, the bridegroom 
cometh; go ye out to meet him. 
All the persons employed now 
lighted their lamps, and ran with 
them in their hands to fill up their 
stations in the procession. Some 
of them had lost their lights, and 
were unprepared, but it was then 
too late to seek them, and the ca¬ 
valcade moved forward to the 
house of the bride ; at which place 
the company entered a large and 
splendidly illuminated area, be¬ 
fore the house, covered with an 
awning, where a great multitude 
of friends, dressed in their best 
apparel, were seated upon mats. 
The bridegroom was carried in 
the arms of a friend, and placed 
in a superb seat in the midst of 
the company, where bo sat a short 
time, and then we-ut into the 
house, the door of which was im¬ 
mediately shut, and guarded by 
ecpoys. I and others expostulated 
with the door-keepers, but in vain. 
Never was I so struck with our 
Lord’s beautiful parable as at this 
moment— And the door ioas shut! 

The journal of an American 
missionary in Greece contains an 
442 


MAR 

account of an Armenian wedding 
which she attended ; and, after 
descnbing the dresses and pre¬ 
vious ceremonies, she says, that 
at twelve o’clock at night, pre¬ 
cisely, the cry was made by some 
of the attendants. Behold, the 
bridegroom cometh; and immedi¬ 
ately five or six men set off to 
meet him. 

The custom of crying and 
shouting at the approach of the 
bridegroom seems to have been 
continued from the days of our 
Saviour. 

(For a very interesting and 
minute account of the laws and 
customs of ancient nations re¬ 
specting marriage, poligamy, di¬ 
vorce, <fcc. <fcc., the ceremonies at¬ 
tending aD Eastern wedding, and 
the figurative allusions of the sa¬ 
cred writers to these topics, the 
student is referred to Biblical 
Antiquities, vol. i. ch. vi. $ lj 
Omar, pp. 145-152; and Even¬ 
ing Recreations, vol. ii., pp. 
89-99.) 

It was the custom to crown the 
married couple. Hence the al¬ 
lusion, Sol. Song iii. 11; Isa. 
xlix. 18, where the word orna¬ 
ment might as well be rendered 
crown. (See Dowry.) 

MARS-lIILL. See Areopa- 

GITE.) 

MARTHA. (John xi. 1.) The 
sister of Lazarus and Mary, and 
the mistress of their family at 
Bethany. (Luke x. 38-40.) She 
is always named before Mary, and 
was probably the elder. There is 
no question of her pioty. (Johnxi. 
5, 25-27. See Lazarus, Mary.) 

MARTYR. (Acts xxii. 20.) 
One who bears witness to the 
truth at the expense of his life. 
The word occurs thrice only in 
the Scriptures. 



MAR 

MARY, 1. (Luke i. 27,) tbe vir 
gin mother of our Lord (and hence 
“blessed among women”) was 
cousin to Elisabeth, the mother of 
•John the Baptist. (Luke i. 36.) 
1 he sacred history records but few 
incidents of her life, after the in¬ 
fancy of the Messiah. She was 
present at the marriage in Cana, 
(John ii. 3,) where he wrought a 
miracle. She also sought an in¬ 
terview with him, in company 
with others of the family, when 
he was preaching to a crowd in a 
country place. (Luke viii. 19, 
20.) She was present at his cru¬ 
cifixion, (John xix. 25,) and was 
there commended by the expiring 
Redeemer to the filial kindness 
and attention of the beloved John ; 
and she is mentioned as one 
among the praying company in 
the upper room at Jerusalem, af¬ 
ter the ascension of our Saviour. 
(Acts i. 14.) There is no warrant 
from Scripture for the veneration 
which is claimed for and paid to 
her by the Papal church. 

2. (John xix. 25.) The sister 
jf the above Mary, the wife of 
Cleophas, and mother of James 
the less, Simon, Joses and Judas. 
They were of course cousins, and 
are called brethren of our Lord. 
(Matt. xiii. 55; xxvii. 56; Mark 
vi. 3 ) She was present at the 
crucifixion and burial of our Lord, 
(Matt xxvii. 56, 61,) was among 
those who went to embalm him, 
(Mark xvi. 1-10,) was am>ng the 
first to whom the news of bis re¬ 
surrection was announced, (Luke 
xxiv. 6,) and on her way to the 
disciples with the intelligence, 
she met ber risen Lord and wor¬ 
shipped him. (Matt, xxviii. 9.) 

3. (Act.* xii. 12.) The mother 
of John Mark, a godly woman, 
residing at Jerusalem, at whose 


MAT 

bouse the disciples were convened 
the night Peter was miraculously 
delivered from prison. 

4. (John xi. 1.) The sister of 
Lazarus, and a devoted friend and 
disciple of our Saviour. She 
evinced her affection for him at 
the supper in Bethany, a few days 
before his crucifixion, (John xii. 
3,) and received from him the 
testimony that she had chosen 
the good part which should not be 
taken from her. (Luke x. 41, 42.) 

5. (Luke viii. 2.) Mary Magda¬ 
lene, or Mary of Magdala. 

The general impression that 
she was an unchaste woman is 
entirely without foundation. There 
is nothing to warrant the opinion 
that she was not a woman in 
good circumstaces and of un¬ 
blemished character. Having 
been relieved of a demoniacal 
possession by the divine power 
of our Saviour, she became his 
follower, (Luke viii. 2, 3,) and 
evinced her attachment to him 
and his cause to the very last. 
She was at his crucifixion (John 
xix. 25) and burial, (Mark xv. 
47,) and she was among those 
who had prepared the materials 
to embalm him, (Mark xvi. 1,) 
and who first went to the sepul¬ 
chre after the resurrection; and 
what is particularly interesting in 
her history, she was the first to 
whom the risen Redeemer ap¬ 
peared, (Mark xvi. 9;) and his 
conversation with her is exceeded 
in interest and pathos by no pas¬ 
sage of history, sacred or profane. 
(John xx. 11-18.) 

MASCHIL is found in the 
title or inscription of Psalm xxxii. 
and several other psalms, and 
probably means an instructive 
song. 

MATTHEW, (Matt. ix. 9,) 
443 



MAT 

called also Levi, (Mark ii 14,) j 
was a native of Galilee, and, j 
though a Jew, was employed as a ! 
tax-gatherer under the provincial 
government of Judea. He was 
called from his official occupation 
into the service of Christ, enter¬ 
tained him at his house, (Mark 
ii. 15,) became one of the twelve 
apostles, and was engaged in the 
propagation of the gospel after 
our Saviour’s ascension. (Acts i. 
13.) There is no certainty re¬ 
specting the time, place or man¬ 
ner of his death. 

Gospel of, is supposed to have 
been written five years after 
Christ’s ascension, or about the 
year 38, but some assign it to 42, 
or even a later period. It existed 
at a very early period, both in the 
Hebrew and Greek languages; 
and some suppose it was first 
written in Hebrew, and translated 
into Greek by Matthew himself, 
or, at least, during his lifetime. 
There is internal evidence that it 
was designed particularly for the 
use of the Jews. Matthew, (as 
appears from the preceding arti¬ 
cle,) was early called into the 
company of Christ’s diaciples, and 
was a constant attendant upon his 
ministry to its close. His is the 
earliest of the four histories, and 
certainly has the characteristics 
of a narrative written soon after 
the events happened. The visit 
of the wise men, the slaughter 
of the infants ; the parable of the 
ten virgins; the resurrection 
of the saints at the tim 3 of the 
crucifixion; and some other facts 
are related by Matthew, which 
are not mentioned by either of 
the othor evangelists. 

MATTHIAS. (Acts i. 23.) A 
disciple of Christ, and a constant 
attendant on his travels and min- 
444 


MEA 

; istry, from their commencement 
| until his ascension. (Acts i. 21, 
! 22.) He was appointed to supply 
the vacancy in the company of 
the twelve apostles, occasioned 
by the apostasy of Judas. 

MAZZAROTH. (Job xxxviii 
32.) Canst thou bring forth Maz* 
zaroth in his season? was one of 
the questions by which God re¬ 
proved the weakness and pre¬ 
sumption of his servant Job. It 
is supposed by some to mean the 
twelve signs of the zodiac; each of 
which is brought forth in its sea¬ 
son by the wisdom and power of 
God only. 

MEALS, MEAL-TIME. (Ruth 
ii. 14.) The meals of the Orien¬ 
tals, both ancient and modern, 
may be compared to our dinner 
and supper. (Luke xiv. 12.) 
What is here called dinner might 
nevertheless as well be called 
breakfast; for It is a light meal, 
and is taken at an early hour. 
In Persia, they partake of this 
first meal between ten and eleven 
o’clock in the forenoon; and it 
consists principally of fruits, milk, 
cheese and confectionary. 

The principal meal of the day 
is the supper. Among the Ro¬ 
mans, it anciently took place 
about three o’clock; but in the 
East, as at the present day in 
Persia, about six or seven in the 
evening, in order to avoid the 
enfeebling heat of the afternoon. 
(Mark vi. 21; Luke xiv. 16, 24; 
John xii. 2.) 

Before going to meals it was 
common to wash the hands; a 
custom rendered necessary by 
their method of partaking of food 
The same practice obtained among 
the Greeks and Romans at an 
early date, and still prevails in 
the East. (See Eating.) 



MEA 

The Pharisees had exat.ed tais 
into a religious duty, and affected 
to be greatly scandalized at the 
omissioD of it by the disciples of 
our Lord. (Matt. xv. 2, 20; Luke 
xi. 38.) 

In Samuel’s time, the people 
would not eat until he had blessed 
the sacrifice; and this is the first 
notice in Scripture of a blessing 
on food. (1 Sam. ix. 13.) In the 
time of Christ, however, it was 
common before every meal to 
bless or give thanks. (Matt. xiv. 
19; xv. 36.) 

A distinction of rank also pre¬ 
vailed in sitting at meals. See 
Feasts, Seats, Table. See also 
Biblical Antiquities, vol. i. ch. 
v. I 2.) 

MEARAH. (Josh. xiii. 4.) A 
noted cave between Sarepta and 
Sidon. 

MEASURES and WEIGHTS. 
(Frov. xx. 10.) The Jewish law 
contains two precepts respecting 
weights and measures. The first 
(Lev. xix. 35, 36) refers to the 
standards kept in the sanctuary; 
and the second (Deut. xxv. 13- 
15) refers to copies of them kept 
by every family for its own use. 
Much perplexity has attended all 
investigations of this subject, and 
we must be contented with ap¬ 
proximations to truth. 

The models or standards of the 
weights and measures which were 
in earliest use were preserved for 
a long time in the Jewish temple, 
but were destroyed with that sa¬ 
cred edifice, and afterwards the 
measures and weights of the pet 
plo among whom the Jews dwelt 
were adopted. Josephus asserts 
that measures and weights were 
invented by Cain They were 
certainly in use from the earliest 
period. (Gen. vi. 15; xxiii. 16.) 


MEA 

As to currency, it is supposed 
the Jews had no coins or pieces 
of metal of fixed size and value, 
but that the precious metals 
were exchanged for articles ^f 
merchandise by weight. Thus 
Abraham bought the field of 
Ephron for four hundred shekels 
of silver, as we should buy an 
acre of land for a hundred bushels 
of wheat, or a hundred pounds of 
flax. This is the usual mode of 
dealing among uncivilized na¬ 
tions at the present day. Every 
piece or mass of metal was valued 
according to its purity and weight. 
Hence the practice of carrying 
weights in a bag, to which allusion 
is frequently made by the sacred 
writers. (Deut. xxv. 13; Prov. 
xvi. 11 ; Mic. vi. 11.) We have 
abundant evidence that in David’s 
time gold was used as an article 
of merchandise, and not as a 
standard of value. 

In presenting this subject in 
such a form as to aid the biblical 
student or teacher, we shall in¬ 
clude only those terms which are 
actually used in the Bible, and 
shall endeavour to establish a de¬ 
finite rule rather .than to perplex 
by an array of conflicting opinions 
and authorities. 

I. Of measures of length. 

The handbreadth, or palm, (1 
Kings vii. 26,) was four digits, or 
the breadth of the four fingers— 
from three inches to three and a 
half. 

A span, (Lam. ii. 20,) which 
expresses the distance across the 
hand from the extremity of the 
thumb to the extremity of the 
little finger, when they are 
stretched as far apart as possible, 
say nine to ten inches. 

A cubit. (Gen. vi. 16.) It is 
obvious that this term is appliel 
445 




MEA 

by the sacred writers to different 
r engths, one being at least a hand- 
oreadth longer than the other. 
It is, however, generally agreed 
that the common cubit was about 
sightoen inches. 

A fathom (Acts xxvii. 28) was 
from six feet to six feet and a half. 

The measuring reed (Ezek. xlii. 
16) is supposed to have been from 
ten to eleven feet; and the mea¬ 
suring line (Zech. ii. 1) a hundred 
and forty-six feet. 

The furlong (Luke xxiv. 13) 
was a Greek measure, and nearly 
the same as at present, viz. one- 
eighth of a mile, or forty rods. 

The mile, (Matt. v. 41,) pro¬ 
bably 1612 yards, or about one- 
twelfth less than ours. 

Th e Sabbath-day’ 8 journey (Acts 
i. 12) was about seven-eighths of 
a mile; and the terra denoted the 
distance which Jewish tradition 
said one might travel without a 
violation of the law. (Ex. xvi. 
29.) It is supposed that this dis¬ 
tance extended first from the ta¬ 
bernacle to the remotest section 
of the camp, and afterwards from 
the temple to the remotest parts 
of the holy city. 

The term a day’s journey (Num. 
xi. 31; Luke ii. 44) probably in¬ 
dicated no certain distance, but 
was taken to be the ordinary dis¬ 
tance which a person travels on 
foot in the prosecution of a jour¬ 
ney, perhaps twenty miles. 

II. Hollow measures. 

(1.) Dry. A cab, or kab, (2 
Kings vi. 25,) one-third of an 
omer, or two pints. 

An omer, (Ex. xvi. 38,) one- 
tenth of an ephah, or six pints. 

The measure, or seah, (Gen. 
xviii. 6; Matt. xiii. 33; Luke 
xiii. 21,) one-third of an ephah, 
or twenty pints. 

446 


MEA 

The ephah, (Ex. xvi. 36,) ten 
omers, or three seahs, or sixty 
pints. 

The homer, (Isa. v. 10,, when 
used for dry measure, one hundred 
omers, or six hundred pints. 

Tenth deal (Lev. xxiii. 17, o* 
tenth part) is supposed to have 
been the same with the omer, or 
the tenth part of an ephah. 

The Greek word translated 
bushel (Matt. v. 15) is supposed 
by some to answer to the Hebrew 
word seah. The Roman bushel 
was very nearly the same with 
the English peck. 

(2.) Liquid. The log, (Lev. 
xiv. 10,) six egg-shells full, one- 
tenth of a hin, or nearly one pint 

The hin, (Ex. xxix. 40,) one- 
sixth of a bath, or ten pints. 

The bath, (Isa. v. 10,) one-tenth 
of a homer, (Ezek. xlv. 11,) seven 
and a half gallons, or sixty pints. 

The homer, or cor, (Ezek. xlv. 
14,) ten batbs, seventy-five gal¬ 
lons, or six hundred pints. 

The firkin (John ii. 6) was a 
Greek measure, containing seven 
and a half gallons. 

III. Of weights. 

In the time of Moses the com¬ 
mon weight was a shekel, which 
signifies a weight. There were 
also the parts of a shekel, as the 
fourth, third, and half. The she¬ 
kel, the maneh, and the talent 
were all originally names of 
weights; and here it may be re¬ 
marked that there appears no suf¬ 
ficient warrant for the opinion 
that the Jews had two kinds of 
weights. When the phrase shekel 
of the sanctuary is used, (Ex. xxx. 
13,) it means, not that this was 
different from the common shekel, 
but that it was a true standard 
weight, according to the author¬ 
ized star lard preserved in the 




MEA 

sanctuary, or, as we should say, 
a sealed weight or measure, to 
denote that its accuracy is certi¬ 
fied by authority. To weigh sub¬ 
stances the Jews had— 

The shekel, (Amos viii. 5,) half 
an ounce avoirdupois. 

The maneh, or mina, (Ezek. xlv. 
12,) one hundred shekels, or fifty 
ounces, equal to three pounds 
two ounces avoirdupois. 

The talent, (2 Sam. xii. 30,) 
three thousand shekels, thirty 
inanehs, fifteen hundred ounces, 
equal to ninety-three pounds 
twelve ounces avoirdupois. 

IV. Of currkncv. 

(1.) Before the captivity. 

The gerah, one-twentieth of a 
shekel, would be worth now nearly 
two and a half cents. 

The hekah, half a shekel, equal 
to twenty-five cents. 

The shekel, twenty gerahs, 
weighing half an ounce troy, 
equal to fifty cents. 

The maneh, or mina, one hun¬ 
dred shekels, fifty ounces, or four 
pounds two ounces troy, equal to 
fifty dollars. 

The talent, thirty minas, or three 
thousand shekels, ninety-three 
pounds twelve ounces, equal to 
$1500 if of silver, or $25,000 if 
of gold. The pound is equal to 
the mina. 

The value of gold was to that 
of silver about as twelve to one. 

The dram, (1 Chron. xxix. 7,) 
or drachm, was the same with the 
darie. 

(2.) After the captivity . 

The darie, dram, or drachm, 
(Ezra ii. 69,) was a Persian gold 
coin, equal to about fiv« d.liars 
and fifty cents. 

The stater, or piece of money, 
/Matt. xvii. 27,) a Greek or Re¬ 
map silver coin (a shekel in 


MEA 

weight,) and in value over fifty 
cents. The stater, or coined she¬ 
kel of the Jews, is often found in 
the cabinets of antiquaries at the 
present day. 

The penny, (Matt. xxii. 19,) or 
drachm, a Roman silv er coin, equal 
to from twelve and a half to four¬ 
teen cents. 

The farthing, (Matt. x. 29,) a 
Roman siver coin, equal to one 
cent and a quarter. 

Another piece of money equal 
to one-fourth of a farthing is called 
by the same name, (Matt. v. 26;) 
and the mite (Mark xii. 42) was 
half of this last farthing, or about 
one-eighth of a cent and a half. 

An erroneous impression pre¬ 
vails respecting the real value of 
money, from our associations 
with its nominal value. The 
penny a day (Matt. xx. 2) seems 
to be a mean compensation for 
ten or twelve hours’ labour, and 
the twopence (Luke x. 35) affords 
very equivocal evidence of gene¬ 
rosity in the good Samaritan; but 
when it is considered what these 
sums could obtain of the comforts 
and necessaries of life, the case 
appears differently. 

As lately as the year 1351, the 
price of labour was regulated in 
England by parliament, and “hay¬ 
makers, corn-weeders, without 
meat, drink or other courtesy,” 
(in modern phrase, finding them¬ 
selves,) were to have a penny a 
day. In many places highor 
wages were given for haymaking 
than for any other kind of agri¬ 
cultural labour. The pay of a 
chaplain in England, in 1314, was 
three half-pence, or about three 
cents a day. At the same time 
wheat was sixteen cents a bushel, 
and a fat sheep twelve cents. A 
penny a day under such cireuxn- 
447 



MEA 

irw»rtces would not be inconsider- 
ttr>j« wages. It has been esti¬ 
mated that four hundred and 
forty grains of silver would pur¬ 
chase as much in the fourth cen¬ 
tury before Christ, as four thou¬ 
sand four hundred grains would 
purchase in England in 1780. 

MEAT, MEATS. (Gen. i. 29; 
Mark vii. 19.) The food of the 
Hebrews was regulated by the 
appointment of God. Their me¬ 
thods of cooking meats were va¬ 
rious, though they never ate of 
food dressed by any other than a 
Jew, nor of food prepared by 
other kitchen utensils than those 
of their own nation. What ani¬ 
mals they might eat, and what 
they ought not, was particularly 
commanded. (Lev. xi.; Deut. xiv.) 
The import of the word meat seems 
to have undergone a considerable 
change since our version was 
made ; for, in this, it means food 
in general; or, when confined to 
one species of food, always signi¬ 
fies meal, flour or grain, but ne¬ 
ver flesh, which is now the usual 
acceptation of the word. A meat¬ 
offering in the Scriptures is al¬ 
ways a vegetable and never an 
animal offering; and it might 
now be rendered a bread-offering, 
or a meal-offering, instead of a 
meat-offering. 

Meats offered to idols. (1 
Cor. viii. 7, 10.) At the first 
settling of the church, there were 
many disputes concerning the use 
of meats offered to idols. Some 
newly-converted Christians, con¬ 
vinced that an idol was nothing, 
and that the distinction of clean 
and uuelean creatures was abo¬ 
lished by our Saviour, ate indif¬ 
ferently of whatever was served 
up to them, even among pagans, 
without inquiring whether the 
448 


MEI> 

meat had been offered to idols. 
They took the same liberty in 
buying meat sold in the market, 
not regarding whether it were 
pure or impure, according to the 
Jews; or whether it had been 
offered to idols or not. But other 
Christians, weaker or less instruct¬ 
ed, were offended at this liberty, 
and thought that eating of meat 
which had been offered to idols 
was a kind of partaking in that 
wicked and sacrilegious act. 

This diversity of opinion pro¬ 
duced some scandal, for which 
Paul thought it behoved him to 
find a remedy. (Rom. xiv. 20, 21.) 
He determined, therefore, that all 
things were clean to such as were 
clean, (Tit. i. 15,) and that an 
idol was nothing at all. That a 
man might safely eat of whatever 
was sold in the market, and need 
not scrupulously inquire from 
whence it came; and that if an 
unbelic\er should invite a be¬ 
liever to eat with him, the be¬ 
liever might eat of whatever was 
set before him, <fcc. (1 Cor. x. 25, 
&c.) But at the same time he 
enjoins that the laws of charity 
and prudence should be observed; 
that believers should be cautious 
of scandalizing or offending weak 
minds; for though all things 
might be lawful, yet all things 
were not always expedient. 

MEDEBA. (Josh. xiii. 16.) A 
city in the eastern part of the 
territory of Reuben, which still 
retains nearly its ancient name 
Madaba. The site of the old town 
shows the ruins of a temple, and 
the excavations of ponds and 
reservoirs. 

MEDIA. (Isa. xxi. 2.) This 
country, which probably derives 
its name from Madai, (Gen. x. 2,) 
anciently occupied what 's now 



MED 

part of the kingckm of Persia, 
and was bounded north by the 
Caspian Sea and Armenia, south 
by Porsia proper, and west by 
Assyria. It was a fertile and 
well-cultivated region, and was 
divided into Greater and Lesser 
Media. 

Ninus, king of Assyria, added 
this country to his kingdom, and 
retained it until the time of Sen¬ 
nacherib, when it revolted, and 
his son became king, b. c. 700. 
It fell into the hand of Cyrus the 
Great, about 556 b. c., who per¬ 
fectly united Media and Persia, 
forming the Medo-Persian king¬ 
dom. Hence, by Esther and 
Daniel, the laws and chronicles of 
the Medes and Persians are al¬ 
ways mentioned together. God 
employed the Medes to punish 
Babylon, and then sent them the 
cup of his wrath by Cyrus. (Isa. 
xiii/17,18; xxi. 2,3; Jer. xxv. 25.) 

MEDIATOR. (Gal. iii. 19.) 
One who interposes between two 
parties at variance, with the view 
of effecting a reconciliation be¬ 
tween them. The title belongs 
pre-eminently to the divine Re¬ 
deemer, in and by whom God is 
reconciling the world unto him- 
Belf. (1 Tim. ii. 5; Ileb. viii. 6, 
and xii. 24.) And it is to be re¬ 
membered that he is the only 
mediator between God and man. 
Of course our blessed Saviour has 
always stood in that relation, as 
well before as since his manifes¬ 
tation in the flesh. He is the 
Angel of the covenant, by whom 
all the divine communications 
wero made under the several dis¬ 
pensations. Of the new cove¬ 
nant he became the surety as well 
as the mediator, sealing it with 
his own blood; and the blessing 
of this covenant now and ever 
38* 2 


MEG 

will be bestowed in virtue of hia 
merits and intercession. The 
errors and absurdities into which 
many are betrayed who reject this 
doctrine are without number; and 
no view of the subject accords 
with the divine oracles, or briags 
into their just relation all the 
parties concerned, except that 
which contemplates the Redeem¬ 
er, both in his divine and human 
nature; as, on the one hand] 
identified with the infinite Jeho¬ 
vah, whose honour and glory are 
to be maintained, and whose fa¬ 
vour is to be secured; while on 
the other, he is the self-offered, 
atoning sacrifice for sin; and, as 
the friend of sinners, invites 
them to come to him in faith and 
penitence, and receive the bound¬ 
less blessings of God’s grace, se¬ 
cured to them by his prevailing 
intercession. In all ages, and in 
all parts of the world, there has 
constantly prevailed such a sense 
of the holiness of the supreme 
Divinity, as to make recourse to 
some sort of mediation universal. 
There is not a form of religion 
known, even among the savages 
and heathen nations, which does 
not recognise, with more or less 
distinctness, the necessity of a 
mediator between the divinity 
and man. This fact, together 
with the consideration that there 
is nothing in the doctrine itself 
contrary to reason and analogy, 
sufficiently establishes it against 
the objections and cavils of scof¬ 
fers and unbelievers. 

MEGIDDO. (Josh. xii. 21.) A 
city belonging to Manasseh, but 
lying within the limits of lssa- 
char, not far from the river Ki- 
shon, whose waters are henco 
sailed the waters of Jlegiddo. 
(Judg. v. 19.) Its inhabitants 
D *40 



MEG 

were not expelled by Manasseh, 
but when Israel became strong 
were made tributary. Solomon 
fortified it, and made it the resi¬ 
dence of one of his commissaries, 
who provided stores of provision 
for his household. (1 Kings iv. 
12; ix. 15.) There, too, Ahaziah 
died, in consequence of a wound 
in battle, and Josiah was slain by 
Pharaoh - necho of Egypt. (2 
Kings ix. 27 ; xxiii. 29.) 

If profane history were search¬ 
ed, through all its annals, it would 
be difficult to find a narrative of 
a conflict between contending 
armies, the details of which would 
be more strikingly confirmed by 
local coincidents, than those of 
the battle between the army of 
Judea under king Josiah, and 
their Egyptian invaders on the 
plain of Megiddo. 

“ Pharaoh-necho came with his 
army through the plains of Phi- 
listia and Sharon, keeping near 
the coast, round the northwest 
corner of Carmel, and so to the 
great plain of Megiddo. This 
was not only the right way to the 
Euphrates, but the only one fit 
for his chariots, whereby he left 
Judah and Ephraim to his right. 
In the great plain, however, he 
had to strike across the country, 
and it was on that occasion that 
Josiah could most conveniently 
intercept his passage. To avoid 
the difficulty of crossing the Ki- 
shon, Pharaoh kept to the south of 
it, and must therefore have come 
past Megiddo. There the army 
of Josiah presented itself. Pha¬ 
raoh makes an ineffectual attempt 
to avoid it; Josiah attacks him ; 
the Egyptian archers bend their 
bows, and, mortally wounded, 
the king of Judah is taken away 
In his second chariot. About 
450 


MEL 

three miles to the south of Me¬ 
giddo lies a small village, called 
Rum uni, undoubtedly the Hadad- 
rimmou of Zech. xii. 11. The 
Scotch missionaries recognised 
there many old walls and other 
traces of the Israelitish era.” 

MELCHIZEDEC (Gen. xiv. 
18) is supposed to have been 
king of the Salem which was af¬ 
terwards Jerusalem, (though it is 
not improbable that the title king 
of Salem was a mere appellation.) 
He is mentioned before the insti¬ 
tution of the Aaronic order as a 
priest of the most high God. 
Some have strangely supposed 
him to have been Shem, but his 
birth and genealogy are concealed, 
(perhaps purposely,) or the phrase 
without father , <fcc. may mean 
that his parents were of obscure 
or low origin; and we know not 
that he had a predecessor or suc¬ 
cessor; at any rate the time of 
his priesthood was unlimited, and 
in this respect different from the 
Levitical priesthood. (Num. viii. 
24, 25.) The phrase having nei¬ 
ther beginning of days nor end of 
life may apply either to the time 
of his birth and death being un¬ 
known, or to the indefinite term 
of his official life. Abraham 
showed his respect for the age, 
rank, piety and priestly office of 
Melchizedec, by paying him a 
tithe of the spoils he had taken in 
the battle with Chedorlaomer and 
his allies, in the valley of Jeho- 
shaphat; and hence the argument 
of the apostle, that if Abraham, 
whom the Jews regarded so high¬ 
ly, and who was the ancestor of 
the sons of Levi, thus acknow¬ 
ledged the dignity and superiority 
of Melchizedec; surely Christ, 
the great High-priest, of whom 
Melchizedec was but an imperfect 




MEL 

type, was worthy of like or still 
greater homage. And if the an¬ 
cestor of Levi thus paid homage 
to Melchizedec, the type of Christ, 
surely the priesthood which was 
filled by the sons of Levi must be 
regarded as far inferior in dig¬ 
nity and excellence to the priest¬ 
hood of Christ himself. (Heb. v. 
vi. vii.) 

MELITA, (Acts xxviii. 1,) now 
Malta, an island twelve miles in 
breadth and twenty in length, ly¬ 
ing between Sicily and Africa, 
about two hundred miles east of 
Tunis, and in that part of the Me¬ 
diterranean which, in the apostle’s 
day, was often called Adria, in¬ 
cluding the Ionian and Sicilian 
seas, according to the testimony 
of Ptolomy and Strabo. Here 
Paul and his company were ship¬ 
wrecked on the passage to Rome, 
and very kindly treated by the 
inhabitants, especially by Publius 
the governor. A modern travel¬ 
ler says —“ Passed St. Paul’s har¬ 
bour, where the apostle was ship¬ 
wrecked. In reading the account 
of this shipwreck, I had ever ex¬ 
perienced difficulty in compre¬ 
hending how there could be a 
place formed on the coast of an 
island, where two seas met. But 
in viewing the spot pointed out 
where the ship was thrust in, the 
difficulty was removed. The is¬ 
land Gazo lies west of the main 
island, (Malta,) and is separated 
only by a strait, from half to a 
quarter of a mile in width. When 
a violent Euroclydon (east wind) 
prevails, and the seas run high, 
a powerful current is forced in at 
each end of this strait, which 
ranges nearly north and south. 
The ship was driven in at the 
north end, and struck in a small 
nook, on the Malta side, about 


MEN 

forty rods from the entrance 
This strait must have been, J 
think, the creek with a shore, into 
which they were minded, if possi¬ 
ble, to thrust in the ship. .For, 
while lying off to the north, ili< 
entrance of the strait has the ex¬ 
act appearance of the mouth of a 
creek or river.” 

This island was settled by a 
Phenician colony, about b.c. 1500. 
Since the Christian era, it has be¬ 
longed successively to the Goths, 
Vandals, Saracens, Normans, 
Germans, and French, until 
Charles V. surrendered it to the 
knights of St. John of Jerusalem, 
who were dispossessed by Bona¬ 
parte ; and by the treaty of 1814 
it was allotted to England. At 
present it is the centre of exten¬ 
sive missionary operations. Pub¬ 
lications in the modern Greek, 
Armenian, Turkish and Arabic 
languages are widely circulated; 
and it is also a depository for Bi¬ 
bles in various languages. 

MELONS. (Num. xi. 5.) Pro¬ 
bably what is known to us as the 
water-melon, a fruit which is still 
found in great perfection in 
Egypt, and which travellers tell 
us furnished the chief food and 
drink of the lower classes during 
the heat of summer. 

MENAIIEM (2 Kings xv. 14) 
was the son of Gadi, and having 
slain Shallura, king of Samaria, 
reigned in his stead. Uis reign, 
which lasted ten years, was dis¬ 
tinguished for cruelty and op¬ 
pression. (2 Kings xv. 16-20.) 

MENE. (Dan. v. 25.) A word 
of that significant sentence which 
appeared on the wall of Belshaz¬ 
zar’s banqueting-hall, to warn 
him of the impending destruction 
of Babylon. The whole sontence 
is in the.pure Chaldea language, 
451 




MEP 

and reads, when translated lite¬ 
rally, “ Mene, he is numbered — 
Mene, he is numbered —Tekel, he 
is weighed —Upharsin, they are 
divided. >> Peres, in the original 
language, is the same word with 
Upharsin, but in a different case 
or number. It means, he was di¬ 
vided. 

MEPIIAATH (Josh. xiii. 18) 
is supposed to have been conti¬ 
guous to Kedemoth, Bezer and 
Jahzah. (1 Chron. vi. 78, 79.) 
In later times it was in the hands 
of the Moabites. (Jer. xlviii. 21.) 

MEPIIIBOSHETH, 1. (2 Sam. 
xxi. 8,) was a son of Saul, who, 
with his brother and five others 
of the family, suffered a violent 
death at the hands of the Gibeon- 
ites. 

2. (2 Sam. iv. 4.) Or Merib- 
baal, (1 Chron. viii. 34,) was a 
son of Jonathan, and grandson 
of Saul, who, at the age of five 
years, fell from his nurse’s arms, 
and was ever after a cripple. 
When David was in quiet pos¬ 
session of his kingdom, he sought 
out this branch of the family of 
Jonathan his friend, and not only 
gave him an honourable place in 
his palace, but made ample pro¬ 
vision for his family. The inte¬ 
resting history of this liberal pro¬ 
ceeding of David’s is minutely 
related in 2 Sam. ix. 

MERAB. ('. Sam. xiv. 49.) 
The eldest daughter of Saul, who 
promised her to David in mar¬ 
riage ; but she married Adriel of 
Meholath, by whom she had five 
sons, and David took her sister 
Michal. The five sons of Merab 
suffered a violent death at the 
hands of the Gibeonites. (2 Sam. 
jcxL 8.) They are called the Jive 
sons of Michal, whom she brought 
up for Adriel; and the proba- 
452 


MER 

bility is, if the text is correctly 
expressed, that Michai adopted 
her sister’s children, (their mo¬ 
ther being dead.) At all events, 
we may be sure that if the history 
was fabulous, such apparent in¬ 
consistencies would have been 
avoided ; so that their occurrence 
shows the absence of any cun¬ 
ning. 

MERCHANTS. (Isa. xxiii. 2.) 
The earliest mode of commerce 
was doubtless by caravans. The 
merchants to whom Joseph was 
sold were probably of this cha¬ 
racter. The earliest commerco 
with India, of which we have any 
knowledge, was carried on in 
this way by the merchants of 
Arabia and Egypt. There was, 
however, considerable intercourse 
between many countries by water. 
The Phenicians held the first rank 
as a commercial nation, and their 
first metropolis was Sidon, and 
afterwards Tyre. Something may 
be learned of their commerce from 
Ezek. xxvii. and xxviii. (See 
Ships.) The commerce of the 
Egyptians was also very exten¬ 
sive. They imported goods from 
India, and carried on an export 
trade with various ports of the 
Mediterranean. 

MERCY. (Gen. xix. 19.) An 
essential attribute of the Divine 
Being, for the knowledge of which 
we are indebted wholly to reve¬ 
lation. The plan of salvation by 
Jesus Christ provides for the ex¬ 
ercise of infinite mercy, consist¬ 
ently with the most rigid demands 
of truth and righteousness; so 
that, under this gracious dispen¬ 
sation, mercy and truth are said to 
have met together, and righteous¬ 
ness and peace to have kissed each 
other. (Ps. lxxxv. 10.1 

The expression 1 will have 



MER 

mercy, and not sacrifice, (Hos. vi. 
6; Matt. ix. 13,) signifies (as its 
connection indicates) that God is 
pleased with the exercise of mercy 
rarher than with the offering of 
sacrifices, though sin has made 
the latter necessary. (Comp. 1 
Sam. xv. 22.) 

Mercy is also a Christian grace, 
Rnd no duty is more strongly urged 
by the Scriptures than the exer¬ 
cise of it towards all men, and 
especially towards such as have 
trespassed against us. (Matt, 
xviii. 33-35.) 

Mercy-seat. (Ex. xxv. 17.) 
This was the lid or cover of the 
ark of the covenant. It was ma.de 
of gold, and two cherubs of gold 
were placed one at each end, and 
stretching their wings towards 
each other, formed a kind of 
throne, upon which God was sup¬ 
posed to be present in a peculiar 
manner, to hear and answer 
prayer, and to make known his 
holy will. 

MERIBAH. (See Rephidim.) 

MERODACH. (Jer. 1. 2.) The 
name of an idol-god of the Ba¬ 
bylonians, supposed by some to 
have represented the planet Mars, 
and by others to have been the 
statue of some famous king. It 
was also the surname of some of 
the Babylonish monarchs. (Isa. 
xxxix. 1.) 

MEROM. (Josh. xi. 5, 6.) A 
marshy lake in the northern part 
of Judea, through which the 
Jordan flows. It is now called 
Houle, as is the valley which en¬ 
closes it. It is about twelve 
miles above Tiberias, and is re¬ 
garded by many as properly the 
source of the Jordan. Most of 
its bed is dry in summer, and is 
overgrown with grass and shrub¬ 
bery, affording retreats for wild 


MES 

beasts. In the spring freshets 
the lake swells to six miles in 
length, and three and a jalf in 
breadth, and abounds with fish. 
It is called the waters of Meroin, 
or high waters, because it war 
higher than the othor lakes of 
Judea. (See Omar, p. 123.) 

MEROZ. (Judg. v. 23.) A 
place in the vicinity of the brook 
Kishon, whose inhabitants were 
accursed for refusing to come to 
the help of Israel, in the contest 
with Sisera. 

MESECH, (Ps. cxx. 5,) or 
MESHECH. (Ezek. xxxii. 26.) 
The name of the country in the 
northeastern angle of Asia Mi¬ 
nor, supposed to have been set¬ 
tled by the posterity of Mesech, 
the son of Japheth. They had 
considerable commerce with Tyre. 
(Ezek. xxvii. 13.) Some suppose 
the Muscovites were of this race. 
The terms Mesech and Kedar, 
in the above passage from Psalms, 
is supposed to denoto northern 
and southern barbarians gene¬ 
rally. 

MESIIA. 1. A place. (Gen. 
x. 30.) Supposed to denote the 
country called by the Greeks 
Messene, and lying near the 
modern Bassora. 

2. A person. (2 Kings iii. 4.) 
A king of Moab, who refused to 
pay to Jehoram, king of Israel, 
the annual tribute which he had 
been accustomed to pay to hid 
father Ahab. For this offence 
Jehoram determined to punish 
him; and calling to his aid Je- 
hoshaphat king of Judah, and 
the king of the Edomites, he in¬ 
vaded the territory of Moab, 
signally defeated them, desolated 
their country, and at last the king 
and his army were closely be¬ 
sieged in a walled town. In this 
•153 



MES 

extremity Mesha attempted to 
cut his way through the enemy’s 
ranks; but failing in this, he 
made the horrible sacrifice of his 
eldest son to some idol-god; and 
it was done openly upon the wall, 
in sight of the camp of Israel, 
that they might be persuaded by 
such a revolting spectacle to raise 
the siege. This effect was pro¬ 
duced, for we are told that they 
immediately retired, contenting 
themselves with great spoil. 

MESHACH. (See Abednego.) 

MESHECH. (See Mesech.) 

MESOPOTAMIA. (Deut. 
xxiii. 4,) or Syria, between the two 
rivers , elsewhere called Padan- 
aram,{ Gen. xxviii. 2,) or the plain 
of Syria, was the name of the 
country lying between the Tigris 
and the Euphrates. It was the 
first abode of men both before and 
after the flood, and was bounded 
north by Armenia, east by Assy¬ 
ria, south by Arabia, and west by 
Syria, and embraced the modern 
El-jesira of Turkey. 

MESSENGER. (Mai. iii. 1.) 
The laws and edicts of the Jew¬ 
ish kings were proclaimed near 
'.he royal residence by public cri- 
«rs; but they were made known 
to more distant towns and pro¬ 
vinces by messengers sent for that 
purpose. (1 Sam. xi. 7 ; 2 Chron. 
xxxvi. 22; Amos iv. 5.) They 
stood in the gate of the city, 
where the largest mass of people 
might be found, aud proclaimed 
the law or message, as in Jer. xi. 
6; xvii. 19, 20. At Jerusalem, 
these messages were proclaimed 
in the temple, where a concourse 
of people was always found. Our 
Saviour is called the Messenger 
of the covenant, (Mai. iii. 1,) inas¬ 
much as he divested himself of 
Vu divino and eternal glory, and, 
454 


MES 

taking the form of a servant, 
came to declare the will of God, 
to seal the covenant of grace with 
his precious blood, and thus to 
make propitiation for our sins, 
so that we, by the exercise of 
faith and repentance, wrought in 
us by the blessed Spirit, may be 
made meet for the inheritance 
which that covenant secures, and 
of which he was Prince and Me¬ 
diator as well as Messenger. 

The spies concealed by Rahab 
(Josh. vi. 17) are called messen¬ 
gers; and the punishment which 
God inflicts on the wicked for 
their sins is also called a messen¬ 
ger. (Prov. xvii. 11.) 

Ministers of the gospel are also 
called messengers, (2 Cor. viii. 23,) 
because they declare or announce 
the message of mercy which the 
gospel contains. 

MESSIAH, (Dan. ix. 25,) or 
MESSIAS, (John iv. 25,) sig¬ 
nifies anointed; a title given by 
way of eminence to Jesus Christ. 
It is sometimes applied by the 
sacred writers in a subordinate 
sense, as in Isa. xlv. 1; Ezek. 
xxviii. 14; but when applied to 
Christ, it denotes that lie unites 
in himself the offices of a pro¬ 
phet, a priest and a king; not of 
the Jews only, but of all man¬ 
kind. 

The Jews expected the Mes¬ 
siah would be their deliverer from 
civil bondage, and would raise 
them, as a nation, to great power. 
Hence they rejected the meek and 
lowly Jesus, and put him to sham 3 
and death. They were disap¬ 
pointed and offended because hia 
kingdom was not of this world, 
and promised no privileges to 
them in distinction from the 
Gentiles. The whole Scriptures 
abound with evidence that they 



MET 

wero and are under a gross delu- 
fcion ; and the Christian church is 
iooking wi:h deep interest for the 
time when the vail shall be taken 
from their eyes; when they shall 
look on him whom they have 
pierced, and mourn; and when 
they shall receive him as the 
long-promised and long-expected 
Messiah. (See Christ.) 

METHEG-AMMAH. (2 Sam. 
viii. 1.) The same with Gath. 
(Comp. 1 Chron. xviii. 1.) 

MIC AH. 1. (Judg. xvii. 1.) 
A celebrated idolater in mount 
Ephraim, who persuaded a Le- 
vite to officiate as his priest for a 
stipulated reward. The emissa¬ 
ries sent out by the tribe of Dan 
to find a settlement for them, hap¬ 
pened to call at Micah’s house, 
and saw the idols and the Levite; 
and the party of the Danites, who 
afterwards went to Laish, took 
Micah’s house in their way, se¬ 
cured all his images, and persuad ¬ 
ed his priest to accompany them. 
Micah endeavoured to obtain 
them again, but in vain. (Judg. 
xviii. 

2. (Micah i. 1.) The prophet, 
was a native of Mareshah, (hence 
called the Moraethite,) a village 
in the south of the territory of 
Judah. (Josh. xv. 44.) It is sup¬ 
posed that a reference to one of 
his predictions saved the life of 
Jeremiah. (Jer. xxvi. 18-24.) 

Prophecy op, is the thirty- 
„hird in the order of the books of 
the Bible. It was uttered with¬ 
in the space of fiftj years, viz. 
from the commencement of the 
reign of Jotham, a.m. 3245, to the 
close of the reign of Ilezekiah, 
a.m. 3306, or nearly contempo¬ 
rary with Isaiah. The prophecies 
*f Micah, which are recorded in 
tho sacred canon, make but seven 


* MIC • 

chapters, and are divided intc 
three sections: 

§ 1. Prophecies in the reign of 
Jotham, ch. i. 

g 2. Prophecies in the reign <A 
Ahaz, ii.-iv. 8. 

§ 3 Prophecies in tho reign of 
Hezekiah, iv. 9-vii. 

The remarkable feature of thi* 
whole prophecy is, that it is very 
explicit respecting the birthplace 
and prominent characteristics of 
the Messiah, and the blessings of 
his reign upon earth. 

MICAIAH. (See Ahab.) 
MICHAEL. (Dan. x. 13.) A 
name of frequent occurrence in 
the sacred writings. It is ap¬ 
plied particularly to an angel, or 
a prince of angels, (as the name 
denotes,) (Jude 9;) and in the 
book of Daniel tho same Michael 
is spoken of as a prince. (See 
Archangel.) 

MICHAL. (1 Sam. xiv. 49.) 
Second daughter of Saul, and the 
wife of David. She was evidently 
an unprincipled woman. When 
she had aided David to escape 
from the fury of her enraged 
father, she placed an image in 
the bed; and when the messen¬ 
gers came to seize him, Michal 
told them he was sick in bed. 
Sau/ directed him to be brought, 
sick or well; and when the mes¬ 
sengers came again and discover¬ 
ed the trick, Michal excused her¬ 
self to her father by a direct 
falsehood. 

During David’s exile, Michal 
married another man, with whom 
she lived nine or ten years. Da¬ 
vid, having in tho mean time be¬ 
come established on the throne, 
required of Abner, as one of th* 
conditions of a treaty, that Mi¬ 
chal should be restored to him, 
which was accordingly done. 

155 



MIC 

As another and conclusive evi¬ 
dence of her impiety, we are told 
that she despised David when 
she saw the expressions of his 
gTatitude and joy at the approach 
of the ark of the Lord, and was 
evidently filled with passion and 
contempt. For this sin she was 
visited with a special judgment. 
(2 Sam. vi. 16- 23.) 

MICHMASII, (1 Sam. xiii. 2,) 
or MICIIMAS. (Neh. vii. 31.) A 
place on the borders of Ephraim 
and Benjamin. It is supposed to 
lie on the road through Rama, 
nine miles from Jerusalem. A 
narrow defile, formed by two 
abrupt, rugged rocks in mount 
Ephraim, was called the pas¬ 
sage of Michmash, (1 Sam. xiii, 
23,) in which was the garrison 
of the Philistines, and which 
was probably so well defended as 
to make it a safe depot for the 
stores of Sennacherib’s army, in 
his advance upon Jerusalem. 
(Isa. x. 28, 29.) The place was 
in later times of some importance, 
(Neh. xi. 31;) and is mentioned 
by profane historians four hun¬ 
dred years after Christ. 

MIDIAN, (Ex. ii. 15,) or MA- 
DIAN. (Acts vii. 29.) A coun¬ 
try lying around the eastern 
branch of the Red Sea, and sup¬ 
posed to have been settled by the 
posterity of Midian, fourth son 
of Abraham and Keturah. Mi¬ 
dian was celebrated for its camels, 
(Judg. vii. 12;) and the descend¬ 
ants of Ephah, who were the pos¬ 
terity of Midian, were rich in 
camels and dromedaries. (Isa. 
lx. 6.) Hither Moses fled, and 
here he married the daughter :>f 
Jethro. 

Itis supposed that another coun¬ 
try of the same name was situ¬ 
ated on the eastern coast of the 
166 


MID 

Dead Sea, in Arabia Petrea, ad¬ 
joining Moab; but very learned 
geographers describe but one 
land of Midian, and this embraces 
both sides of the eastern gulf of 
the Red Sea, extending south¬ 
wardly near to mount Sinai. Per¬ 
haps they might have been dis¬ 
tinguished as northern and south¬ 
ern Midianites. 

When the children of Israel 
were encamped in the plains of 
Moab, the Midianites were in¬ 
vited by the Moabites to join in 
the deputation to Balaam, to pro¬ 
cure his services to curse the chil¬ 
dren of Israel. For their conduct 
towards the Israelites, they were 
completely subdued; their kings 
and their male population slain ; 
their cities and fortifications were 
burned; and their property of 
every kind, to an almost incredi¬ 
ble amount, with their wives and 
children, were brought to the 
camp of Israel, and there dis¬ 
posed of by Moses and Eleazar. 
(Num. xxxi.) Probably a few 
escaped the general massacre; 
for, about two centuries after¬ 
wards, the Midianites were again 
a powerful nation, mustering an 
immense army, who, for their op¬ 
pressive treatment of the Israel¬ 
ites, were miraculously defeated 
by Gideon, (Judg. vi. vii. viii.;) 
after which, they seem to have 
been incorporated with the Moab¬ 
ites and Arabians. 

A modern traveller describes 
the scene in the solitudes of Mi¬ 
dian, where tradition says Moses 
kept the sheep of Jethro his fa¬ 
ther-in-law. It is seen from the 
convent on mount Sinai, in aval- 
ley in the rear of the mount, be¬ 
tween two ridges. A group of 
trees stands in tho midst of the 
plain. 







lis 



i 

affitiHW I n ii 

iLilii 







IP 




* l \ ^jT v .v'- * ' 

' r nWiiMifn 

ii $5yv4yy i 



p^MgfMffe 


Samson. 

























































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































MIG 

The curtains of Midian (Hab. 
iii. 7) is a figurative expression 
denoting the borders or inhabit¬ 
ants of Midian. 

MIGDOL. (Ex. xiv. 2.) A for¬ 
tress or tower, (probably the mo¬ 
dern Bir Suez,) erected at a wa¬ 
tering-place a few miles north of 
Suez, towards Etham. 

MIGRON. (1 Sam. xiv. 2.) A 
place in the vicinity of Michmash. 
(Comp. Isa. x. 28. See Mich¬ 
mash.) 

MILCOLM. (See Moloch.) 

MILE. (See Measures.) 

MILETUS, (Acts xx. 15,) or 
MILETUM. (2 Tim. iv. 20.) A 
city and seaport, and the capital 
of ancient Ionia. It stood about 
forty miles south of Ephesus, and 
was second only to that city in 
wealth, commerce and luxury. 
Miletus is distinguished as the 
birthplace of Thales and Anaxi¬ 
menes his pupil, and also for a 
magnificent temple and oracle of 
Apollo. It was here that Paul 
received the elders of Ephesus, 
whom he could not visit in his 
journey, and here he left Trophi¬ 
mus sick. There are ruins of an 
old town near the mouth of the 
river Meander; but whether they 
are those of Miletus is very 
doubtful. The Turkish town of 
Melas is said to occupy the site 
of the ancient Miletus; and 
the Milotum, where Trophiu. us 
was left, is also placed by some 
geographers on the island of 
Crete, but without sufficient war¬ 
rant. 

MILK. (1 Cor. iii. 2.) A li¬ 
quid and very nourishing food, 
drawn principally from cows. The 
simplest spiritual food, or the 
plain and easy truths of the gos¬ 
pel, wherewith the new-born soul 
is nourished and sustained, is 
29 


MU 

compared to milk. (IJeb. v. 12,' 
1 Pet. ii. 2.) 

A land flowing with milk and 
honey (J'-sn. v. 6) means a coun¬ 
try of extraordinary fertility, 
affording every thing which is 
needed for the support and com¬ 
fort of life. The phrase wins 
and milk (Isa. lv. 1) denotes 
all spiritual blessings and privi¬ 
leges. 

Cheese was made of milk. (2 
Sam. xvii. 29.) 

The word rendered cheeses in 
1 Sam. xvii. 18, means cheeses of 
milk, supposed to have been slices 
of coagulated or curdled milk, 
which had been strained through 
a leathern strainer, and after it 
had grown hard, was cut in pieces 
for use. This is much like the 
modern process of making cheese; 
and food made in the same way 
is common in some parts of this 
country under the name of cheese - 
curd. (See Cheese.) 

MILL. (Ex. xi. 5.) The sim¬ 
plest mill for bruising grain was 
nothing more than two stones, be¬ 
tween which they were broken. 
Such were seen in the country 
of the Niger by Richard and 
John Lander, on their recent ex¬ 
pedition in Africa. If one of the 
stones be hollowed out, so as to 
contain the corn to be pounded 
by another stone, or by a piece of 
wood or metal, it is not a mill, 
but a mortar. When manna was 
given in the desert, the people 
went about, and gathered it, and 
ground it in mills, or beat it in a 
mortar. (Num. xi. 8.) In the 
law it is ordained “No man shall 
take the nether or the upper mill¬ 
stone to pledge; for he taketh 
life to pledge;” that is, he who 
lends money must be humane to 
the borrower, and must not max* 
457 





MIL 

tne poor man pawn his mill, with¬ 
out which his life cannot be sus¬ 
tained. (Deut. xxiv. 6.) From 
these mills and mortars there 
must have been obtained at first 
only a kind of peeled grain, which 
may be compared to the German 
graupe, the English groats, and 
the American grits or hominy. 
Fine flour was more laboriously 
obtained from household-mills, 
like our coffee-mills. The latter 
instrument is indeed far more re¬ 
fined and ingenious than the east¬ 
ern hand-mills. Yet we read that 
Sarah set before the three angels 
who visited Mature cakes of Jine 
meal. (Gen. xviii. 6.) It is al¬ 
most needless to observe, that 
sieves must have been known at 
the same time. 

Niebuhr describes two kinds of 
Eastern hand-mills. The first is 
very simple, and consists of an 
oblong stone, somewhat roughen¬ 
ed or hollowed upon the surface, 
upon which, the corn, after being 
moistened, is rubbed with another 
stone, of a long and rounded 
shape. Niebuhr saw these mills 
only once. They seem, therefore, 



not to be common. The other, 
which is also described by Shaw 
45S 


MIL 

and Tournefort was seen by Ni^ 
baihr in Egypt. It consists of 
two round stones, each about two 
feet in diameter, and six inches 
high. The under one, or nether 
millstone, (Job xli. 24,), is im¬ 
movable, and is somewhat lower 
around the edge than in the cen¬ 
tre ; that is, it is slightly convex 
on the tcp. The upper one is 
just the reverse, being concave on 
the bottom, or thicker at the cir¬ 
cumference, so as to fit pretty 
closely to the other. In the cen¬ 
tre there is a hole, and above this 
a funnel, or hopper, into which 
the grain is poured, and thus it 
runs in between the stones, and 
is broken by them into meal, 
which falls over the edge upon a 
board. On the top of the other 
stone there is an upright peg, by 
means of which it is turned 
around. Such mills cost, says 
Tournefort, less than a Spanish 
dollar. 



Frequent allusions are made in 
Scripture to these utensils. Of 
Leviathan, it is said, that his 
heart is as hard as a piece of the 
nether millstone . (Job xli. 24.) 
At the siege of Thebez, a certain 
too man cast a piece of a millstone 
upon Abimeleck’s head, and en- 










MIL 

lirely brake his skull. (Judg. ix. 
53. j 

Wheat was tne grain commonly 
used for bread. The poor people, 
however, lived much upon barley, 
as at the present day the Arabs 
do upon millet, or durra. Nie¬ 
buhr thinks this durra was the 
first kind of corn which was 
ground and made into bread. The 
durra bread, like barley bread, is 
very good while fresh ; the latter, 
however, is superior, and has a 
better taste in hot climates than 
with us. After some hours it be¬ 
comes tasteless; yet the same 
thing takes place with regard to 
the wheaten bread of the Orien¬ 
tals. They are forced, therefore, 
to bake every day, and no more 
is ground daily than is wanted 
for the baking. This daily grind¬ 
ing makes such a noise in the 
houses as is heard in the streets. 
The sound was pleasing because 
it was naturally associated with 
industry, and the supports and 
enjoyments of life. Hence the 
prediction in Jer. xxv. 10. The 
noise of the millstones, and the 
lighting up of candles, are cir¬ 
cumstances belonging to inhabit¬ 
ed places, and are striking when 
we call to mind the fact that they 
grind at a very early hour in the 
morning. Chardin says it is this 
noise which often awakens peo¬ 
ple in the morning; and Harmer 
gupposes the import of the verse 
just quoted to be, “Gloomy shall 
be tho silence of the morning, 
melancholy the shadows of the 
evening: no cheerful noise to 
animate the one, no enlivening 
ray to soften the gloom of the 
other. Desolation shall every¬ 
where reign.” (See farther, Bib¬ 
lical Antiquities, vol. i. ch. v. 
f2.) 


MIN 

MILLET. (Ezek. iv. 9.) A 
plant resembling wheat and rye, 
the stalk of which 
grows about three 
feet in height, and 
bears a great num¬ 
ber of grains. This 
grain was coarse, 
and chiefly used for 
beasts. 

Niebuhr informs 
us, that there is at 
this day a kind of 
millet used in the 
east called durra, 
which made into 
bread with camels’ 
milk, butter or grease, is almost 
the only food eaten by the com¬ 
mon people in Arabia; but he 
says he found it so unpalatable, 
that he would have prelerred 
plain barley bread, which fur¬ 
nishes the reason of its being ap¬ 
pointed as a part of the hard fare 
of Ezekiel. 

MILLO, house of. (Judg. ix. 
6.) Supposed by some to denote 
either the senate or chief men of 
the place, or to be the name of a 
distinguished individual in She- 
chera, whose family and adhe¬ 
rents joined in elevating Abime- 
lech to the throne. Others sup¬ 
pose it to be a village. Millo in 
Jerusalem (2 Chr. xxxii. 5) was a 
section of the fortification, or 
perhaps the public edifices in that 
city. Tho expression in 2 Kings 
xii. 20, describes the place a3 
above Silla—perhaps Siloam. 

MINA. (See Measures.) 

MIND. (Gen. xxiii. 8.) The 
meaning of this word, when em¬ 
ployed by the writers of Scrip¬ 
ture, must be determined by its 
connection. According to this it 
sometimes means the soul renew¬ 
ed, in opposition to the flesh uu- 





Si IN 


der the dominion jf sin, (Rom. 
vii. 25;) and, at ethers, the im¬ 
material, in opposition to the ma¬ 
terial nature. (Eph. ii. 3.) Some¬ 
times it means temper or dispo¬ 
sition, as in Phil. ii. 3, 5; or a 
particular faculty is meant, as in 
Ps. xxxi. 12; Isa. xlvi. 8; lxv. 
17; Matt. xiv. 72. Sometimes 
the motive or intention, as in 
Prov. xxi. 27; or thought, as in Isa. 
xxvi. 3; Jer. Ii. 50; or opinions, 
as in Judg. xix. 30; or affections, 
as in Ezek. xxiv. 25. When used 
in reference to God, it signifies 
will, counsel or purpose, as in 
Rom. viii. 27; xi. 34; 1 Cor. ii. 
10. When used as a verb, it sig¬ 
nifies to regard and care for, as in 
Rom. viii. 5; xii. 16; and Phil, 
iii. 19; or to incline, as in 2 Chron. 
xxiv. 4 ; Matt. i. 19; Acts xx. 13; 
or to be disposed, as in Phil. ii. 
2, 20; iii. 15. 

MINISTER. (1.) One who 
serves another. (Ex. xxiv. 13; 
Josh. i. 1; Matt. xxv. 44.) When 
applied to Christ, as the minister 
of the sanctuary, (Ileb. viii. 2,) it 
uenotes his official character as 
our high-priest, who is set on the 
right hand of the throne of the 
Majesty in the heavens, and who 
ever liveth to make intercession 
for us. (2.) Those persons who 
are appointed to preach the gos¬ 
pel and administer its ordinances. 
(1 Cor. iv. 1; 2 Cor. iii. 6 ; Eph. 
iii. 7 ; 1 Thess. iii. 2; 1 Tim. iv. 
6.) (3.) To magistrates, (Rom. 

xiii. 6,) as God’s ministers, to 
punish the evil and protect the 
good; and (4.) To the angels, who 
stand ready to do the rdll of God. 
(Ps. ciii. 21 ; Ran. vii 10; Rom. 
xiii. 6; Heb. i. 14.) 

MINISTRATION. (1.) The 
period during which an office is 
administered. (Luke i. 23.) (2.) 

460 


MIR 

•Distribution of alms. (Acts vi 
1; 2 Cor. ix. 13.) The law of 
Moses was the ministration of 
death and condemnation. It con¬ 
vinces men of sin, the penalty of 
which is eternal death; and to 
this they are already condemned. 
The gospel is the ministration of 
the Spirit that giveth life; it pro¬ 
ceeds from the Holy Ghost; is 
confirmed and applied by him, 
and by means of it he conveys 
life and all spiritual graces and 
benefits to the souls of men. (2 
Cor. iii. 7, 8,) 

MINNI. (Jer. Ii. 27.) A pro¬ 
vince of Armenia,or more probably 
one of several clans or tribes who 
were settled on mount Taurus, 
east and south of the Black Sea. 
The Ashkcnites were another of 
these tribes. 

MINNITH. (Judg. xi. 33.) A 
place east of Jordan, four miles 
from Heshbon, on the Philadel¬ 
phia road, famous for its wheat. 
(Ezek. xxvii. 17.) 

MINSTREL. (2 Kings iii. 15.) 
A musician or piper. It seems, 
from the case of Jairus, to have 
been customary in the time of 
our Saviour to employ minstrels 
at funerals : for when Christ came 
into the house to raise his daugh¬ 
ter, he saw the minstrels and thepeo - 
pie making a noise. (Matt.ix. 23.) 

MINT. (Matt, xxiii. 23.) A 
garden herb of several species. 
The law of Moses required that 
tithes should be paid of the pro¬ 
duce of the field, (Reut xiv. 22 ;) 
but the Jews, in their pharisaical 
precision, tithed an article which 
could scarcely be regarded as tith- 
able by the law, while its most 
important, plain and imperative 
precepts were neglected. (Soa 
Tithes.) 

MIRACLE. 'Ex. vii. 9.) A?t 



MIR 

effect caused by an extraordinary 
interposition of divine power. It 
is not an effect contrary to the 
laws of nature, (as they arc call¬ 
ed,) nor does it necessarily require 
a suspension of those laws. It is at 
most but a suspension of the opera¬ 
tion of those laws, as to a specific 
event. It would not and could not 
be produced by the ordinary opera¬ 
tion of those laws; and hence being 
beyond or above the order of na¬ 
ture, it requires the exercise of di¬ 
vine power to accomplish it. 

Miracles were performed in at¬ 
testation of the truth of some 
particular doctrine or system of re¬ 
ligion. Those performed by our 

Miracles. 


MIRIAM, (Ex. xv. 21,) the 
sister of Moses and Aaron, is 
supposed to have been ten or 
twelve years older than Moses; 
and being appointed to watch 
•he arte of bulrushes, in which 
her infant brother was laid, 


MIR 

I Saviour incontrovertibly prove hia 
divine power. They exceed thirty 
in number. Many of them were 
wrought before a great multitude 
of peoplo, friends and enemies, 
in the opeu day, and where thero 
was no chance to deceive. And 
it really requires more faith to be¬ 
lieve that such a multitude of 
people could be so often deceived 
by one of the most blameless men 
that ever lived on the earth, than 
it requires to believe the miracles 
themselves. 

The following is a table of 
Christ’s miracles, arranged in the 
order in which they are supposed 
to have been wrought. 

Place . Record. 

.John ii. 1-11. 

- iv. 46-54, 

.Luke y. 1-11. 
.Mark i. 23-26. 

.-30,31. 

,- 40-45. 

, Matt. viii. 5-13. 
Luke vii. 11-17. 
Matt. viii. 23-27. 

- 28-34. 

- ix. 1-8. 

- 18-26. 

Luke viii. 43-48. 
Matt. ix. 27-31. 

- 32, 33. 

John v. 1-9. 

Matt. xii. 10-13. 

- 22, 23. 

-xiv. 15—21 - 

-xv. 22-28. 

Mark vii. 31-37. 
Matt. xv. 32-39. 
Mark viii. 22-26. 
Matt. xvii. 14-21. 
John ix. 

Luke xiii. 11-17. 

- xiv. 1-4. 

- xvii. 11-19. 

John xi. 

Matt. xx. 30-34. 

-xxi. 18-21. 

Luke xxii. 50-51. 
John xxi. l-i4. 

among the flags of the river, she 
was there when Pharaoh’s daugh¬ 
ter came down and discovered it, 
and proposed to go for a nurse, 
concealing her relation to tho 
child. She immediately called 
her mother as the nurse, and the 

461 


Water turned into wine.Cana. 

The Capernaum nobleman’s son cured.Ditto. 

Draught of fishes....Sea of Galilee, 

Demoniac cured.Capernaum... 

Peter’s mother-in-law healed.Ditto. 

Leper healed.Ditto. 

Centurion’s servant healed.Ditto. 

Widow’s son raised from the dead.Nam. 

Tempest calmed...Sea of Galilee. 

Demoniacs of Gadara cured.Gadara. 

Man sick of the palsy cured.Capernaum..., 

Jairus’s daughter raised to life.Ditto. 

Woman diseased with issue of blood healed... Ditto. 

Sight restored to two blind men.Ditto.. 

Dumb demoniac cured.Ditto.. 

Diseased cripple at Bethesda cured.Jerusalem. 

A withered hand cured.Judea.. 

Demoniac cured.Capernaum..., 

Five thousand fed.Decapolis. 

Canaanite woman’s daughter cu . T iar Tyre. 

Man deaf and dumb cured. ..^.Decapoiis. 

Four thousand fed..Ditto.... 

Blind man restored to sight..., ..Bethsaida. 

Boy possessed of a devil cured.Tabor. 

Man born blind restored to sight.Jerusalem. 

Woman cured of eighteen years’ infirmity.Galilee. 

Dropsical man cured.Ditto..... 

Ten lepers cleansed.Samaria. 

Lazarus raised from the grave to life.,.Bethany. 

Two bliud men restored to sight.Jericho. 

Fig-tree blasted.Olivet. 

The ear of Malchus healed.Gethsemane... 

Draught of fishes.Sea of Galilee., 














































































MIR 

Infant was placed under her care. 
She was smitten with leprosy for 
her treatment of Moses, but was 
restored in answer to his prayer. 
(Nura. xii. 1-15.) She died, and 
was buried at Kadesh. (Num. xx. 
1.) (See Notable Women of 
Scripture —Art. Miriam.) 

MIRRORS. (See Looking- 
glass.) 

MITE. (Luke xii. 59.) The 
lowest denomination of Jewish 
money, and probably of the value 
of two mills of our currency. (See 
Measures, Ac.) 

MITRE. (Ex. xxviii. 4-7.) 
This was the head-dress of the 
Jewish priest. It was of fine 
flax or linen, made with many 
folds, making in length eight 
yards, finished with elegance and 
taste, and wreathed round the 
head in the shape of an Eastern 
turban. It bore upon its front a 
gold plate, on which was inscribed 
" Holiness to the Lord.” The 
Jews tell us that the mitre and 
the bonnet were the same thing, 
only folded up differently, accord¬ 
ing to the dignity of the wearer. 

MITYLENE. (Acts xx. 14.) 
The capital of the ancient island 
of Lesbos. The whole island is 
now under the Turkish power, 
and is called Mitilene, and the 
chief town is called Castra, near 
which the ruins of the ancient 
city are discernible. The island 
lies on the eastern coast of Asia 
Minor, nearly opposite Pergamos, 
and is about one hundred and 
seventy miles in circumference. 
The population is at present 
25,000. The chief productions are 
wine and figs. Paul passed 
through this island on his way 
from Corinth to Jerusalem; and 
it is famous as the birthplaces of 
many wise and learned men, 

462 


MIZ 

MIZPAH, (1 Kings xv. 22,) 
or MIZPEH. (Josh. xv. 38.) 
This name is given to several 
places, and implies a post of ob¬ 
servation or a watch-tower. They 
seem to have been known as 
places of convocation on publin 
occasions, religious and civil. 

1. (Josh. xv. 38.) A city in 
the territory of Judah, north of 
Hebron, and nearly twenty miles 
south from Jerusalem. Some 
geographers place it in the tribe 
of Benjamin. (Josh, xviii. 26.) 

Samuel dwelt at Mizpah, (1 
Sam. vii. 5, 6,) and Saul was 
anointed king there, (1 Sam. x. 
17-24;) and hither, it is supposed, 
the Jews often resorted for busi¬ 
ness and devotion. (Judg. xx. 1 j 
1 Sam. vii. 5-7; x. 17.) It was 
fortified by Asa with the stone 
and timber which Baasha had 
been using for the like purpose 
at Rama, (1 Kings xv. 22;) and 
was the residence of Gedaliah, 
the governor appointed by Ne¬ 
buchadnezzar after his subjection 
of the land. (Jer. xl. 6.) We 
find it rebuilt after the return 
from Babylon. (Neh. iii. 19.) 

2. (Gen. xxxi. 49.) A city in 
the territory of Gad, where La¬ 
ban and Jacob entered into a co¬ 
venant of friendship, and where 
Jephthah resided and mustered 
his army. (Judg. xi. 11, 29.) 

3. (Josh. xi. 3, 8.) A tract of 
country lying near the base of 
mount Hermon. 

4. (1 Sam. xxii. 3.) A town 
of Moab, where David placed 
his father and mother during his 

reverses. 

MIZRAIM (Gen. x. 6) is the 
original wprd translated Egypt: 
and the modern Arabian name 
Mitzr is an abbreviation of the He. 
brew word Mizraim. (See Egypt.* 



MIZ 

MIZREPHOTH-MAIM. (Josh. I 
xi. 8.) A place near Sidon, and 
supposed to be the same with 
Sarepta. 

MNASON. (Acts xxi. 16.) A 
native of Cyprus, but a resident 
of Jerusalem. He was an early 
convert to Christianity, and hos¬ 
pitably entertained the apostles. 
It is supposed by some that the 
reading of the passage should be, 
u brought us to Mnasou of Cy¬ 
prus,” A 3 . 

MOAB, plains of, (Num. xxii. 
1; xxxiii. 48-50,) were situated 
east of Jordan and the Dead Sea, 
on both sides of the Arnon. The 
'country belonged principally to 
the Amorites, north of the Arnon, 
where the Israelites encamped 
before the passage of the Jordan. 
Afterwards it fell to the lot of 
Reuben. 

The inhabitants were called 
Moabites, and the country de¬ 
rived its name from Moab the son 
of Lot, (Gen. xix. 37,) by whose 
posterity it was conquered, when 
in possession of the giant race of 
Emims. (Deut. ii. 11, 12.) They 
were severely punished for their 
treatment of the Israelites. (Deut. 
xxiii. 3-6; Judg. iii. 12-30; 2 Sam. 
viii. 2. See Mesha.) They were 
an idolatrous nation, and are made 
the subject of several prophecies. 
(Isa. xv. xvi; Jer. xlviii.) 

Their country seems to have 
been exceedingly fertile in ancient 
times; but now it is a barren de¬ 
sert, traversed only by wandering 
Arabs, according to that predic¬ 
tion of the prophet, 31oab shall 
be a perpetual desolation. (Zeph. 
ii. 9.) 

MOLE. (Isa. ii. 20 ) Somw are 
of the opinion that the word in 
Lev. xi. 30, which our translators 
render mole, is properly the cha- 


MOL 

I meleon; and that the word trans* 
lated weasel, in the preceding 
verse, is the mole; and in the 
East, at this day, the mole is called 
khuld, which is evidently the 
same as the Hebrew word dialed, 
here usea. A learned author is, 
moreover, of opinion that the 
words rendered moles and bats, 
in the passage first above cited, 
should be read as one word, and 
that no animal is meant, but a 
deep sinic, or subterranean vault; 
and another concurs in the opi¬ 
nion, but thinks that sepulchres 
are intended. 

The habits of the mole are 
well known ; and the idea of the 
prophet is fully sustained by any 
expression denoting the cavern, 
or desolate places of the earth. 

MOLEC1I, (Lev. xviii. 21,) oi 
MILCOLM, (1 Kings xi. 5,) or 
MOLOCH. (Acts vii. 43.) The 
name of an idol-god, worshipped 
by the Ammonites with human 
sacrifices. 

The Rabbins tell us that it was 
made of brass, and placed on a 
brazen throne, and that the head 
was that of a calf, with a crown 
upon it. The throne and image 
were made hollow, and a furious 
fire was kindled within it. The 
flames penetrated into the body 
and limbs of the idol; and when 
the arms were red-hot, the victim 
was thrown into them, and was 
almost immediately burned to 
death. Its cries were drowned 
by drums, Ac. Some have doubted 
whether there was an actual sa¬ 
crifice of life on these occasions; 
and they refer to customs still 
prevalent in China, and among 
some of the Indian nations, where 
the devotees walk barefoot over 
burning coals, and often carry 
their children in their arms for 
463 



MON 

the purpose of consecrating them. 
This they call passing through the 
fire. (2 Kings xvi. 3.) No ob¬ 
jection can be made to the credi¬ 
bility of the Rabbins’ account, 
from the barbarity of it; for the 
burning of widows, and the drown¬ 
ing of children, in India, are cer¬ 
tainly no less revolting instances 
of cruelty, than the throwing of 
infants into the heated arms of an 
idol-god. 

The tabernacle of Moloch was 
the tent or small house in which 
the image of the idol was placed. 
It was of a size and shape to be 
portable, and was taken up like 
other baggage, and carried from 
place to place. 

MONEY. (Gen. xxiii. 9.) This 
is the first mention of money in 
the sacred Scriptures. It was 
silver, and was weighed, and is 
said to have been current icith 
the merchant. The practice of 
weighing money is general in 
Syria, Egypt and all Turkey. 
No piece, however effaced, is re¬ 
fused there. The merchant draws 
out his scales and weighs it, as in 
the days of Abraham, when he 
purchased his sepulchre. In con- 


M00 

siderable payments, an agent of 
exchange is sent for, who counts 
it by thousands, rejects pieces of 
false money, and weighs all the 
coin either separately or together. 
With us, the piece of metal is 
stamped according to its value, 
as fixed by public authority. (See 
Changers, Measures, &c.) 

MONTH. (Gen.viii.4.) Tho 
twelfth part of a year. The ancient 
Hebrews called the months by 
their numbers; as first month, 
second month, third month, <fcc. 
The length of the month was re¬ 
gulated by the changes of the 
moon. After they left Egypt, the 
Jews had two courses of months; 
one making the civil, and the 
other the sacred year: the former 
commenced from the first new 
moon in October, and this was 
used in civil and agricultural con¬ 
cerns only; and the latter from 
the first new moon in April, be¬ 
cause they left Egypt on the fif¬ 
teenth of that month; and it was 
used in regulating tho time of 
their feasts, <fcc. The prophets 
use this reckoning. 

The names of the Hebrew 
months follow : 


Civil. Sacred. Beginning v:ith the new moon. 

VII.I. Nisan, or Abib.March, or April.Neh. ti. 1. 

VIII.II. Zif, or Ziv.April, or May.1 Kings vi. 1. 

IX.III. Sivan.May, or June.Esth. viii. 9. 

X.IV. Tamrnuz .June, or July. 

XI .V. Ab.July, or August. 

XII .VI. Elul.August, or September.Neh. vi. 15. 

I .VII. Tishri, or Ethanim.September, or October.1 Kings viii. a 

II .VIII. Bui.October, or November.1 Kings ?i 38. 

III .IX. Kisleu, or Chisleu.November, or December.Neh. i. 1. 

IV .X. Tebeth.December, or January.Esth ii. 16. 

V.XI. Shebat.January, or February.Zecli. i. 7. 

VI.XII. Adar.February, or March.Esth. iii. 7. 


Twelve lunar months making 
but three hundred and fifty-four 
days and six hours, the Jewish 
year was short of the Roman by 
twelve days. To compensate for 
this difference, the Jews every 
three years intercalated a thir- 
464 


teenth month, which they called 
Vedar, the second Adar. By 
this means, their lunar year 
equalled tl e solar. 

MOON, (Deut. xxxiii. 14,1 01 
lesser light. (Gen. i. 16.) The 
moon is a planet revolving round 







































MOR 

the earth, and reflecting the light 
of the sun. The church is com¬ 
pared to the moon with great force 
and beauty, (Sol. Song vi. 10,) as 
she derives from the Sun of right¬ 
eousness all her brightness and 
glory. 

The new moon regulated many 
of the feasts and sacred services 
under the old dispensation. The 
new moon was always the begin¬ 
ning of the month, and this day 
they called Neomenia, new-moon 
day, or new month. 

The heathens have generally 
worshipped the moon, under the 
names of Queen of heaven , Venus , 
Urania , Succoth-benoth, Ashta- 
roth, Diana, Hecate, or perhaps 
Meni, <fcc. (Deut. iv. 19; xvii. 3; 
Job xxxi. 26, 27.) The Orientals 
regulate their journeys by the 
moon, and set off soon after her 
change. 

MORDECAI. (Esth. ii. 5.) 4 
captive Jew of the family of Saul, 
resident at the court of Ahasuerus. 
An uncle of his died, leaving an 
Drphan daughter named Hadas- 
sah, whom Mordeeai adopted, and 
who afterwards became the queen 
of Persia. (See Esther.) Mor- 
decai fell under the displeasure 
of Haman, one of the king’s prin¬ 
cipal officers of state, a very proud 
and ambitious man; and to be 
revenged on the despised Jew, 
he laid a plan for the extermina¬ 
tion of the whole body of Jews in 
the empire. His purpose was, 
however, defeated by the inter¬ 
position of the queen. Haman 
lost his life, and Mordeeai was 
elevated to wealth and power. 
(See Haman. See, also, II a- 
passah.) 

MOREII, plain cr plains op, 
fGen xii. 6; Deut. xi. 30,) was 
probably a famous oak or grove 


MOR 

of oaks in the vicinity of She- 
chem, and perhaps at the foot of 
a hill of the same name. (Judg. 
vii. 1.) It was near the mounts 
Ebal and Gerizim, and som< 
think it the same with Ebal, 
(Deut. xi. 29, 30.) The oak of 
Shechem is often referred to, 
(Gen. xxxv. 4; Josh. xxiv. 25, 
26,) and in these and other pas¬ 
sages is supposed to be the same 
with the plain of Moreh. 

Hence, from Judg. vii. 1, it 
would appear that the hill of 
Moreh was in or near the valley 
of Jezreel. As the original phrase 
means high oak, it might be 
applied to several places de¬ 
signated in each case by the con¬ 
nection. 

MORIAH. (Gen. xxii. 2.) 
This hill was situated northeast 
of Jerusalem, and was originally 
separated from A era by a. valley, 
which, according to Jewish his¬ 
torians, was filled up by the As- 
moneans; and thus the two hills 
became one. In the time of Da¬ 
vid, mount Moriah was not in¬ 
cluded within the limits of the 
city, but formed a part of the 
cultivated ground of Araunah the 
Jebusite, from whom David 
bought it. (2 Sam. xxiv. 16-25.) 
On this spot Solomon built the 
temple. (2 Chron. iii. 1.) It is 
supposed that this is the mount 
Moriah on which Abraham was 
directed to offer up his son Isaac 
for a burnt-offering. (See pas¬ 
sage first cited.) 

This mount was raised by arti¬ 
ficial means to the height of 
about seven hundred feet. Be¬ 
ing at first a rocky precipice, it 
was enclosed by a square wall, 
and filled in, until it formed a 
level area for the temple and itu 
courts. Moriah Is now a pioc« 
E 465 




MCR 

of level ground. It is occupied 
by an open court fifteen hundred 
feet loLg, and one thousand feet 
wide, surrounded by a wall, and 
planted with trees. In the centre 
of this area is a large platform, 
paved with marble, on which 
stands the mosque which the ca¬ 
liph Omar erected in the seventh 
century, and which is considered 
the second only to the holy house 
at Mecca in point of sanctity, and 
the first in size and magnificence. 
No Christian is allowed to enter 
this enclosure, though this pro¬ 
hibition has been relaxed in fa¬ 
vour of several modern travel¬ 
lers. (See Jerusalem, Temple.) 

MORNING. (See Day, 
Watch.) 

Morning watch. (See Watch.) 

Morning star. (See Stars.) 

MORTAR. (See Lime.) 

MOSES, (Ex. ii. 10,) the dis¬ 
tinguished leader and general of 
the Hebrews, was born in Egypt, 
A. m. 2433. For three months he 
escaped the general massacre of 
all the male children of the He¬ 
brews by being secreted, and 
then he was placed in an ark or 
basket of reed or osier-work made 
water-tight, and deposited among 
the flags on the river bank. The 
sister of the infant was sta¬ 
tioned near to watch, and by-and- 
by one of the daughters of Pha¬ 
raoh, walking near the spot, dis¬ 
covered the basket, and, upon 
opening it, saw the helpless babe, 
and, being moved by its cries, 
was disposed to save it, notwith¬ 
standing she saw it was one of 
the Hebrew children that her fa¬ 
ther’s tyrannical decree doomed 
to death. Miriam asked the 
princess if she should call a nurse, 
and being told to do so, immedi¬ 
ately called her mother, who 
466 


MOS 

was directed to take the child and 
nurse it for the princess upon 
wages. This commission the 
mother joyfully executed. She 
nourished the child, and probably 
instructed him in the principles 
of religion ; and at a proper time 
took him to Pharaoh’s daughter, 
and he became her son. She 
gave him the name of Moses, 
signifying that he was drawn out 
of the water. Being instructed 
in the various branches of Egyp¬ 
tian learning, (Acts vii. 22,) and 
having great advantage from his 
connection with the royal family, 
the prospects of the young He¬ 
brew were extremely flattering; 
but, at the age of forty, he chose 
to renounce them all, and become 
the servant of God. (Heb. xi. 
24-26.) He espoused the cause 
of an oppressed Israelite, and, 
in his defence, put an Egyptian 
to death, for which cause he fled 
into Midian, where he married 
Zipporah, a daughter of Jethro, 
and lived forty years as a shep¬ 
herd. At the end of that period, 
ho received a miraculous intima¬ 
tion from God that he was to be 
the leader and deliverer of His 
chosen people, for which high and 
responsible office he was furnished 
with the necessary gifts and 
graces. His brother Aaron was 
associated with him, and the 
history of their official career 
would be a history of the Jews 
from the close of their bondage 
in Egypt to their approach to the 
land of promise. The miracles 
God wrought by his hands; his 
frequent opportunities of commu¬ 
nion immediately with-the divine 
Majesty; the wonderful displays 
ho witnessed of the power and 
glory of Jehovah, and his con¬ 
nection with the grand ai»d sig- 



MOS 

nificant system of religious rites 
and ceremonies, which is called 
after him the Mosaic ritual or 
dispensation; the severity of the 
rebukes he suffered in conse¬ 
quence of a single sinful act, 
(Num. xx. 12;) his extraordinary 
meekness, (Num. xii. 3;) the sin¬ 
gular manner of his death, and 
the fact that he is the historian 
of ages and events so remote and 
go intensely interesting to us, in 
our various relations, prospects 
and circumstances, all combine 
to make him, perhaps, the most 
extraordinary man that ever 
lived. (Deut. xxxiv. 10-12.) 

He retained his faculties to a 
very remarkable degree, for we 
are told that at his death, which 
took place at an advanced age, 
his eye was not dim, nor his na¬ 
tural force abated. (Deut. xxxiv. 
7.) After having seen the most 
conclusive tokens that God would 
accomplish all his purposes in 
bringing his people into the pro¬ 
mised land, (Num. xxxi. xxxii.,) 
he assembled the nation, and re¬ 
capitulated in their hearing the 
events of their history. He ex¬ 
horted them to obedience; pro¬ 
posed to them the blessings and 
the curses which were suspended 
on their faithfulness; solemnly 
testified to the truth and holiness 
of the Divine Being, (Deut. xxvii. 
xxviii. xxix. xxx.,) and made all 
necessary arrangements with his 
successor for the completion of 
the commission. He then cele¬ 
brates the glory of God in one of 
the most sublime and animated 
hymns of praise that we find on 
record, and after pronouncing on 
the tribes, respectively, the most 
golemn prophetic blessings, he 
wont up into a mountain ap¬ 
pointed for that purpose by God, 


MOS 

from the summit of which he 
could survey the whole length of 
the land of Canaan, and across 
from the Jordan to the Mediter¬ 
ranean. When he had thus seen, 
for himself, the promised pos¬ 
session of his countrymen, he 
cheerfully resigned his spirit to 
the hands of a covenant-keeping 
God, and at the advanced ago of 
one hundred and twenty years, 
he died upon, or in the vicinity 
of the mountain, and was buried 
in a valley of Moab; but the pre¬ 
cise place of his burial was never 
known. 

What is said respecting his bu¬ 
rial, (Deut. xxxiv. 6;) what Jude 
says of the archangel disputing 
with the devil about his body, 
(Jude 9 ;) and his appearing with 
Elijah on the mount of transfigu¬ 
ration, (Matt. xvii. 3,) have led 
some to conjecture that he was 
immediately raised from the dead, 
and translated to heaven; but 
where the Scriptures are silent, 
it is our wisdom to be so also, and 
not attempt to be wise above what 
is written. 

Moses uttered a remarkable 
prophecy respecting the Messiah, 
(Deut. xviii. 17-19, comp. Acts 
iii. 22, and vii. 37;) and the simi¬ 
larity of their character and 
offices is, in many respects, very 
striking. 

We have already alluded to 
Moses as the author of the first 
five books of the Bible called the 
Pentateuch, containing the history 
of the creation of the world and 
its inhabitants; the fall and curse 
of man; the destruction of all the 
human race save one family of 
eight souls ; the dispersion of the 
nations; the deliverance of the 
chosen people of God from op¬ 
pression, and the introduction 
467 



MOS 

that wonderful dispensation of 
which the Divine Being mmself 
was the author and executor, and 
andot which the civil and eccle¬ 
siastical government of the nation 
was administered for so many 
iges. 

In relation to this portion of the 
sacred history, and especially the 
earliest chapters of it, the late 
Baron Cuvier, who has been justly 
called the prince of geologists, 
says : “ His books (i. e. the books 
of Moses) show us that he had 
very perfect ideas respecting se¬ 
veral of the highest questions of 
natural philosophy. His cosmo¬ 
gony especially, considered purely 
in a scientific view, is extremely 
remarkable; inasmuch as the 
order which it assigns to the dif¬ 
ferent epochs of creation, is pre¬ 
cisely the same as that which has 
been deduced from geological con¬ 
siderations.” 

This, then, is the issue, in the 
opinion of Baron Cuvier, of that 
science which has been held by 
many persons to teach conclusions 
at variance with the book of 
Genesis ; when, at last, more ma¬ 
tured by a series of careful ob¬ 
servations and legitimate induc¬ 
tion, it teaches us precisely what 
Moses had taught more than 
three thousand years ago. 

And whence did Moses receive 
the knowledge which philosophy 
has been so long in reaching, 
through the paths of geology? 
Was the generation in which he 
lived, more learned than any 
which succeeded for thousands 
of years ? There is not the slight¬ 
est shadow of evidence to sustain 
so incredible a position. It could 
not be through the slow processes 
of geological investigation, either 
of himself or his contemporaries, 
468 


MOT 

that Moses learned the sublime 
truths which were hidden from 
Aristotle and Pythagoras. The 
superior wisdom which distin- 
guishes the Hebrew prophet from 
all his contemporaries, and ren¬ 
ders his simple narrative a stan¬ 
dard of truth in all ages, was from 
above. It was from Him who 
made the world that Moses learned 
the history of its creation, and in 
no other way could his successors 
on the inspired page bo possessed 
of the truth and wisdom which 
shines as brightly in their pages 
as in his. (See Aaron, Hebrews: 
and for a full history and cha¬ 
racter of this extraordinary man, 
with illustrative maps and en¬ 
gravings, see Life of Moses.) 

MOTH. (Luke xii. 33.) A 
well-known insect, one species ot 
which, in its caterpillar state, is 
very destructive to furs, woollen 
cloths, Ac. The egg of the moth, 
being deposited on the fur or 
cloth, produces a very small, shin¬ 
ing insect, which immediately 
forms a house for itself by cut¬ 
tings from the cloth. It eats 
away the nap, weakens or de¬ 
stroys the thread, and finally 
ruins the fabric. There is frequent 
reference to this weak, but de¬ 
structive insect, in the sacred 
Scriptures. In Job iv. 19, man 
is said to bo crushed before the 
moth, where this animal is the 
emblem of man’s weakness and 
defenceless condition. In Job 
xiii. 28, the wasting, decaying 
life of man is compared to a moth- 
eaten garment, and in Isa. li. 6. 
the earth is said to wax old as a 
garment; that is, a moth-eaten 
garment, as the original imports. 
In Job xxvii. 18, the man who 
rises by injustice is compared to 
the moth, which, by eating into 



MOU 


MOL* 


he garment where it dwells, after 
a while destroys its own habita¬ 
tion. In Ps. vi. 7, the word ren¬ 
dered in our version consumed, 
properly means moth-eaten. In 
Ps. xxxix. 11, the effect of God’s 
judgments on mankind is illus¬ 
trated by the consuming power 
of the moth; and so in Hos. v. 
12. The devastations of this in¬ 
sect are particularly referred to 
in Isa. i. 9. As much of the 
treasure of the ancients consisted 
in costly garments, we may rea¬ 
dily understand why the moth 
was considered so noxious an in¬ 
sect; and this will teach us the 
true import of our Saviour’s 
words. (Matt. vi. 19, 20.) It was 
common in Asia to lay up stores 
of precious garments, which de¬ 


scended as an inheritance to 
children; for their modes of dross 
never changed : but the moth was 
a formidable enemy to such trea¬ 
sures, so as to render it useless to 
take much pains to lay them up, 
(See, also, James v. 2.) 

MOURN, MOURNERS. (Gen. 
xxiii. 2.) The Hebrews, at the 
death of their friends and rela¬ 
tions, gave all possible demon¬ 
strations of grief and mourning. 
(Gen. 1. 10.) They wept, tore 
their clothes, smote their breasts, 
fasted and lay upon the ground; 
went barefooted, pulled their 
hair and beards, or cut them, and 
made incisions on their breasts, 
or tore them with their na»ls. 
(Lev. xix. 28; xxi. 5; Deut. xiv. 
1; Jer. xvi. 6.) The time of 



Mourning Postures. 


mourning was commonly seven 
days; but it was lengthened or 
shortened according to circum¬ 
stances. That for Moses and i 
40 


Aaron was prolonged to thirty 
days. (Num. xx. 29; Gout, 
xxxiv. 8.) They mourned ex¬ 
cessively for an only son, as his 
469 








MOU 

death cut off the name of tr.e 
family. (Zech. xii. 10.) 

The priest mourned only for 
near relatives, but the high-priest 
for none. (Lev. xxi. 1-12.) 

During the time of their mourn¬ 
ing, they continued sitting in 
their houses, and ate on the 
ground. The food they took was 
thought unclean, and even them¬ 
selves were judged impure. (Hos. 
ix. 4.) Their faces were covered; 
and in all that time they could 
not apply themselves to any oc¬ 
cupation, nor read the book of 
the law, nor say their usual pray¬ 
ers. They did not dress them¬ 
selves, nor make their beds, nor 
uncover their heads, nor shave, 
nor cut their nails, nor go into 
the bath, nor salute any body. 
Nobody spoke to them unless 
they spoke first. (Job. ii. 11-13.) 
Their friends commonly went to 
visit and comfort them, bringing 
them food. They also went up 
to the roof, or upon the platform 
of their houses, to bewail their 
loss. (Isa. xv. 3.) 

It was reckoned a very pious 
work to comfort mourners; and 
when they came to the mourners, 
they stood around them, ten in 
a row, and approaching towards 
them, one by one, wished them! 
comfort from heaven. If they 
sat, it was on the ground, and 
the chief mourner had the chief 
seat. The friends came not to 
comfort them till after the inter¬ 
ment, and not many till the third 
>r fourth day after the decease. 
(John xi. 19, 39.) They some¬ 
times went to the graves to la¬ 
ment their dead; and so the 
Turkish women do at this day. 
The JeAvs had a kind of prayer, 
or rather benediction of God, as 
of Him who raises the dead, 
470 


MOU 

which they repeated as they 
mourned, or even passed the 
graves of their dead. The Jews 
in Chaldea did not mourn and 
weep, but mourned one toward» 
another; that is, they durst not 
openly bewail their misery, but 
did it secretly. (Ezek. xxiv. 23. 
See Evening Recreations, vol. 
ii. pp. 62-73. See also Biblical 
Antiquities, chap. vii. g 1, for 
description and cut.) 

The mourning habit among 
the Hebrews was not fixed either 
by law or custom. Anciently, in 
times of mourning, they clothed 
themselves in sackcloth, or hair¬ 
cloth ; that is, in coarse or ill- 
made clothes, or brown or black 
stuff - . (2 Sam. iii. 31.) 



Mourning Women. 

They hired women to weep and 
mourn, and also persons to play 
on instruments, at the funerals 
of the Hebrews. (Jer. ix. 17 ; 
Matt. ix. 23.) All that met a 
funeral procession, or a company 
of mourners, were to join them ; 
as a matter of civility, and to 
mingle their tears with those who 
wept. Something like this is 




MOU 

still customary in Turkey and 
Persia, where he who meets the 
funeral takes the place of one of 
the bearers, and assists in carry¬ 
ing the bier, until they meet 
some one by whom he is re¬ 
lieved. 

The custom of hiring women to 
weep and mourn is common at 
this day in many of the Eastern 
nations. (See Burial.) 

MOUSE. (Lev. xi. 29.) It is 
supposed by some that the animal 



called the mouse in our Bible was 
tne jerboa, or field-mouse, which 
is larger than the common mouse, 
and entirely different in its mo¬ 
tions and habits. (For a particu¬ 
lar description and cut, see art. 
Mouse, in Natural History of 
the Bible.) Others suppose that 
some other species of the com¬ 
mon mouse is intended, the flesh 
of which was forbidden to bo used 
for food. (Lev. xi. 29. Comp. 
Isa. lxvi. 17.) Common field- 
mice are very destructive to the 
fruits of the field. Mice made 
great havoc in the fields of the 
Philistines, after the people had 
taken the ark of the Lord. (1 
Sam. v. 6, Ac.; vi. 4, 5.) 

In the twelfth century, they 
destroyed the young sprouts of 
grain in some parts of Syria for 
four successive years, and came 
near to producing a general 
famine,* and they abound in 
those regions at the present day. 


MUL 

A modern traveller, in speaking 
of Hamath, says :—“ The western 
part of its territory is the granary 
of northern Syria; though the 
harvest never yields more than 
ten for one, chiefly ;n conse¬ 
quence of the immense numbers 
of mice, which sometimes wholly 
destroy the crops.” 

MOWINGS, king’s. (Amosvii. 
1.) It was the custom in Judea 
to lead out the cattle to feed in 
the common pastures in the 
month of April. The horses ol 
the kings, and those designed 
for war, were turned in during 
the month of March, and of 
course had the best of the feed¬ 
ing ; and the flocks and herds in 
general were not suffered to go 
into the pastures until after these 
horses were taken out and put to 
barley, which was then common 
food during the residue of the 
year. The vision of Amos re¬ 
presents the judgment of God in 
sending locusts to eat off" and de¬ 
stroy the grass, which had sprung 
up after the king’s feedings had 
past, and on which the people 
depended for the sustenance of 
their flocks and herds. (See 
Hay.) 

MUFFLERS, (Isa. iii. 19,) or 
spangled, ornaments, (as it is in 
the margin,) are supposed to 
have been a covering for the 
face, such as is now worn by wo¬ 
men of the East. 

MULBERRY-TREES. (2 Sam. 
v. 23, 24.) A common fruit-tree, 
whose leaf affords the appropriate 
food of the silkworm. In one of 
David’s campaigns against the 
Philistines, it became a question 
whether he should attack them 
as they lay encamped in the val¬ 
ley of Rephaim. He was told 
to take a certain position owe; 





MUL 

Against a grove of mulberry- 
trees, perhaps under a hill which 
was surmounted by such a grove, 
and at a given signal, probably 
a rushing of wind in the topmost 
branches of the trees, (resembling, 
we may suppose, such signals of 
God’s presence as were given on 
other occasions, Jonah i. 4; Acts 
ii. 2,) he was to make the onset, 
(1 Chron. xiv. 14, 15;) which he 
did, and was completely victo¬ 
rious. 

MULE. (2 Sam. xiii. 29.) The 
name of the offspring of the 



horse and the ass. It is much 
smaller than the former, and is a 
remarkably hardy, patient, obsti¬ 
nate, sure-footed animal, living 
ordinarily twice as long as a 
horse. Mules are much used in 
Spain and South America for 
transporting goods across the 
mountains. So also in the Alps, 
they are used by travellers among 
the mountains, where a horse 
would hardly be able to pass with 
safety. In the United States 
mules are much used for draught. 

Even the kings and most dis¬ 
tinguished nobles of the Jews 
were accustomed to ride upon 
mules. (See passage above cited, 
and also 2 Sam. xviii. 9; 1 Kings 
i. 33; x. 25; xviii. 5; 2 Chron. 
ix. 24; Esth. viii. 10, 14.) It is 
probable that the Jews purchased, 
4,2 


MUH 

but did not raise mules. (Lev. 
xix. 19.) 

The Hebrew word translate'* 
mules, in Gen. xxxvi. 24, signi¬ 
fies more properly hot fountains, 
or baths. That these places should 
be discovered by means of ani¬ 
mals who were burnt by them, oi 
refused to drink of them, is no¬ 
thing wonderful. This would 
give a better meaning to this 
passage. Tbe desert of Arabia 
has many warm baths. There is 
in the neighbourhood of the Dead 
Sea, in the ancient country of the 
Edomites, where Anah belonged, 
a famous bath of this kind, known 
to the Greeks and Romans under 
the name of Calirrhoe. This 
place is mentioned by Josephus 
among others, who, in speaking 
of Herod’s sickness, says, “ He 
not only hoped for restoration, 
but thought of the means. He 
caused himself to be carried over 
the Jordan, and used the warm 
baths at Calirrhoe, which flow 
into the lake Asphaltites.” Pliny 
also says of them: “ Upon the 
south side of the lake Asphaltites 
is a warm fountain of great vir¬ 
tue in restoring health, whose 
name indicates the fame of the 
water.” The Greek word Calir¬ 
rhoe signifies beautiful fountain. 
The remarkable character of this 
water may be the reason why it 
is introduced in the narrative in 
so unusual a manner. 

MURDER. (Ps. x. 8.) The 
Jewish law calls a murderer one 
who slays another from enmity, 
hatred, or by lying in wait. For 
this crime there was no pardon; 
the city of refuge, and even the 
altar, furnished no asylum, nor 
might money be taken in satis¬ 
faction. (Ex. xxi. 14, 28, 29 
Num. xxxv. 30-32; 1 Kings ii. 5, 




MUR 

6 , 28 - 34 .) It seems to have 
been regarded as one of the most 
odious and abominable crimes, 
(Deut. xix. 13; xxi. 9; Num. 
xxxv. 33, 34;) and was a sub¬ 
ject of early and severe legisla¬ 
tion. (Gen. ix. 6.) In case of 
the inadvertent killing of another, 
provision was made for the pro¬ 
tection of the offender by cities 
of refuge. (See Cities of Re¬ 
fuge.) 

MURRAIN. fEx. ix. 3.) This 
was the fifth in order of the 
plagues with which the Egyp¬ 
tians were visited when they held 
the Israelites in bondage. The 
word translated murrain signifies 
death; and may mean death by 
plague, or pestilence, or any 
other fatal disease. The term 
mortality would be nearest in 
sense to the original, as no par¬ 
ticular disorder is specified by 
the Hebrew word. 

This sudden and dreadful mor¬ 
tality was among the cattle in 
the field, including horses, asses, 
camels, oxen and sheep. It was, 
however, confined to the Egyp¬ 
tian cattle, and to those that were 
in the field; for though the cat¬ 
tle of Israel breathed the same 
air, and drank the same water, 
and fed in the same pastures, not 
a creature of theirs died. The 
word all is often used in Scrip¬ 
ture l'or the mass or great propor¬ 
tion. It is probable that nearly 
all the cattle in the field were 
destroyed by this plague, and the 
few that survived or were after¬ 
wards sent into the field, were 
destroyed by the succeeding 
storm of fire and hail. Many 
horses must have escaped; per¬ 
haps all the war horses. (Comp. 
Ex. xiv. 27, 28; xv. 21.) 

MUSIC. (1 Sam. xviii. 6.) 

40 * 


MUS 

This was an important part of 
the festivities and religious ser¬ 
vices of the Jews. In their an¬ 
nual pilgrimages to Jerusalem, 
their march was thus enlivened. 
(Isa. xxx. 29.) This is still thr 
custom in Oriental pilgrimages 
The practice of music was not 
restricted to any one class of per¬ 
sons. (1 Chron. xiii. 8; xv. 16.) 
The sons of Asaph, Heman an^ 
Jeduthun were set apart by David 
for the musical service, and the 
number of them, with their bre¬ 
thren, that icere instructed in the 
songs of the Lord were two hun¬ 
dred and eighty-eight. They 
were divided, like the priests, 
into twenty-four courses, which 
are enumerated. (1 Chron. xxv.) 
Of the 38,000 Levites, four thou¬ 
sand praised the Lord with in¬ 
struments, (1 Chron. xxiii. 5;) 
being more than one in ten of 
the whole available members of 
the tribe of Levi. Each of the 
courses, or classes, had one hun¬ 
dred and fifty-four musicians and 
three leaders, and all were under 
the general direction of Asaph 
and his brethren. Each course 
served for a week; but upon the 
festivals, all were required to be 
present, or four thousand musi¬ 
cians. Heman, with one of his 
leaders, directed the central choir, 
Asaph the right, and Jeduthan 
the left wing. These several 
choirs answered one another, as 
is generally supposed, in that 
kind of alternate singing which 
is called antiphonal, or respon¬ 
sive. The priests, in the mean 
time, performed upon the silver 
trumpets. (2 Chron. v- 11-14.) 
It is necessary to suppose, that, 
in order to insure harmony from 
such a number of voices as this, 
some musical notes were used. 

473 




MUS 


MUS 




This truly regal direction of 
sacred music continued after the 
death of David until the captivi¬ 
ty ; for though under the impious 
reign of some kings, the whole 
of these solemnities fell into dis¬ 
use, they were revived by Heze- 
kiah and Josiah. And although 
during the exile the sweet sing¬ 
ers of Israel hanged their harps 
upon the willows by the waters 
of Babylon, yet two hundred mu¬ 
sicians returned with Ezra to the 
Holy Land. (Ezra ii. 65.) 

474 


Musical instruments. (Eccles 
ii. 8.) They were invented by 
Jubal, the son of Lamech, (Gen. 
iv. 21,) and had appropriate 
names. (Gen. xxxi. 27,) They 
may be divided into three classes: 
stringed instruments, wind in¬ 
struments, and such as gave their 
sounds on being struck. Of 
stringed instruments, were the 
harp, the instrument of ten strings, 
the sackbut and psaltery. They 
are described under their proper 
names. 





























MUS 

The instruments of music men¬ 
tioned in 1 Sam. xviii. 6, as used 
by women, are supposed to have 
been metal) ic triangles, as the 
name indicates. 

The instrument of ten strings 
resembled a modern guitar, hav¬ 
ing its strings stretched over 
something not unlike a drum; 
and it was played with the fin¬ 
gers. (For description and en¬ 
gravings of several ancient musi¬ 
cal instruments, see Hebrew 
Customs, pp. 79-87.) 

MUSTARD. (Matt. xiii. 31.) 
A species of the plant known to 
us by the same name, but of much 
larger size, and especially in the 
fertile soil of Judea. With us it 
is a small annual herb, but there 
it grew to the size of a fig-tree, 
and was sufficiently large to bear 
the weight of a man to climb 
upon it. The seeds are very 
small; so that it proverbially ex¬ 
pressed the least thing, or the 
minutest particle. It was the 
largest plant from the smallest 
Beed which was then or is now 
known. Hence the figure used 
in our Saviour’s parable forcibly 
illustrates the contrast between 
the infancy of his church and its 
final prosperity, as well as between 
the early fruits of God’s grace in 
Che soul, and the full develop¬ 
ment of Christian character in 
the believer. 

MYRA. (Acts xxvii. 5.) A 
Beaport of Lycia, and one of its 
orincipal cities, was situated 
near the southernmost Cape of 
Asia Minor, where Paul embark¬ 
ed for Rome in a ship of Alexan- 
iria. 

The magnificent ruins of Myra, 
now Cucatno, attest the opulence 
of the age of Adrian and Trajan. 
The necropolis, or place of inter- 


MYR 

ments, has of itself the appear¬ 
ance of a city. 

MYRRH. (Gen. xliii. 11.) A 
medicina 1 gum,yielded by a thorny 



feet high, chiefly imported from 
Arabia to the East Indies. It 
was at a very early period an 
article of commerce, (Gen. xxxvii. 
25,) and was an ingredient of the 
holy ointment, (Ex. xxx. 23,) 
and of the embalming substance. 
(John xix. 39.) It was also used 
as an agreeable perfume. (Esth. 
ii. 12; Ps. xlv. 8; Prov. vii. 17.) 
It was also regarded among the 
valuable gifts which it was cus¬ 
tomary to present to kings, nobles 
and others, as a token of respect 
in ancient times and countries. 
(Gen. xliii. 11; Matt. ii. 1, 11.) 

In Matt, xxvii. 34, it is said, 
that they gave Jesus to drink 
vinegar mixed with gall , which, 
in Mark xv. 23, is called wine 
mingled with myrrh. It was pro¬ 
bably the sour wine which the 
Roman soldiers used to drink, 
mingled with myrrh and other 
bitter substances : very much like 
the hitters of modern times. 

475 





MYR 

. MYRTLE. (Isa. xli. 19.) A 
beautiful, fragrant and orna¬ 



mental evergreen. The seeds of 
one species of the myrtle, being 
collected and dried before they 
are ripe, are called pimento, or 
allspice. Groves of the myrtle 
are still found of spontaneous 
growth in Judea and correspond¬ 
ing latitudes; and for the rich 
hue of thoir green, polished leaves, 


MYS 

their agreeable fragrance a-ao 
beautiful flowers, are used by the 
sacred writer, in contrast with 
the noxious, useless brier, to ilius 
trate the prosperity and glorv Ok 
the church. (Isa. lv. 13. See 
also Isa. xli. 19; and Zech. i. 
S-U.) 

The myrtle furnished the 
wreaths of ancient heroes and 
victors. Branches of the myrtle 
were gathered, among others, to 
cover the booths and tents of the 
Jews at the celebration of the 
feast of tabernacles. (Le^. xxiii. 
40. Comp. Neh. viii. 15.) 

MYSIA. (Acts xvi. 7.) A 
province of Asia Minor, and at 
this day a beautiful and fertile 
country. It has the sea of Pro¬ 
pontis on the north, Lydia on the 
south, and Bythinia on the east. 
In the northern section of Mysia 
was the province in which the 
ancient city of Troy was situated, 
and not far distant was the Troa3 
mentioned by Paul. (Acts xvi. 
8; xx. 6; 2 Cor. ii. 12 j 2 Tim. 
iv. 13.) 


NAA 

AAMAN. (2 Kings v. 6.) A 
Syrian general of great dis¬ 
tinction and bravery, (2 Kings v. 
1,) who applied to the prophet 
Elisha to relieve him of the leprosy 
with which he was severely af¬ 
flicted. He was induced to make 
the application in consequence of 
what was said to his wife, about 
the prophet, by a little girl, who 
had been taken captive from 
among the Israelites, and was 
living in the general’s family. 
Taking with him a letter of in¬ 
troduction from the king of Syria 
to the king of Israel, (supposing, 


NAA 

perhaps, that the king of Israel 
would know what prophet was 
meant, and would have influence 
over him,) Naaman ascended his 
chariot, and, with much pomp, 
(2 Kings v. 9, 13,) went to the 
King of Israel, who resided in 
Samaria. 

The king of Israel expressed 
his surprise and grief that the 
king of Syria should send him 
such a letter; and it was soon 
noised abroad that the Syrian 
general was at the palace, and 
for what purpose ne had come. 
Elisha sent word to the king that 











NAA 

no need not be concerned. If 
the leprous stranger would come 
to him, he should see that, there 
was a prophet in Israel. So Naa- 
»nan applied to Elisha, and was 
directed merely to wash seven 
times in the river Jordan. This 
simpie -emedy seemed to Naaman 
altogether inadequate. If the 
mere washing of the body would 
suffice, there were waters in Syria 
purer and more salutary than all 
the waters of Israel. Why, then, 
make a journey to Samaria to 
wash in the Jordan? He was 
about to leave the place in indig¬ 
nation, when some of his retinue 
very wisely suggested to him, that 
if the prophet had proposed some 
expensive or difficult remedy, he 
would have tried it at once; and 
surely he could not refuse to try 
one which was so simple, and 
which, whether successful or 
not, would cost neither toil nor 
money. Thus they persuaded 
him to follow the prophet’s pre¬ 
scription ; and, upon washing in 
the Jordan seven times, his flesh 
and health were perfectly re¬ 
stored. 

Deeply impressed with the 
power of the God of Israel, by 
which his loathsome disease was 
thus suddenly cured, he offered a 
reward to Elisha, which he 
promptly declined. He then vo¬ 
luntarily renounced all his idola¬ 
trous practices; and asked for a 
quantity of earth from the soil on 
which the prophet and the people 
of God dwelt,perhaps that he might 
build with it an altar to the God of 
Israel; and so tender had his con¬ 
science become, that he feared 
even to attend his master the king 
in his idolatrous services, as his 
official duty required, without ask¬ 
ing beforehand if such attendance 


NAP 

might be pardoned. It seems that 
Elisha was disposed to trust him 
to the dictates of his own con¬ 
science,which was evidently under 
divine influence. We are not in¬ 
formed of his subsequent history. 
(For map, and particular history 
of this transaction, see Elisha, 
ch. vi.) 

NABAL. (1 Sam. xxv. 3.) A 
very wealthy citizen of Maori. 
When David was in the wilder¬ 
ness of Paran, Nabal was in the 
vicinity of Carmel, a place west 
of the Dead Sea, shearing his 
sheep, of which he had no less 
than three thousand. David sent 
ten of his young men to ask him 
in the most courteous manner 
for supplies; but Nabal, who was 
proverbially churlish, refused, 
in the most offensive terms, to 
grant his request. David imme¬ 
diately ordered four hundred of 
his men to arm themselves and 
follow him to the place where 
Nabal lodged, intending to de¬ 
stroy him and all that pertained 
to him. When they drew near, 
Abigail, the discreet and beauti¬ 
ful wife of this son of Belial, was 
admonished of their purpose. She 
promptly made up a sumptuous 
present, and, without the know¬ 
ledge of her husband, set forth to 
meet David, with her servants, 
and with asses to bear the gifts. 
When David met her, she showed 
him the most profound reverence, 
and so entirely conciliated him, 
that he received her present, and 
gave her his blessing. When 
Abigail returned, she found her 
husband at a feast which he had 
made at his own house; and she 
deferred communicating to him 
the history and result of her em¬ 
bassy until he should recover 
from the effects of his indulgence. 

477 




NAB 

He had no sooner received her 
statement, than he was seized 
with a severe illness, which 
proved fatal at the end of ten 
days. (For a full and interesting 
account of this scene, with cuts, 
Ac., see Life of David, ch. xv.) 

NABOTH. (1 Kings xxi. 1.) 
An Israelite of the town of Jez- 
eel, who owned a vineyard ad¬ 
joining the palace of king Ahab. 
Anxious to secure this particular 
6pot that he might use it for a 
garden, the king proposed to buy 
it, or give him some other pro¬ 
perty of equal value ; but Naboth 
declined, to the great disappoint¬ 
ment and mortilication of the 
wicked monarch. Jezebel,his more 
wicked wife, immediately formed 
a plan to take the life of Naboth, 
in which she succeeded; and so 
Ahab obtained possession of his 
inheritance. (See Ahab, Je¬ 
zebel.) 

NADAB, (1 Kings xv. 25,) son 
and successor of Jeroboam, king 
of Israel, reigned two years. His 
reign was wicked and corrupt, 
and he was finally assassinated 
while prosecuting the siege of 
Gibbethon, a Philistine city. 
(See Abihu.) 

NAHASFI. (See Ammonites.) 

NAHOR, (Gen. xi. 23,) or 
NACI10R, (Josh. xxiv. 2,) was 
the name of Abraham's grat d- 
father, and also the name of one 
of Abraham’s brothers, (Gen. xi. 
26,) who married Milcah, the 
daughter of Haran. (Gen. xi. 
29.) He lived at Haran; which 
is thence called the city of Nahor. 
(Gen. xxiv. 10.) 

NAHUM. (Nah. i. 1.) A na¬ 
tive of Eli-Koshai, a village of 
Galilee, the ruins of which were 
plainly discernible as lately as 
the fourth, century There is con- 
478 


NA1 

siderable diversity of opinion aj 
to the time in which he lived. 

Prophecy of, is the thirty 
fourth in the order of the books 
of the Old Testament. Though 
divided into three chapters, it i9 
a continuous poem of unrivalled 
spirit and sublimity, and admira 
ble for the elegance of its imagery. 
It relates chiefly to the destruc¬ 
tion of the magnificent city o. 
Nineveh, which had been prophe¬ 
sied by Jonah nearly a century 
before. These predictions (it is 
supposed) were made in the reigij 
of llezekiah, and have been re¬ 
markably fulfilled, both as to the 
fact and the manner of their ful¬ 
filment. The city of Nineveh 
was destroyed about a century 
after the prophecy of Nahum was 
uttered; and so complete was its 
overthrow, that the site on which 
it stood has been matter of mere 
conjecture for nearly or quite 
sixteen centuries. 

NAIL. (Ezra ix. 8.) Travel¬ 
lers tell us, what we might infer 
from the frail materials and weak 
construction of Eastern dwellings, 
that the nails or spikes which are 
necessary to hang up garments, 
curtains and utensils of various 
kinds, are not driven in, but are 
built in firmly with the wall, in 
the process of its erection. They 
are large, and being quite con¬ 
spicuous, are well finished. The 
force of the figure in the above 
passage is obvious, inasnyich as 
the nail being not, like ours, 
easily drawn and placed else¬ 
where, was a part of the fabric 
itself, and could only be removed 
with the wall itself, or some part 
of it. Hence the word in the 
margin is rendered a constant ana 
sure abode. (See, also, Zeoh. x. 
4.) The nail with which Jaol 



NAI 

killed Sisera was a tent-pin, by 
which the cords of a tent are fixed 
to the ground. 

NAIN. (Luke vii. 11.) A city 
of Galilee, south of Mount Tabor, 
and but a little distance from 
Capernaum. It is now a Turkish 
village, inhabited by Jews, Mo¬ 
hammedans and a few Christians.. 
The place is distinguished as the 
scene of one of Christ’s most re¬ 
markable and affecting miracles. 
(Luke vii. 11-15.) 

NAIOTII. (1 Sam. xix. 22.) 
A part of the town of Ramah, 
(or, as the word signifies, the 
meadows of Hamah,) where a 
school of the prophets was es¬ 
tablished. 

NAME. (Gen. ii. 19.) This 
word, in some passages of Scrip¬ 
ture. has a peculiar significa¬ 
tion, as in Prov. xviii. 10, where 
the term denotes God himself, 
with all his attributes and per¬ 
fections.—(See, also, Ps. xx. 1, 
5, 7.) In the New Testament, 
it usually means the character, 
faith or doctrine of Christ. (Acts 
r. 41; viii. 12 ; ix. 15, and 
xxvi. 9.) 

Names among the Jews were 
often given, in allusion to some 
peculiar circumstances in the 
character, birth or destiny of the 
individual, (Ex. ii. 10, and xviii. 
3, 4;) and sometimes it had a 
prophetic meaning. (Matt. i. 21.) 
Many instances occur in Scripture 
of the same person having two 
names. Names were changed, 
and are still, in Eastern coun¬ 
tries, for slight reasons. A change 
>f office or station often occasioned 
a change of name. 

And upon his thigh a name 
written. (Rev. xix. 16.) This 
phrase alludes to an ancient cus¬ 
tom ic the Eastern nations of 


NAP 

adorning the images of their gods 
and the persons of princes and 
heroes with inscriptions expres¬ 
sive of their character, titles, <fce. 
They were made on the garment, 
or on one of the thighs; and se¬ 
veral ancient statues have been 
discovered, with inscriptions of 
one or two lines, ivritten some¬ 
times horizontally and sometimes 
perpendicularly, both on the in¬ 
side and outside of the thigh, and 
sometimes upon both thighs. 
Men surname themselves by the 
name of Israel , when, having 
been before Gentiles and sinners, 
they join themselves to Jesus and 
his church. (Isa. xliv. 5. See 
Stone, Thigh.) 

NAHSHON, (Num. vii. 12,) 
son of Amminadab, and head of 
the tribe of Judah, made the first 
offering for the tabernacle in tho 
wilderness. He is the only one 
of the heads of tribes who is not 
called a prince in the history of 
this transaction. Probably the 
omission was designed; as, to be 
the head of the tribe of Judah 
was, from tho pre-eminence of 
that tribe, a sufficient honour. 

NAOMI. (Ruth i. 2.) The 
wife of Elimelech, and the mother- 
in-law of Ruth, who moved with 
their two sons from Judea to 
Moab. Elimelech died, and also 
his two sons, each leaving a 
widow; and Naomi, having thus 
been left alone, returned to her 
home in Judea. So severe had 
been her afflictions, that she pro¬ 
posed to her friends on her re- 
turn to call her Mara, (which 
signifies hitter,) rather than Nao¬ 
mi, (which signifies beautiful.) 
(Ruthi. 19-21. See Ruth. See 
also Affectionate Daughter- 
in-law.) 

NAPIITALI, (Gen. xxx. 8, 
479 



NAT 

n NEPHTHALIM. (Matt. iv. 
15.) A son of Jacob by Bilhah. 

Tribe of, received their portion 
of the promised land in the 
northern part, between the Jor¬ 
dan on the east, and the posses¬ 
sions of Asher on the west. It 
was one of the most fruitful sec¬ 
tions of the country, and included 
the sources of the Jordan. (Josh, 
xxi. 32-39.) This tribe was pe¬ 
culiarly blessed of God, (Deut. 
xxxiii. 23;) and the figurative 
language in which the benedic¬ 
tion of Jacob is expressed (Gen. 
xlix. 21) implies the increase, 
power and prosperity of the fami¬ 
ly of Naphtali. The city of Ca¬ 
pernaum, where Christ resided 
and taught so much, was situated 
in the borders of Zebulon and 
Naphtali, near Tiberias. Hence 
the language of the prophet. (Isa. 
ix. 1. See Hart.) 

NATHAN. (2 Sam. vii. 2.) A 
distinguished prophet of Judea, 
who lived in the reign of David, 
and enjoyed a large share of his 
confidence. To him David first 
intimated his design to build the 
temple; and he was divinely in¬ 
structed to inform the king that 
this honour was not for him, but 
for his posterity. Nathan was 
also charged with the divine mes¬ 
sage to David, upon the occasion 
of his sin against Uriah, which 
he conveyed under a most beau¬ 
tiful and significant allegory, by 
which he made the king to con¬ 
demn himself. Nathan was one 
of David’s biographers. (1 Chron. 
xxix. 29.) There are several 
others of this name mentioned in 
the Bible, of whose history we are 
uninformed. (2 Sam. v. 14; xxiii. 
36; 1 Chron. xi. 38; Ezra viii. 
16 ; Luke iii. 31.) 

NATHANAEL, (John i. 45,) 
480 


NAZ 

one of the twelve disciples, 1* 
supposed to be the same with 
Bartholomew. (See Bartholo¬ 
mew.) He was called upon by 
Philip to go with him and see the 
Messiah, who had just appeared. 
Nathanael seems to have doubted 
his friend’s testimony; but, to 
resolve his doubts, consented to 
accompany him. As they ap¬ 
proached the Messiah, he received 
the most emphatic testimony to 
his integrity that can be found on 
record. (John i. 47.) Jesus on 
this occasion declared his om¬ 
niscience ; for he professes to know 
his character and heart at their 
first interview, and assures him 
that his eye was upon him under 
a fig tree, beneath the shade of 
which he had probably been en¬ 
gaged in religious exercises. 
(John i. 50.) Nathanael was con¬ 
vinced, and acknowledged him 
as the true Messiah. Christ there¬ 
upon assured him in substance 
that he should see still more con¬ 
vincing evidences of his Messiah- 
ship in the progress of his mi¬ 
nistry, in the doctrines he should 
teach, in the miracles he should 
work, and in the peculiar favour 
and protection of God which he 
should enjoy. Among those great¬ 
er evidences may have been the 
events recorded Matt. iii. 17; iv. 
11; xvii. 5; John xi. 42 ; xii. 28-30. 

NAZARENE. (Matt ii. 23.) 
An inhabitant of Nazareth. The 
passage from the prophets, to 
which reference is here made, is 
not known ; and the probability 
is, that the reference is rather to 
the general current of prophecy 
respecting the humble ar.d de 
spised condition of Christ. To 
come out of Nazareth , or to be a 
Nazarene, rendered one an object 
of reproach and contempt. (Se# 



NAZ 

Christ. Comp. Isa. liii. 2-12, 
And John i. 46; vii. 52.; 

NAZARETH. (Matt. xxi. 11.) 
A town in Galilee, within the 
territory of Zebulon, not far from 
seventy miles north of Jerusa¬ 
lem, now known as Nassera, or 
Naserah. It was noted for its 
wickedness. (John i. 46.) It 
occupies an elevated site about 
midway between mount Tabor 
and Cana. Jesus spent much of 
his time here; and hence the 
title Jesus of Nazareth. (Mark 
xvi. 6; Luke xxiv. 19; Acts 
ii. 22.) 

A precipice of fifty feet, which 
lies about a mile from the village, 
is regarded as the place to which 
the people of the town carried 
Jesus, with the savage intention 
of casting him off. (Luke iv. 29.) 
There is a papal church here, call¬ 
ed the Church of the Annunciation , 
erected, as they pretend to show, on 
the spot where Mary the mother 
of our Lord received the divine 
message. It is the most magni¬ 
ficent church in the land, except 
that of the Holy Sepulchre at Je¬ 
rusalem. The traditions of the 
inhabitants respecting the foun¬ 
tain of Mary, the house of Joseph, 
and the synagogue where Christ 
taught, are not worthy of remem¬ 
brance. 

A modern traveller describes 
Nazareth as situated upon the de¬ 
clivity of a hill, the vale which 
spreads out before it resembling 
a circular basin, encompassed by 
mountains. Fifteen mountains 
appear to meet to form an en¬ 
closure for this beautiful spot, 
around which they rise like the 
edge of a shell, to guard it against 
intrusion. It is a rich and beauti¬ 
ful field in the midst of barren 
mountains. 

2 


NAZ 

Another traveller speaks of th* 
streets as narrow and steep, the 
houses, which are flat-roofed, are 
about two hundred and fifty 
in number, and the inhabitants he 
estimates at 2000. The popula¬ 
tion of the place is variously 
stated, though the average esti¬ 
mate is 3000 ; of whom about five 
hundred are Turks, and the re¬ 
sidue nominal Christians. 

As all testimony to the truth 
and fidelity of the sacred nar¬ 
rative is important, we have 
thought ourselves justified in con¬ 
necting with this article a pas¬ 
sage from the journal of an in¬ 
telligent modern traveller; espe¬ 
cially as it is so full an illustration 
of the passage of Luke already 
cited: 

“ Nazareth is situated on the 
side, and extends nearly to the 
foot, of a hill, which, though not 
very high, is rather steep and 
overhanging. The eye naturally 
wanders over its summit, in quest 
of some point from which it might 
probably be that the men of this 
place endeavoured to cast our Sa¬ 
viour down, (Luke iv. 29,) but in 
vain. No rock adapted to such 
an object appears here. At the 
foot of the hill is a modest, simple 
plain, surrounded by low hills, 
reaching in length nearly a mile; 
in breadth, near the city, a hun¬ 
dred and fifty yards; but farther 
south, about four hundred yards. 
On this plain there are a few 
olive and fig trees, sufficient, or 
rather scarcely sufficient, to make 
the spot picturesque. Then fol¬ 
lows a ravine, which gradually 
grows deeper and narrower to¬ 
wards the south; till, after walk¬ 
ing about another mile, you find 
yourself in an immense chasm, 
with steep rocks on either side, 
F 481 


41 



NAZ 

from whence you behold, as it 
were beneath your feet, and be¬ 
fore youf the noble plain of Es- 
draelou. Nothing can be finer 
than the apparently immeasurable 
prospect of this plaih, bounded 
on the south by the mountains 
of Samaria. The elevation of the 
hills on which the spectator stands 
in this ravine is very great; and 
the whole scene, when we saw it, 
was clothed in the most rich 
mountain-blue colour that can be 
conceived. At this spot, on the 
right hand of the ravine, is shown 
the rock to which the men o'f Na¬ 
zareth are supposed to have con¬ 
ducted our Lord, for the purpose 
of throwing him down. With the 
Testament in our hands, we en¬ 
deavoured to examine the pro¬ 
babilities of the spot; and I con¬ 
fess there is nothing in it which 
excites a scruple of incredulity in 
my mind. The rock here is per¬ 
pendicular for about fifty feet, 
down which space it would be 
easy to hurl a person who should 
be unawares brought to the sum¬ 
mit; and his perishing would be 
a very certain consequence. That 
the spot might be at a consider¬ 
able distance from the city is an 
idea not inconsistent with St. 
Luke’s account; for the expression 
thrusting Jesus out of the city and 
leading him to the broio of the 
hill on ichich their city was built , 
gives fair scope for imagining, 
that in their rage and debate, the 
Nazarones might, without origin¬ 
ally intending his murder, press 
upon him for a considerable dis¬ 
tance after they had quitted the 
synagogue. The distance, as al¬ 
ready noticed, finin modern Na¬ 
zareth to this spot, is scarcely two 
miles: a space which, in the fury 
of persecution, might soon be 
482 


NAZ 

passed over. Or, should this ap- 
pear too considerable, it is by nc 
means certain but that Nazareth 
may at that time have extended 
through the principal part of the 
plain, which I have described as 
lying before the modern town. 
In this case, the distance passed 
over might not exceed a mile. I 
can see, therefore, no reason for 
thinking otherwise, than that this 
may be the real scene where our 
divine prophet Jesus received so 
great a dishonour from the men 
of his own country ar>d of his own 
kindred."— Jewett. 

NAZARITES. (Num. vi. 2, 
&c .) The term is derived from 
a Hebrew word signifying to se¬ 
parate. A Nazarite, under the an¬ 
cient law, was one engaged by a 
vow to abstain from wine and all 
intoxicating liquors, to let the 
hair grow, not to enter any house 
polluted by having a dead body 
in it, nor to be present at any 
funeral. If, by accident, any one 
should have died in his or her 
presence, the Nazarite was bound 
to recommence the whole term 
of consecration and Nazariteship. 
This vow generally lasted eight 
days, sometimes a month, and 
sometimes during life. When 
the time of Nazariteship had ex¬ 
pired, the person brought an of. 
fering to the temple; the priest 
then cutoff his hair and burnt it; 
after which the Nazarite was free 
from his vow, and might again 
drink wine. (Num. vi.) Per¬ 
petual Nazarites were consecrat¬ 
ed as such by their parents from 
their birth, and continued all 
their lives in this state, neither 
drinking wine nor cutting their 
hair. Such were Samson and 
John the Baptist. (Judg. xiii. 4, 

5; Luke i. 15; vii. 33.1 



NEA 

Those who made a vow of Na- 
iariteship out of Palestine, and 
eould not come to the temple 
when their vow had expired, 
contented themselves with ob¬ 
serving the abstinence required 
by the law, and cutting olf their 
hair in the place where they were. 
The offerings and sacrifices pre¬ 
scribed by Moses, to be offered at 
the temple, by themselves, or by 
others for them, they deferred till 
a convenient opportunity. Hence 
Paul, being at Corinth, and 
having made the vow of a Na- 
earite, had his hair cut off at 
Cenchrea, but deferred the com¬ 
plete fulfilment of his vow till he 
came to Jerusalem. (Acts xviii. 
18.) 

Why this vow was made by 
Paul we know not, unless it was 
upon his deliverance from some 
imminent danger, and to con¬ 
ciliate the Jews by complying 
with a very solemn and salutary 
requirement of their ritual. The 
charges (Acts xxi. 24) were for 
offerings required at the com¬ 
pletion of the vow. The Naza- 
rites constituted a sect or a class 
by themselves, like the prophets, 
and were examples of self-denial 
and holy living. (Acts ii. 11, 
12 .) 

NEAPOLIS. (Acts xvi. 11.) 
A city of Macedonia, on the 
Egean coast, known in modern 
times as Napoli. Paul visited it 
on his way to Philippi. 

NEBAIOTH, (Isa. lx. 7,) or 
NEBAJOTH. (Gen. xxv. 13.) 
A son of Ishmael, whose descend¬ 
ants are supposed to have settled 
in Arabia, and to hav j been the 
Nabatheans of Greek and Ro¬ 
man history. They were pro¬ 
bably rich in flocks and herds ; 
whence the beautiful figure of 


NEB 

the prophet above cited, respect¬ 
ing the gathering of the Gentile 
nations to the sceptre of the Mes¬ 
siah. 

NEBO. 1. (Deut. xxxii. 49.) 
One of the summits of the moun¬ 
tains of Abarim, the peak of 
which overlooked the whole 
length and breadth cf the pro¬ 
mised land. (Deut. xxxiv. 1-4.) 

2. (Jer. xlviii. 1.) A town in 
the neighbourhood of mount 
Nebo, the name of which was 
derived from an idol worshipped 
there, (Isa. xlvi. 1,) where Bel is 
supposed to mean the sun, and 
Nebo the moon. The possession 
of the place was contested by 
the tribe of Reuben and the 
Moabites. (Num. xxxii. 38 ; Isa. 
xv. 2; Jer. xlviii. 22.) 

NEBUCHADNEZZAR,(2Kings 

xxiv. 1.) king of Babylon, was son 
and successor of Nabopolassar. 
He lived about six hundred years 
before the birth of Christ, and 
shared in the administration of 
the government about two years 
before his father’s decease. Hence 
there is some diversity in the 
chronological references to his 
reign: some computing it from 
the time of his association with 
his father, and others from the 
time when his sole reign com¬ 
menced. (Comp. Dan. ii. 1; Jer. 

xxv. 1.) We cannot but advert 
here to the casual evidence of 
the genuineness of the sacred 
history. The Jews compute the 
reign of Nebuchadnezzar from 
the time of his association with his 
father, which makes the fourth 
year of Jehoiakim, the first of 
Nebuchadnezzar. The Babyio 
nians, on the other hand, begii 
his reign at the death of hia 
father; and as Daniel wrote in 
Chaldea, he adopts the latte: 

483 




NEB 

mode of computation, ratner than 
the other. 

The king of Egypt, having 
subjugated the Jews, and seem¬ 
ing inclined to extend his con¬ 
quests to the Euphrates, Nebu¬ 
chadnezzar not only checked his 
advance, but entirely defeated his 
army at Carchemish, dispossess¬ 
ing him of his newly-acquired 
dominions, leaving Jehoiakim at 
Jerusalem in a state of vassalage 
to Babylon, and taking with him, 
as captives, Daniel and other 
princes of Judah. (2 Kings xxiv.) 
In the reign of Jehoiachin, Ne¬ 
buchadnezzar again invaded Ju¬ 
dea, and took several of the 
royal family and a multitude of 
others captive, and carried them, 
with a part of the sacred vessels 
of the temple, to Babylon. In 
the ninth year of the reign of 
Zedekiah, the Jews attempted to 
throw off the yoke, but Nebu¬ 
chadnezzar was too powerful to 
be successfully resisted. The 
Egyptians, on whom the Jews 
had relied for succour, failed to 
assist them, and were themselves 
defeated. The holy city was be¬ 
sieged, captured and destroyed, 
and the magnificent temple burn¬ 
ed; and Nebuchadnezzar carried 
their king and a multitude of his 
subjects as captives to Babylon. 
Elated by the success of his ex¬ 
pedition, the haughty king gloried 
in his power, and in the wealth 
and magnificence of his capital, 
(Dan. iv. 30;) but his pride was 
suddenly humbled by a most 
wonderful visitation of GodT 
hand. He was thrown into a 
stare of delirium, madness or 
idiocy, in which he continued 
seven years, as the companion 
of the beasts of the field, living 
en grass or herbs. At the end 
484 


NEC 

of that term, his reason was re* 
stored, and he was reinstated 
upon the throne, though in a very 
different state of mind from that 
in which he was deposed. The 
whole period of his reign was 
thirty-five or forty years, as he is 
supposed to have died B. C. 562. 
(See Babylon, Daniel. See 
also Life of Daniel, ch. i.-xi., 
Elisama, ch. i. v.) 

NEBUZAR-ADAN. (2 Kings 
xxv. 8.) General of the armies 
of Nebuchadnezzar. He con¬ 
ducted the seige of Jerusalem to 
a successful issue; the particu¬ 
lars of which are given in 2 Kings 
xxv. 8-21. 

NECHO. (2 Chron. xxxv. 20.) 
A king of Egypt, whose expedi¬ 
tions are often mentioned in pro¬ 
fane history. As he was advanc¬ 
ing upon Carchemish, an Assy¬ 
rian city, he passed through the 
possessions of the king of Judah. 
Josiah. regarding this as an act 
of hostility, prepared to resist 
his progress. Necho sent ambas¬ 
sadors to inform him of the ob¬ 
ject of his expedition; but as he 
was already in his kingdom, and 
avowed hishostilepurposes against 
an ally of the kingdom of Judah, 
Josiah thought himself justified 
in opposing him. There was no 
evidence to Josiah that Necho 
was under the divine guidance, 
though he claimed to be so. It 
may be regarded as precipitate 
in him to have opposed such a 
force upon such grounds; and 
the issue was fatal. The battle 
was fought at Megiddo, and 
Josiah lost his life. Necho, on 
his return from his expedition 
into Assyria, stopped at Riblah, 
in Syria, and sent for Jehoahaz, 
who had succeeded to the thron* 
of Judah upon the death of 



NEC 

Josiah, and deposed him, loading 
him with chains, and sending 
him into Egypt. He then put 
the land of Judah under a heavy 
tribute, making Eliakim (whose 
name he changed to Jehoiakim) 
king in the place of Jehoahaz. 
(See Elisama, ch. i. ii. and :ii.) 

NECROMANCER. (Deut.xviii. 
11.) One who pretends to divine 
future events by questioning the 
dead. The practice has prevailed 
from a very early period among 
the pagan nations of the East. It 
was forbidden by the Levitical law. 

NEESINGS. (Job xli. 18.) 
By the force with which the 
leviathan breathes and throws 
forth water, (in a manner not un¬ 
like sneezing,) a light is caused. 
This is not impossible by the laws 
of nature, but perhaps the expres¬ 
sion is poetical. Sneezing is oc¬ 
casioned by throwing the breath 
through the nose and irritating 
the inner membrane so as to pro¬ 
duce a convulsive action, and 
hence was an evidence of return¬ 
ing life. (2 Kings iv. 35.) 

NEHEMIAH, (Ezra ii. 2,) son 
of Hachaliah, (Neh. x. 1,) was a 
Jew of distinguished piety, born 
in captivity, but raised to the ho¬ 
nourable post of cup-bearer to Ar- 
taxerxes. He used his influence 
with that monarch in behalf of 
his afflicted countrymen, and be¬ 
came their permanent benefactor. 
He was commissioned, at his own 
request, to visit Jerusalem and 
repair its ruins, which he accom¬ 
plished under the most perplexing 
difficulties. Nehemiah as gover¬ 
nor, and Ezra as priest and scribe, 
(Neh. viii. 9,) were instrumental 
in restoring the worship of the 
Jews; and the sacred books were 
collected and compiled under 
their direction. 

41* 


NEH 

Nehemiah administered the 
government of Jerusalem twelve 
years without salary, and in a 
manner most expensive to him¬ 
self, (Neh. v. 14-19,) and at the 
end of this period he returned tc 
Persia, where he remained for an 
uncertain period. (Neh. xiii. 6.) 
He was absent long enough to 
allow groat abuses to arise in Je¬ 
rusalem, (Neh. xiii. Comp. Mai. 
ii. 10-17; iii. 6-12,) which, on 
his return, he made it his first 
business to correct, especially the 
violation of the Sabbath. By 
these means he restored his peo¬ 
ple, in some degree, to their 
former happy condition, and pro¬ 
bably remained in power till his 
death, which it is supposed took 
place in Jerusalem. Few men in 
any age of the world have com¬ 
bined in themselves a more rigid 
adherence to duty, a sterner op¬ 
position to wrong, private or pub¬ 
lic, a more unswerving faith in 
God, or a purer patriotism, than 
Nehemiah. (See Elisama, chap, 
xii. and xiii.) 

Book of, is the sixteenth in 
the order of the books of the Old 
Testament. It may be regarded 
as a continuation of or supple¬ 
ment to the book of Ezra, which 
immediately precedes it; and in 
some Bibles it is called the second 
book of Ezra, though it is un¬ 
questionably the work of Nehe¬ 
miah. 

This book contains an account 
of the motives and designs of 
Nehemiah in wishing to restore 
Jerusalem, the place of his fa¬ 
thers’ sepulchres; of the com¬ 
mission he received; his asso¬ 
ciates in the work; their various 
successes and difficulties; the in¬ 
troduction of a better order of 
things, both in the religious and 




NEH 

civil departments of the govern¬ 
ment; and a census or register 
of the people. The Old Testa¬ 
ment history closes with this 
book b. c. 420. After the death 
of Nehemiah, Judea became sub¬ 
ject to the governor of Syria. 

NEHILOTH, a word found at 
the beginning of the fifth Psalm, 
and which signifies probably the 
flutes, or wind instruments. The 
title of the fifth Psalm may be 
thus translated: “A Psalm of 
David, addressed to the master 
of music, presiding over the 
flutes.” 

NEHUSHTAN, (2 Kings xviii. 
4,) brazen, a name given by He- 
zekiah king of Judah to the bra¬ 
zen serpent that Moses had set 
up in the wilderness, (Num. xxi. 
8,) and which had been preserved 
by the Israelites to that time. 
Tho superstitious people having 
made an idol of this serpent, He- 
zekiah caused it to be burned, 
and in derision gave it the name 
of Nehushtan, i. e. little brazen 
serpent, or a piece of brass. 

NEIGHBOUR. (Luke x. 29.) 
The Pharisees restrained the 
meaning of the word neighbour 
to those of their own nation, or 
to their own friends. But our 
Saviour informed them that all 
the people of the world were 
neighbours to each other; that 
they ought not to do to another 
what they would not have done 
to themselves; and that this 
charity extended ever. to ene¬ 
mies. 

NERGAL. (2 Kings xvii. 30.) 
One of the gods of those heathen 
who were transplanted into Pa¬ 
lestine. This idol represented 
the planet Mars, which was the 
emblem of bloodshed. The name 
Nergai appears also in the prc- 
486 


NET 

per name Nergalsharezcr. (Je? 
xxxix. 3.) 

NETHINIMS. (Ezra ii. 43, 
58.) The word signifies given or 
dedicated persons. They were a 
remnant of the Gibeonites, and 
were given as sacred servants or 
bondmen to the priests, (1 Kings 
ix. 20-22,) and were employed as 
hewers of wood and drawers of 
water for the house of the Lord. 
(1 Chron. ix. 2.) They were not 
the first, however, who were set 
apart as the Lord’s bondmen; for 
Moses had previously mentioned 
vows, by which men devoted 
themselves or others—that is, 
children or servants—to God, to 
minister in the sanctuary. The 
number of these was greatly in¬ 
creased in later times, by David 
and others. Their condition ap¬ 
pears to have been easy. It was 
not till after the captivity that 
they were called Nethinims. (Neh. 
iii. 26; vii. 46, 60, 73; x. 28; 
xi. 3, 21.) 

The Nethinims were carried 
into captivity with the tribe of 
Judah, and great numbers were 
placed not far from the Caspian 
Sea, whence Ezra brought two 
hundred and twenty of them into 
Judea. (Ezra viii. 17-20.) 

NETTLES. (Prov. xxiv. 31.) 
A well-known wild plant, tho 
leaves of which are armed with 
stings, connected with a small 
bag of poison; and when the 
leaves are pressed by the hand, 
the stings penetrate the flesh, and 
produce a swelling, with a sharp, 
burning pain. The leaf when 
wet or dead does not possess this 
power. The presence of nettles 
betokens a waste and neglected 
soil; hence the figure in the pas¬ 
sage above cited, and in Isa* 
xxxiv. 13; Hos. ix. 6. The word 



NEW 

tendered nettles in Joli xxx. 7, 
and Zeph. ii. 9, is supposed to 
refer to different species of net¬ 
tles, or to some larger shrub of 
similar properties, else it could 
not afford shelter. 

NEW MOON. (See Moon, 
Feasts, Month.) 

NEW TESTAMENT. (See 
Scriptures.) 

NIBHAZ. (2 Kings xvii. 31.) 
An idol god of the Avites. The 
signification of the original word 
is the • seeing barker. Hence a 
connection is traced between this 
idol and the Anubis of the Egyp¬ 
tians, representing a dog’s head 
and a man’s body. 

NICODEMUS. (John iii. 1.) 
A ruler of the Jews, and a dis¬ 
tinguished member of the sect of 
the Pharisees, whose conversation 
with the Messiah, as recorded in 
this chapter, reveals one of the 
grand doctrines of the Christian 
system, viz. regeneration by 
the Spirit op God. The simple 
but pointed instruction he re¬ 
ceived on this occasion seems to 
have been made effectual upon 
the heart and conscience of Ni- 
codemus, as we find him after¬ 
wards evincing on more than one 
occasion his attachment to the 
Redeemer. (John vii. 45-53 ; xix. 
39.) 

NICOLAITANS, or NICO- 
LAITANES. (Rev. ii. 6, 15.) 
An ancient sect, whose deeds 
are expressly and strongly rep*"v 
bated. Some have supposed that 
the name is symbolical—Nico- 
lans corresponding to Balaam, 
and that it denotes all false and 
seducing teachers like Balaam. 
'See Nicolas.) 

NICOLAS. (Acts vi. 5.) One 
of the deacons of the church at 
Jerusalem in the days of the 


NIM 

apostles. He was a native of 
Antioch, converted to Judaism, 
and thence to Christianity. It is 
supposed by some that ho was 
the founder of the sect of Nico- 
laitans, but without sufficient 
warrant. (See Nicolaitans.) 

NICOPOLIS, (Tit. iii. 12,) the 
place where Paul determined to 
winter, is now called Nicopi , or 
Nicopoli, a town upon the river 
Nessus, (now Karasa,) which di¬ 
vided Thrace from Macedonia. 
(See the subscription to the epis¬ 
tle.) Another town of the same 
name was in Epirus, opposite Ac- 
tium, to which some have thought 
the apostle refers in the above 
passage. 

NIGHT-HAWK. (Deut. xiv. 

15. ) A species of bird unclean 
by the Levitical law, (Lev. xi. 

16, ) but not the bird known to 
us by this name. Probably the 
night-owl is intended, which is 
described as of the size of the 
common owl, and lodges in the 
large buildings or ruins of Egypt 
and Syria, and sometimes even 
in the dwelling-houses. It is ex¬ 
tremely voracious. 

NIMRIM. (Isa. xv. 6.) A 
stream in the north part of Moab, 
near to the village of Beth-nim- 
rah, (Num. xxxii. 36,) the ruins 
of which now bear the name of 
Nimrein. 

NIMROD. (Gen. x. 8.) Ths 
son of Cush. The Hebrews re 
garded him as the leader of those 
who attempted to build the towei 
of Babel; and the Orientals make 
him the author of idolatry. He 
was principally concerned in 
building both Babylon and Nine¬ 
veh. (See Assyria.) The ex¬ 
pression a mighty hunter (or a 
hunting giant) before the Lord , 
means that he was remarkably 
487 



NIN . 

skilful and powerful in hunting 
wild beasts. Before the Lord is 
a figurative phrase, signifying 
ve~y powerful. The land of Nim- 
ro<l (Mic. v. 6) is the same with 
Babylon. 

NINEVEH, (Jonah iii. 6,) the 
ftapPal of Asyria, (2 Kings xix. 
36,) and rival of Babylon, was 
situated on the Tigris, northeast 
of Babylon, probably near the 
modern village of Nania, opposite 
to Mosul. It signifies the dwelling 
of Ninus, and therefore we may 
presume was founded by Nimrod, 
(also called Ninus,) though some 
regard Ashur as the founder. 

It was a city of nineteen miles 
in length and eleven in breadth, 
and from forty-eight to sixty 
miles in circumference, (as may 
be inferred from Jonah’s account, 
Jonah iii. 3, confirmed by that of 
Strabo,) and contained a popula¬ 
tion of about six hundredthousand. 
(Jonah iv. 11.) It was surrounded 
by a wall one hundred feet high, 
and wide enough for three car¬ 
riages to go abreast, and was for¬ 
tified by fifteen hundred towers 
of two hundred feet in height. 
For its luxury and wickedness 
the judgments of God fell upon it. 
(Nah. iii. 1; Zeph. ii. 13-16.) 

Nineveh, which had long been 
mistress of the East, was first taken 
by Arbaces and Belesis, under 
the reign of Sardanapalus, in the 
time of Ahaz, king of Judah, 
about the time of the foundation 
cf Rome, b.c. 753. It was taken 
a second time by Cyaxares and 
Nabopolassar, about B.c. 632, af¬ 
ter which it no more recovered its 
former splendour. It was entirely 
ruined in the time of Lucian of 
Snmosata, who lived under the 
emperor Adrian. It was rebuilt 
under the Persians, but was de- 
488 


NO 

stroyed by the Saracens aboat the 
seventh century. 

NISAN. (See Month.) 

NITRE. (Jer. ii. 22.) An 
earthy alkaline salt, resembling 
and used like soap, which sepa¬ 
rates from the bottom of the lake 
Natrcn, in Egypt, and rising to 
the top, is condensed by the heat 
of the sun into a dry and hard 
substance, similar to the Smyrna 
soap, and is the soda of common 
earth. It is found in many other 
parts of the East. Vinegar has 
no effect upon common nitre, and 
of course this could not be meant 
by the wise man, who, in Prov. 
xxv. 20, says, As he that taketh 
away a garment in cold weather, 
and as vinegar to nitre, so is he 
that singeth songs to a heavy heart. 
Now as vinegar has no effect upon 
nitre, but on natron or soda its 
action is very obvious, it seems 
the English translation should 
have been natron. In Jeremiah, 
ch. ii. 22, the same word again is 
improperly used, For though thou 
ivash thee with nitre, and take thee 
much soap, yet thy iniquity it 
marked before me, saith the Lord 
God. The alkaline earth natron 
is obviously designed in this pas¬ 
sage. It is found, as an impure 
carbonate of soda, on the surface 
of the earth in Egypt and Syria; 
and is, also, native in some parts 
of Africa, in hard strata or mass¬ 
es, and is called trona, being 
used for the same purposes a3 the 
barilla of commerce. 

NO (Jer. xlvi. 25, Ezek. xxx. 
14) is generally supposed to be 
the famous city of Thebes, in 
Upper Egypt, extending itself on 
both sides of the Nile. (Nah. iii. 
8.) The fact is so uncertain, 
however, that we should not feel 
justified in introducing an article 



NOA 

apor ThsDes. Instead of N«, in 
Jer. xlvi. 25, it should be render¬ 
ed Ammon of No, or the seat or 
dwelling of the god Ammon. It 
was probably applied to two or 
three places. A distinction is 
sometimes made between the No 
spoken of in Nahum iii. 8-10, 
and the No mentioned by Jere¬ 
miah and Ezekiel. The destruc¬ 
tion of the former (supposed to 
be Thebes) is described in detail 
as already past, while the doom 
of the other (which is supposed 
to have been in Lower Egypt) is 
predicted by Jeremiah and Eze¬ 
kiel as a future event. 

NOAH, (Gen. vi. 8,) or, as the 
Greeks write it, Noe, (Matt. xxiv. 
37,) the ninth in descent from 
Adam, is described as a just man, 
perfect (or upright) in his gene¬ 
rations, and walking with God. 
(Gen. vi. 9.) In the midst of 
the universal corruption which 
overspread the earth, he found 
grace in the eyes of the Lord, 
and was not only warned of the 
approach of the general deluge, 
but instructed in the means of 
saving himself and his family, 
and a sufficient number of the 
animal creation, to preserve the 
several tribes. (See Ark.) Be¬ 
lieving the divine declaration, he 
prepared the ark, and diligently 
warned the world of the approach¬ 
ing judgment, but without effect. 
In due time it came. (See Flood.) 
Noah and his wife, and his three 
sons and their wives, and the 
required number of beasts and 
fowls, entered into the ark, and 
were saved. All the rest in whose 
nostrils was the breath of life, of 
all that was in the dry land, died. 
When the waters subsided, the 
ark rested on a mountain of Ar¬ 
menia. (See Ararat.) Noah 


NOD 

and his family went forth, and 
, the creatures they had preserved. 
The first act of this new progeni¬ 
tor of the human race was to of¬ 
fer a sacrifice to God, which was 
acceptable in his sight, for he im¬ 
mediately entered into a covenant 
with him, that such a judgment 
should not again visit the earth, 
nor shculd the regular succession 
of the seasons be again inter¬ 
rupted while the earth remains. 
As a token of the covenant thus 
made, God established the rain¬ 
bow. He also put the irrational 
creation in subjection to Noah, 
as he bad originally done to 
Adam, and enacted some general 
laws for his government. 

Noah became a husbandman, 
and partaking too freely of the 
fruit of the vine, exposed him¬ 
self to shame. When in this 
state he was treated indecorously 
by one of his sons, who, on that 
account, was the subject of severe 
judgments; while his brothers, 
for an opposite course of conduct, 
received peculiar blessings. Noah 
lived three hundred and fifty 
years after the flood, but the place 
of his residence is matter of vain 
conjecture. (For a particular ac¬ 
count of the settlement of Noah's 
family, see Evening Recrea¬ 
tions, vol. ii. pp. 28-50.) 

NOB (1 Sam. xxii. 19) was a 
city of the priests, in the territory 
of Benjamin, and within sight of 
Jerusalem, on the north. To this 
place David fled from the fury 
of Saul, and obtained from Ahime- 
lech, the high-priest, some of the 
shew-bread, to satisfy his hunger; 
and also Goliath's sword for his 
defence. For this act Saul caused 
the city and all'that was in it 
be destroyed. (See Ahimeleof t 

NOD, land df, (Gen. iv. If > 
489 




NOP 

probably designates no particular 
place. It might be literally ren¬ 
dered (with reference to the doom 
of Cain) land of wandering , east¬ 
ward of Eden. 

NOPII. (Isa. xix. 13; Jer. ii. 
16; Ezek. xxx. 13, '16.) The 
ancient Memphis, in middle 
Egypt, on the Nile, fifteen miles 
south of old Cairo. It was the 
residence of the earlier kings 
of Egypt, and is said to have 
been about twenty miles in 
circumference. In the seventh 
century it fell into the hands 
of the Saracens; and the pre¬ 
dicted judgments of Cod, on 
account of its idolatry and gene¬ 
ral corruption, gradually effaced 
every trace of its ancient mag¬ 
nificence. In the time of Stra¬ 
bo, there were many splendid 
remains; among which he de¬ 
scribes a temple of Vulcan, of 
great magnificence; another of 
Venus; and a third of Osiris, 
where the Apis or sacred ox was 
worshipped. He also mentions a 
large circus; but he remarks, 
that many of the palaces were in 
ruins; and describes an immense 
colossus which lay prostrate in 
the front of the city ; and among 
a nuinbor of sphinxes, some were 
buried in sand up to the middle 
of the body; while of others, 
only the heads were visible above 
the sand. Some monuments were 
to be seen six hundred years 
after the time of Strabo’s visit, 
when the Saracens had posses¬ 
sion of the country: but at pre¬ 
sent there is scarcely vestige 
of its former grandeur to be 
found. This had led some to 
conjecture that its site was over¬ 
flowed by the Nile; but it is 
much more probable that it has 
been covered by the continual 
490 


NUR 

encroa dimentof the sands, which, 
we see, were advancing in th« 
time of Strabo. And it cannot 
be doubted, but that a large part 
of ancient Egypt has already been 
completely buried by the sands 
from the wilderness. 

NORTH. (Jer. vi. 1.) North 
and south in the Scriptures ar# 
used relatively to the situation of 
countries in regard to Judea. 
Thus Syria is north; Egypt south; 
Babylon and Assyria lay to the 
northeast; but the Assyrian 
army always invaded Palestine 
from the north. (Jer. iii. 12; Dan. 
xi. 13, 14.) 

NUMBERS. This is the 
fourth in order of the books of 
the Old Testament, and derives 
its name from the circumstance 
that it contains the numbers and 
ordering of the Hebrews and 
Levites, after the erection and 
consecration of the tabernaele. 
(For an account of their removal 
from Sinai, and their subsequent 
marches in the wilderness; and 
of the wonderful dealings of Hod 
with them, until their arrival on 
the borders of Moab, see Union 
Questions, vol. iv., and Teach¬ 
ers’ Assistant in the use of the 
same. See, also, Life of Moses.) 

NURSE. (Hen. xxiv. 59.) 
This domestic relation was and 
is still one of the most important 
in Eastern families. In Syria the 
nurse is regarded as a sort of 
second parent, always accompa¬ 
nying the bride to the husband’B 
house, and ever remaining there 
an honoured guest. So it was in 
ancient Hreece. And in Hindos- 
tan, the nurse passes her days 
among the children she has helped 
to rear; and in mosques and 
mausoleums are sometimes seen 
the monuments of princely affee- 



NUT 

tion towards a favourite nurse; 
and the relation on the part of 
the nurse must have correspond¬ 
ed in tenderness and affection ; 
and hence the force of the figu¬ 
rative expressions, Isa. xlix. 23; 
l Thess. ii. 7. 

NUTS (Gen. xliii. 11) are gene¬ 
rally supposed to have been what 


NUT 

are now known as pistachio oi 
pistacia nuts, which w<*re pro¬ 
duced in great perfection plenti¬ 
fully in Syria, but not in Egypt. 
This nut is of an oblong shape, 
and, in 'its green state, of exqui¬ 
site taste.' When dried for ex¬ 
portation, they are very infe¬ 
rior. 


OAK 

AK. (Gen. xxxv. 4, 8.) There 
is a word in the Hebrew Bible 
which is often translated in our 
version oak, but which is the 
name of a tree peculiar in the 
Eastern world. This is the tere¬ 
binth, or turpentine tree, which 
abounds in Syria, Mesopotamia 
and Palestine. It grows to^a, 
considerable size, and has a r® 
and luxuriant foliage. From this 
tree is obtained the genuine tur¬ 
pentine of the ancients, and a 
rich and balsamic gum, which 
exudes from the trunk. It is 
said to live one thousand years, 
and when it dies the race is re¬ 
newed by young shoots from the 
root; so that the tree may in a 
sense be called perpetual. Hence 
the figurative allusion in Isa. vi. 
13, where the teil or linden tree 
might as well be rendered tere¬ 
binth. 

For the same reason it was an 
Important landmark, and served 
to fix the topography of the lands, 
as we find oaks very often named 
for the purpose of designating 
the locality of great events. (Josh, 
xxiv. 26; Judg. vi. 11; 2 Sam. 
xviii. 9; l Kings xiii. 14; 1 Chron. 
x. 12.) 

The strength of the oak is 
alluded to by the prophet, (Amos 
ii. 9.) and the district of Bashan 


OAT 

is often mentioned as peculiarly 
favourable to the growth of this 
tree. (Isa. ii. 13; Zech. xi. 2.) 

The word translated plains in 
several passages, (Gen. xii. 6; 
xiii. 18; xiv. 13; xviii. 1; Deut. 
xi. 30; Judg. ix. 6,) are places 
noted for clusters or groves of the 
terebinth or oak. 

The wood of the oak was used 
for idols. (Isa. xliv. 14.) 

OATH. (Heb. vi. 16.) To 
take an oath is solemnly to call 
on God to witness or take notice 
of what we affirm. It invokes 
the vengeance, or renounces the 
favour of God, if what is asserted 
is false, or if what is promised 
is not performed. It has been 
matter of doubt among some 
Christians, in almost all ages, 
whether the practice of taking an 
oath on any occasion is not a 
violation of the express command 
of our Saviour, (Matt. v. 34;) and 
there is great force in the argu¬ 
ments which are used in support 
of this opinion. Those who allow 
the practice, require that oaths 
shall never be taken but in mat¬ 
ters of importance, nor sworn by 
the name of any but the true 
God, as it is an act of solemn 
worship, (Deut. vi. 13; Josh, 
xxiii. 7; Matt. v. 34, 35; James 
v. 12;) nor irreverently, with- 
491 






OAT 

wut godly fear and awe of the 
Most High; (and he is repre¬ 
sented as a wicked man who is 
not deeply impressed with an 
oath, Eccles. ix. 2 :) not rashly, 
without caution, (Gen. xxiv. 2-8 ; 
Lev. v. 4; Matt. xiv. 7;) nor 
falsely, nor deceitfully, affirming 
what is false, or without a sincere 
intention to perform. (Lev. vi. 3 ; 
six. 12; Jer. xlii. 5.) But every 
oath ought to be sworn, in truth 
and ^ith judgment, having respect 
to the nature of an oath, and of 
the thing sworn; and with fear 
of God, by whom we swear; and 
only in things that are good, and 
for a good end. (Jer. iv. 2; 1 Cor. 
x. 31; Heb. vi. 17.) Oaths may 
be sinful, even when prescribed 
by the law of the land: they may 
contain things in themselves un¬ 
lawful, which no human laws can 
render consistent with right; or 
they may be enjoined without ne¬ 
cessity, and multiplied beyond 
reason; or administered in a 
manner so manifestly irreverent, 
that they are rather an insult to 
Jehovah, than a solemn act of 
worship. The very nature and 
terms of an oath show that athe¬ 
ists, who profess to believe that 
there is no God, and persons who 
do not believe in a future state 
of reward and punishment, can¬ 
not consistently take one. In 
their mouths an oath can only be 
vain mockery. 

God himself is represented as 
confirming his promise by oath, 
which is a mere figurative allu¬ 
sion to what is practised among 
men. (Heb. vi. 13, 16, 17.) 

The forms of swearing are 
various. Anciently the lifting 
up of one of the hands towards 
heaven, (Ps. cxliv. 8; Rev. x. 5,) 
and putting the hand under the 
492 


OBL 

thigh, (Gen. xxiv. 2,) were used. 
(See Right Hand.) To forswear 
one’s self is to swear falsely. 

OB ADIAH. (1 Kings xviii. 3.) 
A godly man, and principal officer 
in the household of Ahab, by 
whose interposition one hundred 
prophets were preserved from the 
murderous persecution of Jezebel, 
and supplied with food. 

Some have supposed that this 
was no other than the prophet of 
the same name; but there is bet¬ 
ter reason to suppose that Oba- 
diah the prophet lived at the 
same period with Jeremiah and 
Ezekiel. There are several other 
persons of this name mentioned 
in the Old Testament. 

Prophecy of, is the thirty- 
first in the order of the books of 
tfrg Old Testament. It relates to 
tV judgments impending over 
Edom, and to the restoration and 
prosperity of the Jews. Some 
portions of this prophecy are sup¬ 
posed to have relation to events 
still future. The similiarity of a 
portion of Obadiah’s prophecy 
to that of Jeremiah is striking. 
(Comp. Jer.xlix.7-10,and 14-16; 
Obad. 1-9.) 

OBED-EDOM. (1 Chron. xvi. 
38.) A Levite who lived in 
David’s time, and at whose house 
the ark was deposited, after the 
dreadful death of Uzzah. (2 Sam. 
vi. 6-10.) The blessing which 
came on the house of Obed-edom 
for the ark’s sake, encouraged 
David to remove it to Jerusalem. 
(2 Sam. vi. 10-12.) Obed-edom 
and his sons were appointed 
keepers of the doors of the taber¬ 
nacle, (1 Chron. xvi. 38,) and of 
the sacred vessels. (2 Chron. xxv 
24.) 

OBLATIONS. 'See Offer. 

ings.) 




ODE 

ODED (2 Chron. xv. 8.) A 
prophet, by whose instruction 
Asa, king of Judah, was induced 
to put away idols out of his king¬ 
dom and possessions, and to re¬ 
new the worship of the true God. 
(2 Chron. xv. 1-8.} Oded was at 
^Samaria, and when the Israelites 
returned from the war against 
Judah, with their king Pekah, 
and brought two hundred thou¬ 
sand captives, he went to meet 
them, and remonstrated so effec¬ 
tually with them that the princi¬ 
pal men in Samaria took care of 
them, gave them clothes, food 
and other assistance, with asses to 
ride upon, because the greater part 
of them were exhausted and un¬ 
able to walk. Thus they conducted 
them to their brethren at Jericho. 

OFFENCE. (Rom.ix.33.) This 
term in the sacred writings often 
means that which causes or is 
likely to cause us to sin. Thus in 
Matt. v. 27, the right eye which 
would allure to sin is said to of¬ 
fend ; and in Matt, xviii. 7, causes 
of sin, suffering or wo are called 
offences : so in Matt. xvi. 23. In 
the same sense our Saviour is 
called, in the above passage from 
Romans, a rock of offence ; where¬ 
by we understand, that to the 
Jews he was offensive in all the 
circumstances of his birth and 
history. They stumbled at his 
word, and were disobedient. A 
reference to Lev. xix, 14; Isa. 
viii. 14; Luke ii. 34; Rom. ix. 
32, 33, will furnish u sufficient 
illustration of the word and its 
connection. The offence of the 
cross (Gal. v. 11) is that, in the 
doctrines of Christ, or the cross, 
which is offensive to carnal men. 

OFFERING, (Gen. iv. 3,) OB¬ 
LATION. (Lev. ii. 7.) An of¬ 
fering, in a religious sense, is 
42 


OFF 

j whatever one offers as a gift by 
I way of reverence to a superior. 
(Matt. ii. 11.) The Jewish sa¬ 
crifices, and in general all the re¬ 
ligious sacrifices, are, properly 
speaking, oblations. Sometimes 
they seem to be used indiscrimi¬ 
nately, as in Lev. iii. 1, if his oh- 
lation be a sacrifice of peace-offer¬ 
ing, <fcc. The word sacrifice is 
sometimes used in a sense so 
general, as to embrace whatever 
is in any way devoted to the ser¬ 
vice of God; but, strictly speak¬ 
ing, offerings were simple, blood¬ 
less gifts; as all sorts of tithes, 
first-fruits in their natural state, 
meal, bread, cakes, ears of corn, 
parched grain, <fcc. To these oil 
was often added, and sometimes 
they were baked with oil. Proper 
sacrifices involved the destruction 
of animal life, or the shedding of 
blood; and also the entire or par¬ 
tial consumption of the victim by 
fire. Birds and quadrupeds con¬ 
stituted the sacrifices; hence their 
blood was forbidden to be drunk, 
but not that of fishes, which were 
not allowed to be brought to the 
altar. Probably all clean birds 
might be offered, (Lev. xiv. 4-7,) 
but not all clean beasts. The 
dove was the most common offer¬ 
ing of birds; and oxen, sheep 
and goats from among quadru¬ 
peds. No wild beast could be 
offered, and in killing and eating 
them, all idea of sacrifice was to 
be avoided, (Deut. xii. 15, 22; xv. 
22,) except that the blood was to 
be thrown away. (Deut. xv. 23.) 
Leaven and honey were excluded 
from all offerings made by fire, 
(Lev. ii. 11,) and salt was required 
in all. (Lev.'ii. 13.) 

Drink-offerings were a kind of 
accompaniment to the bloody and 
bloodless offerings. They con- 
493 



ovv 

sisted chiefly of wine, part of 
which was poured on the victim, 
and the residue was given to the 
priests. (Num. xv. 5, 7.) Among 
the offerings required by the Jew¬ 
ish law were the burnt-offering, 
(Lev. i. 4,) so calljd because the 
thing offered was entirely con¬ 
sumed; the trespass-offering, 
(Lev. v. 6,) in which the guilt of 
the offerer was confessed, and an 
atonement made; the sin-offering, 
(Lev. iv. 3;) the meat-offering, 
(Lev. ii. 1,) which was usually a 
compound of corn, flour, oil and 
frankincense, prepared in various 
ways, and burnt on the altar of 
burnt offering; the peace-offering, 
(Lev. iii. 1,) and the consecra¬ 
tion-offering. The six foregoing 
are the offerings by fire, as ex¬ 
pressly required. (Lev. vii. 37.) 
The drink-offering, which always 
attended the meat-offering, (Ex. 
xxix. 40;) the lieave-offering, 
(Ex. xxix. 27,) and the wave¬ 
offering, (Ex. xxix. 24;) the last 
two are so called from a particu¬ 
lar motion used in the presenta¬ 
tion of them. The oblation of 
the first-fruits (Lev. ii. 12) was 
regarded as a meat-offering, and 
was presented before the harvest 
was ripe, the fruit being dried or 
parched. (Lev. ii. 14.) 

The Jews were required, as a 
general rule, to bring all their 
offerings to an appointed place— 
first the tabernacle, and after¬ 
wards the temple; and the man¬ 
ner of presenting them a de¬ 
scribed in most minute detail. 

The burnt-offering was to be a 
male without blemish, of the herd 
and of the flock, offered volunta¬ 
rily at the door of the tabernacle, 
the hand of the offerer being upon 
the head of the victim. (Lev. i. 
2--4.) The animal was then 
494 


OFF 

taken to the altar, slain on the 
north side,and the blood sprinkled 
about the altar. (Lev. i. 6 ; Comp. 
Heb. xii. 24.) The east side of 
the altar was appropriated to th* 
ashes, <fcc. (Lev. i. 16.) On the 
south was the ascent to the altar, 
and on the west was the sanctu-^ 
ary. The body of the victim wa& 
flayed, opened, cut'in pieces, 
salted, laid in order on the altar 
of burnt-offering, and consumed 
to ashes. (Lev. i. 5, 8; Comp. 
Heb. iv. 12.) So of killing and 
offering fowls. (Lev. i. 14-17.) 
The end of the burnt-offering was 
an atonement for sin. (Lev. i. 4; 
Comp. Heb. x. 1-3, 11.) This 
offering constituted a morning 
and evening sacrifice, and was 
often made on other prescribed 
occasions. 

The meat-offering consisted of 
flour prepared with oil and frank¬ 
incense. (Lev. ii. 1.) It was to 
be free from leaven and honey, 
but was to have salt. (Lev. i. 11, 
13.) With this was connected 
the drink-offering, which, as be¬ 
fore observed, was never used 
separately, but was an appendage 
of wine to some sacrifices. Hence 
the condemnation of their super¬ 
stitious practice of using blood 
for a drink-offering. (Ps. xvi. 4.) 

In this, and other sacrificial 
observances, it would appear, 
that generally the offerer was to 
kill the victim, take off the skin, 
cut up the body, and wash the 
different parts. The priest was 
to sprinkle the blood, prepare the 
fire, and lay the sacrifice upon 
the altar. The Levites, and after¬ 
wards the Nethinims, assisted in 
these labours. 

The meat-offering was present¬ 
ed on prescribed occasions. I* 
always attended bumt-offeringi 



OFF 

and peace-offerings, and also the 
Bin-offering and trespass-offering 
of the leper. A handful of the 
composition was burned by the 
priest upon the altar, (Lev. ii. 16.) 
and the residue was for his own 
and his family’s use. 

The peace-offerings were vows 
of thanksgiving, or a supplica¬ 
tion for mercies, and were similar 
in kind and manner of presenta¬ 
tion, with the burnt-offering. 
(Lev. iii.) 

The sin-offering had peculiar 
respect to sins committed igno¬ 
rantly, and was modified accord¬ 
ing to the persons presenting it. 
(Comp. Lev. iv. 3, 13, 22, 27.) 
Part of the blood of the victim 
was poured out at the bottom of 
the altar; a part was sprinkled 
on the horns of the altar of in¬ 
cense ; and a part was carried by 
the priest to the most holy place. 
(Lev. xvi.) 

The trespass-offering, the man¬ 
ner and occasion of which are de¬ 
scribed, Lev. v.-vii., seems to 
have differed but slightly from 
the last. It may be remarked, 
that all the blood of the trespass¬ 
offering appears to have been 
sprinkled around the altar, and 
that it was offered only for indi¬ 
viduals, and never (as the sin- 
offering) for the congregation. 
The burnt, sin and trespass-offer¬ 
ings were of an expiatory cha¬ 
racter, though not exclusively so. 

The consecration-offerings were 
made at the time of consecrating 
‘he priests, (Lev viii. 22;) from 
which circumstance (and not 
from any thing peculiar in the 
ceremony) the name is derived. 
(See Sacrifices. See also Bib¬ 
lical Antiquities, vol. ii. ch. v., 
for a clear and most interesting 
history of the subject.) 


OLI 

OG. (Deut. iii. 1.) A king 
of Bashan, of gigantic stature, 
(Deut. iii. 11,) who opposed the 
passage of the Israelites through 
his territories. Moses, being di- 
vinely admonished of his success, 
attempted to force his way through 
the country, and succeeded in 
capturing the king, and ultimate¬ 
ly became master of the whole 
country. (Deut. iii. 3-5.) 

OIL. (Ps. xcii. 10.) Among 
Eastern nations the practice has 
prevailed, from the earliest 
periods, • of anointing the head 
with oil made fragrant with the 
richest aromatics of the East, es¬ 
pecially on festivals and other 
joyous occasions. The Greeks 
and Romans applied oil to tho 
whole body, and the modern 
Orientals anoint their beards. 
Hence the use of oil is significant 
of joy and gladness, (Ps. xxiii. 
5,) and the omission of it be¬ 
tokened sorrow. (2 Sam. xiv. 2; 
Matt. vi. 17. See Olive.) 

Oil tree (Isa. xli. 19) is pro¬ 
bably tho same with the olive tree, 
(1 Kings vi. 23;) but whether the 
olive, properly speaking, is in¬ 
tended in these passages, admits 
of some doubt. 

OINTMENT. (See Anoint.) 

OLIVE. (Job xv. 33.) The 
soil and climate of Syria were 
very favourable to the production 
of the olive. (Deut. vi. 11; vii. 
13; viii. 8; xi. 14; xxviii. 40; 

1 Kings v. 11.) The fruit is like 
a plum in shape and colour; 
being first green, then pale, and, 
when ripe, nearly black. Olives 
are sometimes plucked in an un¬ 
ripe state, and put into some 
pickle, or other preserving liquid, 
and exported. For the most part 
however, they are valuable for 
the oil they produce, and which 
495 




0L1 

la expressed from the fruit in 
various ways, and constitutes an 



important article of commerce 
and luxury. (Job xxiv. 11; Ezek. 
xxvii. 17.) The fruit is gathered 
by beating (Deut. xxiv. 20) or 
shaking the tree, (Isa. xvii. 6 ;) 
and gleanings were to be left for 
the poor. A full-sized tree in 
its vigour produces a thousand 
pounds of oil. 

The olive is a beautiful and 
durable tree, and the fruit rich 
and valuable; hence the frequent 
figurative allusions to it, which 
are self-explanatory. (Judg. ix. 
8, 9; Ps. lii. 8; cxxviii. 3; Jer. 
xi. 16; Hos. xiv. 6.) The olive 
branch is regarded universally as 
an emblem of peace. (Gen. viii. 
11 .) 

The wild olive (Rom. xi. 17) 
is smaller, and its fruit, if it pro¬ 
duces any, far inferior to the cul¬ 
tivated. 

The olives, from which oil is to 
bo expressed, must be gathered by 
the hands, or softly shaken from 
the trees before they are fully 
ripe. The best oil is that which 
monies from the fruit with very 
496 


OLI 

light press ire. This is some¬ 
times called in Scripture green 
oil, not because of its colour, for 
it is pellucid, but because ii is 
from unripe fruit. It Is translated 
in Ex. xxvii. 20, pure oil-olive 
beaten, and was used for the 
golden candlestick For the ex¬ 
traction of the first oil, panniers 
or baskets are used, which are 
gently shaken. The second and 
third pressing produces inferior 
oil. The best is obtained from 
unripe fruit; the worst, from that 
which is more than ripe. The 
oil of Egypt is worth little, be¬ 
cause the olives are too fat. 
Hence the Hebrews sent gifts of 
oil to the Egyptian kings. (Hos. 
xii. 1.) The inferior quality is 
used in making soap. jBut the 
Hebrews used oil not merely in 
lamps, and with salads, but in 
every domestic employment in 
which butter is serviceable, and 
in the meat-offerings of the tem¬ 
ple. It is observed by travellers, 
that the natives of oil countries 
manifest more attachment to this 
than to any other article of food, 
and find nothing adequately to 
supply its place. 

A press was also used for the 
extraction of the oil, consisting of 
two reservoirs, usually eight feet 
square and four feet deep, situated 
one above the other. The ber¬ 
ries, being in the upper one, were 
trodden out with the feet. Mio. 
vi. 15. 

OLIVES, Mount op, (Matt, 
xxvi. 30,) or OLIVET, (2 Sam. 
xv. 30,) or Mount of Corrup¬ 
tion, (2 Kings xxiii. 13,) over¬ 
looks Jerusalem on the oast, so 
that every street, and almost 
every house may be distinguished 
from its summit. It doubtless 
had its name from the abundance 




OLI 

of olives which grew upon it; 
some of which, of remarkable age 
and size, are still standing. 

A late traveller describes the 
mount of Olives as about a mile 
in length, and about seven hun¬ 
dred feet in height. To a spec¬ 
tator on the west, it has a gently 
waving outline, and appears to 
have three summits of nearly 
equal height. On the top of the 
centre one is a church, erected 
over the spot where, they inform 
us, our Saviour ascended into 
heaven; and, in confirmation of 
the tradition, point to a -stone 
with the impression of the left 
foot, made, as they pretend, when 
he was about leaving the earth; 
that of the right foot having been 
carried away by the Turks. On 
Ascension-day they come up in 
great crowds, and have service 
here. The chapel had been 
shaken down by a recent earth¬ 
quake, and the floor was covered 
by rubbish, so that he did not 
see the stone of such sacred pre¬ 
tensions. In Luke xxiv. 50, it is 
very clearly stated, that the as¬ 
cension occurred near Bethany, 
which is on the eastern side of 
the mountain, more than a mile 
from this. (Comp, this passage 
with Acts i. 12, where the ascen¬ 
sion is also spoken of.) There 
are two roads to Bethany; one 
around the southern end of the 
mount of Olives, and one across 
its summit,—the latter being con¬ 
siderably shorter, but more diffi¬ 
cult. It was probably on this 
latter road, in the descent to 
Bethany, that the Saviour was 
taken up from the apostles. 

u From this central he ; ght a 
ridge stretches off towards the 
eastfora distance of three-fourths 
of a mile, when it terminates by 
42* 2 


OMR 

a bold descent. We were con¬ 
ducted to the end of it, in order 
to enjoy the view eastward, which 
is very extensive. The plain of 
Jordan, the mountain beyond, 
the Dead Sea, and the dark and 
singular chain of mountains on the 
east of it, were in full view, as well 
as all the intermediate country. 
Some of us thought that we coul<3 
see the waters of the Jordan* 
but, although this was uncertain 
we could easily trace the course 
of the river through the plain, 
by the verdure; and, where this 
failed, by the broken nature of the 
ground. Beyond it towered the 
lofty mountains of Moab, rising, 
peak above peak, in great ma¬ 
jesty, including among them 
mount Nebo.” 

(For a minute description of 
the geography and scenery of 
mount Olivet, see Selumiel, ch. 
viii. pp. 154-169.) 

OMEGA. (See Alpha.) 

OMER. (See Measures.) 

OMRI. (1 Kings xvi. 16.) 
An officer in the army of Israel. 
He was engaged in the siege of 
Gibbethon, a Philistine city, when 
he received intelligence that 
Zimri, another officer of the army, 
had assassinated the king, and 
had usurped the throne. The 
army, by general acclamation, 
made Omri king, and, raising 
the siege of Gibbethon, they 
forthwith marched to Tizrah, 
where Zimri resided, aDd cap¬ 
tured it. Zimri set fire to the 
house he occupied, and was con¬ 
sumed. The Israelites were f hen 
divided into two parties, but, 
after a short struggle, Omri pre¬ 
vailed, and took the throne, which 
he polluted and disgraced through 
a reign of twelve years. Omri 
built Samaria, which thereafter 
G 497 



GN 

became the capital of the ten 
tribes* 

ON, (Gen. xli. 45,) or AYEN, 
(Ezek. xxx. 17,) is the same with 
Bethshemesh, or house of the sun, 
(Jer. xliii. 13,) and was called by 
the Greeks Heliopolis, or city of 
the sun. These names are given 
to the place because it was the 
principal seat of the Egyptian 
worship of the sun. It was one 
of the oldest cities in the world, 
and was situated in Egypt, in the 
land of Goshen, on the east of the 
Nile, about five miles above mo¬ 
dern Cairo. Eighteen centuries 
ago this city was in ruins, when 
visited by Strabo. 

According to Josephus, this 
city was given to the family of 
Jacob, when they first came to 
sojourn in Egypt; and we know 
that it was a daughter of the 
priest of the temple situated here 
who was given in marriage to 
Joseph. Here also, in the time 
of Ptolemy Philadelphus, Onias, a 
Jew, obtained leave to erect a 
temple similar to the one at Je¬ 
rusalem, which was for a long 
time frequented by the Hel¬ 
lenist Jews. There is an appa¬ 
rent reference to it by several of 
the prophets. (See passages above 
cited.) 

The ruins of this ancient city 
lie near the modern village Ma- 
t area, .about six miles from Cairo, 
towards the northeast. Nothing 
now remains but immense dikes 
and mounds, full of pieces of 
marble, granite and pottery, some 
remnants of a sphinx, and an 
obelisk, still erect, of a single 
block of granite, fifty-eight feet 
above ground, and covered with 
hieroglyphics. 

ONESIMUS. (Col. iv. 9.) A 
servant of Philemon, at Colosse, 
49S 


ONY 

who, having been guilty of some 
delinquency, had flea to Rome; 
and, being converted under the 
preaching of Paul, was sent back 
to Philemon with a most affec¬ 
tionate letter, commending the 
penitent, not only to the forgive¬ 
ness of Philemon, but to his love 
and confidence as a fellow-disci¬ 
ple. (See Philemon.) 

ONESIPHORUS. (2 Tim. i. 
16.) A primitive Christian, re¬ 
sident at Ephesus, where he mi¬ 
nistered very seasonably to the re¬ 
lief and comfort of Paul. (2 Tim. 
i. 18.) When Paul was impri¬ 
soned at Rome, Onesiphorus came 
thither, and again afforded timely 
relief to the afflicted apostle; for 
which he expresses his gratitude 
in the warmest terms in the pas¬ 
sage above cited. 

ONION. (Num. xi. 5.) A 
well-known garden vegetable, 
which grew in great perfection 
in Egypt. The onions of Egypt 
are described by travellers as of 
large size and exquisite flavour ; 
differing (says one) from the 
onions of our country as much as 
a bad turnip differs in palatable¬ 
ness from a good apple. 

0N0. (Neh. vi. 2.) A city 
and its suburbs, occupying a small 
section of the plain of Sharon. 
It was about five miles from Lod, 
or Lydda, (1 Chron. viii. 12,) and 
is called the valley of Charashim, 
or the craftsmen. (1 Chron. iv. 14; 
Neh. xi. 35.) 

ONYCHA. (Ex. xxx. 34.) An 
ingredient of the sacred incense, 
which was prepared under divine 
direction. It was probably an 
odoriferous shell or gum. A 
species of muscle is still found in 
the Red Sea, the shell of which, 
when burnt, emits a smell noi 
unlike musk. 



ONY 

ONYX, (Ex. xxviii. 20,) or 
banded agate. A precious stone 
(Ex. xxr. 7) or gem, (Ezek. xxviii. 

13, ) exhibiting two or more 
colours disposed in parallel bands 
or zones. It was obviously of 
high value, from the uses made 
of it, (Ex. xxviii. 9-12, 20; xxxix. 
6, 13,) and from its being named 
with other highly valuable sub- 
Btances. (Job xxviii. 16.) Per¬ 
haps the onyx used in the con¬ 
struction of the temple (1 Cfiron. 
xxix. 2) was a species of marble 
resembling the onyx. 

OPHEL. (2 Chron. xxvii. 3.) 
In the angle formed by the east¬ 
ern extremity of mount Zion and 
the southern extremity of mount 
Moriah, or, in other words, at 
the outlet of the valley of Cheese¬ 
mongers, there was a considerably 
elevated point, called Ophel. It 
was strongly defended by its 
natural position, and by a tower, 
and was separated from mount 
£ion by a wall. (2 Chron. xxxiii. 

14. ) This tower is perhaps in¬ 
tended in Mic. iv. 8. In some 
modern maps this is called Ophlas. 

OPHIR. (1 Kings ix. 28.) A 
country of the East, celebrated 
for its production of gold and 
precious stones. (1 Kings x. 11; 
2 Chron. viii. 18; ix. 10.) It is 
supposed to have been settled by 
the descendants of Joktan. (Gen. 
x. 29.) It is certain that its gold 
was renowned in the time of Job, 
(Job xxii. 24; xxviii. 16;) and 
that, from the time of David to 
the time of Jehoshaphat, the He¬ 
brews traded with it, and that 
{Jzziah revived this trade when 
he made himself master of Elath, 
a noted port on the Red Sea. In 
Solomon’s time the Hebrew fleet 
look up three years in their voy¬ 
age to Ophir, and brought home 


ORA 

gold, apes, peacocks, spices, ivory, 
ebony and almug irees. 

The articles imported from this 
place, the port from which the 
ships sailed engaged in the trade, 
and the time required for the 
performance of the voyage, all go 
to prove that Ophir could not be 
anywhere in the west of Asia, oj 
on the continent of Europe; and 
some of these facts are also suffi¬ 
cient to render it entirely impro¬ 
bable that it was anywhere on 
the coast of Arabia, or even any¬ 
where on the coast of Africa. It 
seems far more probable that this 
place was situated somewhere in 
the East Indies; but the precise 
spot, or even district, cannot now 
be ascertained. Not fewer than 
sixteen different countries have 
been regarded as the site of 
Ophir. 

OPHNI. (Josh, xviii. 24.) A 
city of Benjamin, latterly called 
Gophna, between Shechem and 
Jerusalem. It is mentioned by 
profane historians among the 
places through which Vespasian 
and Titus passed in their march 
of conquest. 

OPHRAH, (Judg. vi. 11,) or 
APHRAH. (Mic. i. 10.) There 
were two cities of this name: one 
in the territory of Benjamin, 
(Josh, xviii. 23; 1 Sam. xiii. 17;) 
and the other in that of Manas, 
seh, where Gideon was born. 
(Judg. vi. 11; viii. 27; ix. 5.) 

ORACLE. (2 Sam. xvi. 23.) 
This term is sometimes applied 
to the most holy place, whence 
God declared his will to ancient 
Israel. (1 Kings vi. 5, 19-23* 
viii. 6.) It is also applied to the 
sacred writings, which were in¬ 
trusted to the nation of Israel. 
(Acts vii. 38 ; Rom. iii. 2.) It if 
probable that the oracles of the 
499 




ORD 

heathen world were invented in 
imitation of the responses given 
by Jehovah to the patriarchs and 
priests of ancient days. 

ORDINANCES. (Ex. xviii. 
20.) As used by the sacred 
writers, the term generally de¬ 
notes established laws, rules, or 
appointments of God’s govern¬ 
ment. 

OREB. (Judg. vii. 25.) A 
prince of Midian, whose fate is 
alluded to, Ps. lxxxiii. 11; and 

IS ORGAN. (Gen. iv. 21.) The 
organ, as it is called, is thought 
to have been what the ancient 
Greeks called the pipe of Pan. 
It consisted of seven or more 
reeds of unequal length. These 
are still used by the shepherds 
of the East, and, in skilful hands, 
produce quite tolerable music. 

ORION. (Job ix. 9.) A con¬ 
stellation of about eighty stars, 
seen in the southern hemisphere 
about the middle of November; 
and hence associated with cold 
and frost, figuratively represented 
as bands which no human power 
can dissolve. (Job xxxviii. 31.) 

ORNAN. (See Araunah.) 

OSEE. (Rom. ix. 25.) The 
Greek form of writing Hosea. 

OSPRAY, OSSIFRAGE, (Lev. 
xi. 13,) are both reckoned among 
unclean birds, and probably both 
belonged to the eagle family. 
The black eagle of Egypt might 
have been the ospray; and the 
sea eagle of modern science, the 
ossifrage. 

OSTRICH. (Job xxxix. 13.) 
A remarkable bird, of the hot re¬ 
gions of Africa and Arabia, often 
attaining the height of seven feet, 
of which the head and neck make 
three. It is also seven feet from 
the head to the end of the tail, 
500 


OST 

when the necK is stretched hori¬ 
zontally on a line with the body 



It loves solitary and desolata 
places; and is the bird intended 
in Job xxx. 29; Isa. xiii. 21; 
xxxiv. 13; Jer. 1. 39, (though 
called the owl,) and its cry is 
piercing and mournful. 

The plumage of the ostrich is 
white and black. Its weight, 
(which is often seventy-five or 
eighty pounds,) and the construc¬ 
tion of its body, prevent its 
flying. 

The habits of this bird are de¬ 
scribed with scientific accuracy in 
Job xxxix. 13-18. Its timidity 
is such, that the least noise 
frightens it from the nest, w T hich 
is often made on the ground, and 
in the most exposed places ; and 
from the same cause the young 
of the ostrich are often suddenly 
abandoned. Hence she seems 
to be regarded as lacking the 
usual share of instinct or natural 
affection. (Lam. iv. 3.) A modern 
traveller tells us that the Arabs 
meet sometimes with whole nests 
of these eggs, (containing troin 
thirty to fifty in number,) five in¬ 
ches in diameter, and weighing 








OST 

several pounds; some of them 
are sweet and good, others are 
addled and corrupted; others, 
again, have their young ones of 
different growth, according to the 
time, it may be presumed, since 
they have been forsaken of the 
dam. They often meet with a 
few of the little ones no bigger 
than well-grown pullets, half 
starved, straggling and moaning 
about, like so many distressed 
orphans, for their mother. In this 
manner, the ostrich may be said 
to be hardened against her young 
ones, as though they loere not her’s; 
her labour, in hatching and at¬ 
tending them so far. being vain, 
without fear, or the least concern 
of what becomes of them after¬ 
wards. 

The most remarkable charac¬ 
teristic of the ostrich is the ra¬ 
pidity with which it runs, and 
which the fleetest horse cannot 
equal. The surprising swiftness 
of this bird is expressly men¬ 
tioned by Xenophon. Speaking 
of the desert of Arabia, he states 
that the ostrich is frequently seen 
there ; that none could take them, 
the horsemen who pursue them 
soon giving it over; for they es¬ 
caped far away, making use both 
of their feet to run, and of their 
wings, when expanded, as a sail 
to waft them along. This repre¬ 
sentation is confirmed by the 
writer of a voyage to Senegal, 
who says, “She sets off at a hard 
gallop; but, after being excited a 
little, she expands her wings as 
if to catch the wind, and aban¬ 
dons herself to a speed so great, 
that she seems not to touch the 
ground. I am persuaded,” con¬ 
tinues that writer, “she would 
leave far behind the swiftest Eng¬ 
lish courser.” 


OVE 

The Persians call the ostrich 
the camel-bird. (See Peacock. 
For a fnll description of the 
ostrich, see Bedouin Arabs, p. 
36.) 

OTHNIEL. (Judg. i. 13.) The 
son of Kenaz, who displayed his 
valour in seizing the cit}' of I)ebir, 
or Kirjath-sepher, for which ex* 
ploit he was rewarded by the gift 
of the daughter of hi? uncle, 
Caleb, in marriage. Afterwards 
he was made the instrument of 
delivering the Israelites from the 
oppression of the king of Meso¬ 
potamia. (Judg. iii. 8, 9.) 

OUCHES (Ex. xxxix. 6) were 
probably sockets for fastening the 
precious stones into the shoulder- 
pieces of the high-priest’s ephod. 
These ouches, with their stones, 
are supposed to have served for 
buttons to confine the golden 
chains whereon the breast-plate 
was hung. (Ex. xxviii. 11, 25.) 

OUTER. (Matt. viii. 12.) This 
word, when connected as it fre¬ 
quently is with darkness, implies 
the uttermost degree or very ex¬ 
treme of darkness, both as it re¬ 
spects depth, or intensity, and 
duration. 

OVENS. (Ex. viii. 3.) In the 
Eastern cities the ovens, at the 
present day, are not materially 
different from our own. The more 
common way of constructing 
them in the country, however, is 
to take a jar, or pot, of a cylin¬ 
drical shape, and after having 
partly filled it with pebbles, to 
apply heat, and use it for baking. 
The dough is plastered upon the 
cutside, and, when baked, (as it 
is almost instantly,) comes off in 
thin cakes. All Eastern bread is 
of this thin sort. The bread 
made in this way is clean and 
white. The Bedouin Arabs uss 
501 



OVE 

three or four different ovens, the 
description of which may throw 
some light upon the oven of the 
Bible: 

1. The sand oven. — This is 
nothing more than the sand of 
the earth, upon which a fire is 
made, until it is supposed to be 
sufficiently heated. The fuel and 
fire are then cleared away, and 
the dough is laid on the hot sand, 
in flat pieces, about the thick¬ 
ness of a plate. (Isa. xliv. 15,19.) 
These are the ash-cakes. (Gen. 
xviii. 6; 1 Kings xvii. 13; xix. 6. 
See Cake.) 

2. The earth oven is a round 
hole in the earth. Stones are 
first put into this, and a fire is 
kindled upon them. When the 
stones have become 
thoroughly hot, the 
fire is removed, and 
the dough spread in 
thin flakes upon the 
heated stones, and 
turned as often as may 
be necessary. A mo¬ 
dern traveller tells us 
that this kind of bread 
is left all night in the 
earth oven; and the 
ovens used in Persia 
are about two and a 
half feet wide, and 
not less than five or 
six feet deep. Le 
Bruyn tells us that 
they resemble pits or wells, and 
that sheep are hung lengthwise 
in them, and cooked whole. 

hese may be what are ren- 

ered in our version ranges for 
pots. (Lev. xi. 35.) 

3. Portable oven .—This is an 
larthen vessel, without a bottom, 
ibout threo feet high: smeared 
♦utside and inside with clay, and 
placed upon a frame, or support. 

502 


OWL 

Fire is made within it, or below it. 
When the sides are sufficiently 
heated, thin patches of dough are 
spread on the inside, and the top 
is covered without removing the 
fire as in the other case? • and the 
bread is quickly baked. To this 
we may refer the phrase baken in 
the oven. (Lev. ii. 4.) 

Convex plates of iron, pans or 
plates, flat stones, &c. are often 
used for baking. (See Bake, 
Bread.) 

OWL. (Lev. xi. 16.) Though 
the owl is frequently mentioned 
in our Scriptures, it seldom if 
ever denotes the bird known to 
us by this name. The allusions 
of the sacred writers are evident¬ 
ly to some bird that loves soli- 


The common owl. 

tary and desolate places. Some 
versions render the original words 
translated great owl (Lev. xi. 17) 
the ibis, and the little owl in the 
same passage some kind of water- 
bird. The screech owl (Isa. xxxiv. 
14, rendered night-monster in the 
margin) must have resembled the 
barn owl, known to us as the 
common screech or white owl. It 
haunts deserted barns, and old 











ox 

*nd decayed buildings; and in 
iurope, old towers and buildings 
in the vicinity of churchyards. 
By night it seeks its prey, and 
often makes a doleful and even 
frightful sound, rendered more so 
by the surrounding stillness. (See 
Ostrich.) 

OK.. (Isa. i. 3.) A well-known 
domestic animal, clean by the 


OX 

Levitical law, strong and patient 
of labour, of great use in agri¬ 
cultural pursuits, and forming a 
large item of the wealth of the 
patriarchs. (Gen. xxiv. 35; xxx. 
43; Job i. 3.) They were used 
for ploughing, (Deut. xxii. 10; 1 
Kings xix. 19; Job i. 14; Prov. 
xiv. 4; Isa. xxx. 24;) for draw 
ing, (Num. vii. 3, 7, 8;) for 



threshing or treading out grain, 
(Deut. xxv. 4; 1 Cor. ix. 9;) and 
‘or food. (1 Kings xix. 21; 1 
Chron. xii. 39, 40; Matt. xxii. 4.) 

The wild ox is mentioned, Deut. 
xiv. 5, and the wild bull, Isa. li. 
20 ; the former is thought to be a 
ipecies of the stag or goat; but 


Dut there is no reason to doubt 
that the animal might be found 
in a wild state in Judea, or some 
of the mountainous districts in 
its vicinity. In this engraving 
we have grouped together tin 
principal domestic animals of 
Judea. 
















PAD 

ADAN-ARAM, (Gen. xxv 

20,) or the plain of Syria, one 
of the Hebrew names of Meso¬ 
potamia. (See Mesopotamia.) 

PALESTINA. (ts. *v. 14.) 
The country lyiDg along the 
Mediterranean euast, between 
Joppa and Gaza, was >uhabited 
by the Philistines, and was hence 


PAL 

called Palestina; but in the 
above passage, and in Isa. xiv. 
29-31, it seems to denote the 
whole of Judea, as the word Pa 
lestine does in its modern accep 
tation. 

PALM TREES. (Ex. xv. 27.) 
The palm tree abounds in Arabia, 
Egypt and the whole of sou them 



The Palm tree. 


Asia, from the Indus to the Nile, 
but is rare in Palestine. Yet, in 
ancient times, when the land was 
peopled with many industrious 
504 


inhabitants, It was very common. 
(Lev. xxiii. 40; Deut. xxxiv. 3; 
Judg. i. 16; iii. 13; iv. 5.) An¬ 
cient historians corroborate these 
















PAL 

statement®, and inform us that 
the region of the Dead Sea was 
noted for the palm, of which there 
were groves twelve miles in ex¬ 
tent. 

The palm tree is found upon 
ancient Hebrew coins, as the 
symbol of Judea; and Roman 
coins, struck after the conquest 
of Judea, have a palm with an 
inscription commemorating that 
event. 

The general figure and appear¬ 
ance of this tree is familiar to our 
minds, from pictures and descrip¬ 
tions. It grows in sandy soils, in 
hot and dry climates, but flou¬ 
rishes best in the vicinity of 
streams, and where it can be 
watered, and in valleys and plains, 
especially where the water is 
moderately salt or brackish. It 
is always green, and grows to a 
great height—from sixty to one 
hundred feet. Its straight and 
slender trunk rises very high be¬ 
fore it puts forth any branches, 



and its foliage is in one mass at 
the top. (Sol. Song vii. 7; Jer. 
x. 5.) This ever green and state- j 
ly tree is the emblem of the right- I 
eous. (Ps. i. 3, and xcii. 12.) The i 
columns of costly edifices were I 
43 


PAL 

sometimes hewn in imitation of 
its trunk, a3 may be observed in 
some of the ruins of Egypt. Palm 
trees were carved upon the doors 
of the temple. (1 Kings vi. 32. 
Comp. Ezek. xli. 19.) 

Strictly speaking, the paim has 
no branches; but at the summit, 
from forty to eighty twigs, or 
leaf-stalks, spring forth, which 
are intended in Neh. viii. 15. The 
leaves are set around the trunk 
in circles of about six. The lower 
row is of great length, and the 
vast leaves bend themselves in a 
curve towards the earth; as the 
circles ascend, the leaves are 
shorter. In the month of Febru¬ 
ary, thero sprout from between 
the junctures of the lower stalks 
and the trunk little scales, which 
develope a kind of bud, the germ 
of the coming fruit. These germs 
are contained in a thick and tough 
skin, not unlike leather. Accord¬ 
ing to the account of a modern 
traveller, a single tree in Barbary 
and Egypt bears from fifteen to 
twenty large clusters of dates, 
weighing from fifteen to twenty 
pounds each. The palm tree 
lives more than two hundred 
years, and is most productive from 
the thirtieth until the eightieth 
year. The Arabs speak of three 
hundred and sixty uses to which 
the different parts of the palm 
tree are applied. 

The inhabitants of Egypt, Ara¬ 
bia and Persia depend much on 
the fruit of the palm tree for their 
subsistence. Camels feed on the 
seed; and the leaves, branches, 
fibres and sap are all very valu¬ 
able. 

When the dates are ripe, they 
are plucked by the hand, or are 
shaken into a net which is hold 
below. The person who ascend? 

505 



PAI 

the lofty trunk is assisted by 
the ragged processes or scales 
with which the body of the tree 
is armed. (For an illustrative 
engraving of the process of 
gathering dates, see Hebrew 
Customs, pp. 73-78.) The dates 
ripen at different times, so that 
a tree is commonly ascended 
two or three times in a season. 
When gathered they are spread 
upon mats in the open air, and 
after a few days begin to be used. 
Some are eaten fresh, and some 
laid aside for future use. Others 
yield a rich syrup, which being 
expressed, the remaining mass is 
steeped in hot water, and, after 
being macerated and cleansed, 
affords a pleasant drink. These 
different kinds of S 3 Tup are the 
celebrated dote wine , which was 
greatly prized in ancient times by 
the Orientals. Some suppose it to 
be the strong drink often named 
in the Scriptures; but this term 
rather designates all intoxica¬ 
ting liquors except wine. (See 
Wine.) 

The shoots, which are annually 
cut away from the bottom of the 
tree, and the leaves themselves, 
are used for making ropes, bas¬ 
kets, sacks, mats, fans, hats and 
sandals. The Hebrews were ac¬ 
customed to carry these branches 
in the solemn festivities of the 
feast of tabernacles, and to strew 
them in the way of triumphal pro¬ 
cessions. Thus branches were 
spread in the way of Christ, upon 
his entry into Jerusalem. (John 
xii. 13.) 

The branches of the palm were 
anciently used as a symbol of 
victory, and carried before the 
conqueror in triumphal procos- 
sions. Hence the force and beauty 
of the figure, Rev. vii. 9. 

506 


PAN 

The word Tamar, signifying a 
palm, was a common female name 
among the Hebrews, and was 
derived from the tail, straight 
and graceful appearance of the 

PALMER-WORM. (Joel. i. 4.) 
A destructive insect of the cater¬ 
pillar or locust tribe, figuratively 
spoken of in these oassages, as an 
instrument employed to afflict the 
rebellious Jews. (Amos iv. 9.) 

PALSY. (Matt. iv. 24.) Adis 
ease which deprives the part af¬ 
fected of sensation, or the power 
of motion, or both. As the term 
is used in the New Testament, it 
imports apoplexy, or paralysis of 
the whole system; paralysis of one 
side; a paralysis affecting the 
whole body below the neck, and 
a paralysis caused by a contrac¬ 
tion of the muscles, so that the 
limbs can neither be drawn up 
nor extended, and soon become 
emaciated and dried up. (1 Kings 
xiii. 4-6; Matt. xii. 10-13; Luke 
vi. 6; John v. 5-7.) 

A fearful disease called palsy 
is known in Eastern countries. 
The limbs remain immovably 
fixed in the position in which they 
were at the time of the attack; 
and the suffering is so exquisitely 
severe, that death is often occa¬ 
sioned in a few days. (Matt.viii. 6.) 

PAMPHYLIA. (Acts xiii. 13.) 
A hilly province of Asia Minor, 
lying north of the Mediterranean, 
between Cilicia and Lycia. Perga 
was once its chief town, and was 
twice visited by the apostle Paul. 

PANNAG. (Ezek. xxvii. 17.) 
Our translators seem to have been 
at a loss to find an English term 
by which to render it. It ap¬ 
pears to have been some kind of 
delicate spice. It has been inter 
preted to mean balsam, cassia. 




PAP 

sweat**-^t8, millet, panax. I; 
would seem, from the manner of 
printing tho word in our received 
translation, with a capital initial, 
that a place rather than an arti¬ 
cle of merchandise was intended. 
Modern expositors seem to be in 
the same predicament as were our 
translators. 

PAPER, PAPER REEDS. 
(Seo Book.) 

PAPHOS. (Acts xiii. 6.) A 
celebrated maritime city, lying 
at the western extremity of the 
island of Cyprus, now called Baffa. 
It was the place where Barjesus, 
or Elymas the sorcerer, was struck 
with blindness; and where Ser¬ 
gius Paulus was converted to 
Christianity. (See Cyprus.) 

PARABLE, (Num. xxiii. 7,) or 
PROVERB, (John xvi. 29,) is a 
form of speech in which some¬ 
thing is presented to us in lieu of 
some other thing which it re¬ 
sembles, and which we wish to 
illustrate. (Matt. xiii. 3-52.) It 
is derived from a Greek word 
signifying to compare together. 
Thus a narrative of events, either 
real or supposed, is made the me¬ 
dium by which the attention is 
arrested, offence is avoided, con¬ 
viction is secured, and important 
truth is illustrated and enforced 
with great power upon the heart 
and conscience. (Judg. ix. 7-20; 
2 Sam. xii. 1-9; 2 Kings xiv. 9; 
Eccl. xii. 1-7.) Our Saviour’s 
parables are remarkable for clear¬ 
ness, force, simplicity and appro¬ 
priateness; and they are always 
employed to convey truths of the 
first importance. They relate to 
daily objects, (Matt. xx. 1-14; 
Mark. iv. 26-29;) to domestic 
labours, fWatt. xiii. 33;) to com¬ 
mon oc co -ences,(Luke vii. 36-50; 
z. it) S7 ind to the scenery by 


PAR 

which he and his audience wer* 
surrounded. (Matt. xiii. 47-50; 
Luke xiii. 6-9; John ; v. 35-38.) 
Thus they were especially adapted 
to his unlearned and prejudiced 
hearers, and, being easily appro 
hended, the force of them was in- 
stantly felt and acknowledged. 

PARADISE. (Luke xxiii. 43; 
Rev. ii. 7.) Tnis is a word of 
Persian origin, and means a gar¬ 
den, orchard or other enclosed 
place, filled with objects fitted to 
regale the senses. Hence it is 
used figuratively for any place of 
peculiar happiness, and particu¬ 
larly for the kingdom of perfect 
happiness which is the abode of 
tho blessed beyond the grave. (2 
Cor. xii. 4. See Eden.) 

PARAN, wilderness of, (Gen. 
xxi. 21,) was situated south of 
Jordan, and extended to tho pen¬ 
insula of Sinai, and from the 
Dead Sea to the desert of Egypt; 
so that, in its largest sense, it in¬ 
cluded the deserts of Kadesh and 
Zin. It was in this wilderness 
that Hagar dwelt with Ishmael, 
and to this place David retired 
after the death of Samuel. (1 
Sam. xxv. 1.) Nearly all the 
wanderings of the children of 
Israel were in the great and ter¬ 
rible wilderness of Paran. (Deut. 
i. 19. Comp. Num. x. 12, and xii. 
16.) It is now a dreary expanse 
of calcareous soil, covered with 
black flints. 

Mount Paran was within tho 
wilderness of Paran. A modern 
traveller represents its appear¬ 
ance as singular and indescribably 
grand. Its sides are formed of 
precipitous rocks, and three sharp- 
pointed summits rise like towers. 
When seen, as it reflects the rich 
beams of the rising or declining 
sun, the sublime description of the 
507 



PAR 

prophet forces itself upon the 
jnind. (Deut. xxxiii. 2; Hab. iii. 3.) 

PARCHMENTS. (2 Tim. iv. 
13.) Tne skins of beasts were 
early and extensively used for 
writing. Herodotus says that the 
Ionians, who received the art from 
the Phenicians, wrote upon sheep¬ 
skins, which, he adds, the barba¬ 
rians also do, (b. c. 500.) Very 
slight preparation was used, until 
under Eumenes, a king of Perga- 
mus, a mode of preparing fine 
parchment was discovered,whence 
the prepared skins were called 
by the Latins pergamena, which 
is translated parchments. (See 
Book.) The mode of preparing 
it is to remove the wool or hair 
and every particle of flesh from 
the skin; then scrape it with an 
iron instrument while wet, and 
stretch it tight on a frame, and 
then rub and smooth it with a 
pumice stone; after which it is fit 
for writing. 

Vellum is prepared in nearly 
the same manner, from the skins 
of very young calves. It is much 
finer and whiter, and was for¬ 
merly in common use. 

PARDON. (Ps. xxv. 11.) The 
scriptural import of this term is 
very imperfectly indicated by the 
common acceptation of it among 
men. In the dispensation of 
grace, pardon is inseparably con¬ 
nected with justification. Hence 
It is spoken of as the covering of 
sin, (Ps. lxxxv. 2,) the non-impu¬ 
tation of it* (Ps. xxxii. 2 ;) a blot¬ 
ting out, (Ps. li. 1, 9; Isa. xliii. 
25;) forgetting it, (Heb. viii. 12;' 
passing by it, or removing it to 
an immeasurable distance from 
us. (Is. ciii. 12; Mic. vii. 19.) 

It is evident that God only has 
power to bestow pardon, (Mark, 
ii. 7 10-12;) and that it proceeds 
508 


PAR 

from free, sovereign grace, (Eph 
i. 6, 7,) through the mediation 
and atonement of Jesus Christ* 
(Heb. ix. 9-28; 1 John i. 7.) 

Men are commissioned to preach 
pardon and salvation through the 
blood of Christ; but no man can 
forgive sin, or protend to the right 
and power of absolution, without 
direct and daring blasphemy. 

PARLOUR. (See Dwellings ) 

PARTHIANS, (Acts. ii. 9,) or 
the inhabitants of Parthia, origin¬ 
ally a province of Media, on its 
eastern side, situated between the 
Persian Gulf and the Tigris. The 
Parthians seem to have resembled 
the Cossacks of our day, and were 
celebrated for their skill in arch¬ 
ery, and especially for shooting as 
they fled, and were a part of the 
Scythian horde who so long dis¬ 
puted with Rome for the dominion 
of the East. Parthia was united 
to the Persian empire, A. D. 226. 
The Persian language wan spoken 
there; and indeed in Scripture 
and other ancient writings, Per¬ 
sia and Parthia are often used in¬ 
terchangeably. 

PARTITION, MIDDLE WALL 
op, (Eph. ii. 14,) is supposed to 
have reference to the wall in tho 
temple which separated the court 
of Israel from the court of the 
Gentiles. In this passage it is 
figuratively used to denote what¬ 
ever in their laws or customs sepa¬ 
rated tho Jews from the Gentiles, 
and rendered the former any more 
the objects of divine favour than 
the latter. 

PARTRIDGE. (Jer.xvii.il.) 
The bird commonly known by this 
name is also known in the East. 
Travellers tell us that the Arabs 
esteem their flesh a luxury, 
and pursue them until they are 
weary with flying, whoa they 




PAS 

*nem with the hand. The figu¬ 
rative allusion in 1 Sam. xxvi. 20, 



may express the laborious and 
persevering zeal with which Saul 
pursued David; and in Jer. xvii. 
11, reference is probably made to 
the exposure of the partridge’s 
nest, which is built on the ground, 
and is exposed to be trampled on 
and destroyed, and from which 
she is also liable to be driven sud¬ 
denly by similar causes. 

PAS-DAMMIM. (1 Chron. xi. 
13.) A valley on the northwest 
of Judah, the same with Ephes- 
dammim, (1 Sam. xvii. 1.) 

PASSENGERS, valley op 
the. (Ezek. xxxix. 11.) A plain 
on the east of the Jordan, at the 
-outhern extremity of the wa of 
Tiberias, where there is a ford or 
passage over the river. 

PASSION. (Acts i. 3.) Tho 
word, in this connection, denotes 
the last sufferings of Christ, or 
rather his death, as tho consum¬ 
mation of his sufferings. The ex¬ 
pression in Acts xiv. 15, and James 
v. 17, signifies like propensities, 
feelings and susceptibilities. 

PASSOVER. (Lev. xxiii. 5.) 
A Jewish feast, appointed to corn- 
43* 


PAS 

memorate the exemption or pruts 
ing over of the families of the Is¬ 
raelites, when the de- 
stroying angel smote 
thefirstborn of Egypt; 
and also their depar¬ 
ture from the land of 
bondage. 

On the fourteenth 
dayof thefirstmonth, 
(Nisan,) between the 
ironings, the pass 
over was to be cele 
brated; and on the 
fifteenth day com 
menced the seven 
days’ feast of unlea¬ 
vened bread. The 
termy>a«so??erisstrict- 
ly applicable only to the meal of 
the paschal lamb, or the four¬ 
teenth day; and the feast of un¬ 
leavened bread was celebrated on 
the fifteenth onward, for seven 
days, to the twenty-first, inclu¬ 
sive. This order is recognised, 
Josh. v. 10,11. But, in the sacred 
history, the term passover is used 
to denote the whole period; the 
fourteenth day, and the festival 
of the seven days following. 
(Luke ii. 41; John ii. 13, 23; vi. 
4; xi. 55.) 

This mode of expression is re¬ 
cognised by Josephus, the Jewish 
historian, who uses tho expres¬ 
sion, “ the festival of unleavened 
bread, which is called the pass- 
over.” (Luke xxii. 1.) 

As to the time of the celebration 
of the passover, it is expressly ap¬ 
pointed between the evenings, or, as 
it is elsewhere expressed, at even, 
at the going do ion of the sun. (Deut. 
xvi. 6.) This is supposed to de¬ 
note the commencement of tha 
fourteenth day of Nisan, or at the 
moment when the thirteenth day 
closed, and the fourteenth began 
509 





PAS 

The twenty-four hours, reckoned 
from this point of time to the 
same period of the next day, or 
fourteenth, was the day of the 
passover. At sunset of the four¬ 
teenth day, the fifteenth began; 
and with it the feast of unleavened 
bread. The lamb was to be se¬ 
lected on the tenth day, by each 
individual or family, and kept up 
till the fourteenth day, in the even¬ 
ing of which day «t was to be 
killed. (Ex. xii. 3-6.) Then fol¬ 
lowed the feast of unleavened 
bread, occupying seven days; the 
first and last of which were pecu¬ 
liarly holy, like the Sabbath. (Ex. 
xii. 15, 16.) 

The preparation of the passover, 
(John xix. 14,) or the day of the 
preparation, (Matt, xxvii. 62,) was 
the fourteenth day, or the day pre¬ 
ceding the first day of unleavened 
bread. At the time of our Sa¬ 
viour’s passion, it so happened 
that the fifteenth of the month, or 
the first day of the festival, was 
also the proper Sabbath. Hence 
we find, upon comparing the vari¬ 
ous histories of this event, and its 
attendant circumstances, that at 
the close of the thirteenth day of 
the month, when the feast of un¬ 
leavened bread, (called in the larg¬ 
est sense, the passover,) (Luke 
xxii. 1,) approached, Jesus direct¬ 
ed the lamb for the paschal sacri¬ 
fice to be prepared for himself and 
his disciples. This being done 
immediately after sunset of the 
thirteenth, which was the begin¬ 
ning of the fourteenth, the pas¬ 
chal supper was eaten. After this 
supper, and in the course of that 
night, Christ was arrested, the 
next morning was tried, and in 
the afternoon was crucified and 
buried. This was on the eve of 
preparation for the Sabbath, and 


PAS 

also for the festival, (which fell os 
the same day,) towards the close 
of the fourteenth. The whole se¬ 
ries of events occurred between 
what we should call Thursday 
and Friday evening. 

The facts of chief impoitance 
in reconciling all the evangelists 
are, that the word passover is ap¬ 
plied sometimes strictly to the 
fourteenth day, and at other times 
to the whole festival of unleavened 
bread; that the passover, or pas¬ 
chal supper, strictly speaking, was 
celebrated at the beginning of the 
fourteenth day of the month, or 
immediately after sunset of the 
thirteenth; and that the four¬ 
teenth, or Friday of passion week, 
happened to be the day of prepa¬ 
ration for the feast of unleavened 
bread, and also for the Sabbath. 
(For a particular account of the 
mode of celebration, see Feasts. 
See also Biblical Antiquities, 
vol. ii. eh. vi. 3 4; Selumiel, pp. 
72-82, 99.) 

PASTOR. (See Shepherd.) 

PASTURE. (Isa. xxxii. 14.) 
This word is used by the sacred 
writers chiefly in a figurative 
sense. The places of pasturage 
in Canaan were chiefly those un¬ 
inhabited spots which are called 
deserts, or wildernesses, in the 
sacred writings. These were some¬ 
times hilly ranges, abounding in 
herbage and shrubbery; some¬ 
times sandy plains, in which, here 
and there, in moist places, a little 
green grass is found. These mea¬ 
gre spots are better for sheep, 
goats and camels, than rich mea¬ 
dows, which are necessary for kine. 

These tracts belong to no per¬ 
son in particular, but are commons 
which all may use, though some¬ 
times they are the property oi 
tribes of people, as such. Th# 




PAT 

a hole land of Canaan was origi¬ 
nally such a possession, and as 
such was occupied by Abraham, 
Isaac and Jacob. When the 
country became settled by the 
Israelites, they had particular 
pasturages connected with their 
farms. Sharon and Achor (Isa. 
lxv. 10) are named as affording 
good pasturage for flocks, and 
Gilead and Bashan for neat cattle. 
(Mic. vii. 14.) Among these 
widely scattered and numerous 
pastures, the shepherds and herds¬ 
men of Palestine wandered, as 
their descendants continue to do. 
In summer they migrate north¬ 
ward, to the hill country; in win¬ 
ter southward, to the plains: thus 
not only avoiding the winter’s 
cold and the heat of summer, but 
finding ample sustenance for their 
cattle at both seasons. 

PATARA. (Acts xxi. 1.) A 
large, rich, seaport town of Lycia, 
lying over against Rhodes, at the 
mouth of the Xanthus, called by 
Ptolemy Philadelphus, Arsinoe, 
in honour of his queen. Here 
Paul took ship for Phenicia, when 
going from Philippi to Jerusalem. 

PATHROS. (Isa.xi. 11. Comp. 
Jer. xliv. 1-15; Ezek. xxix. 14; 
xxx. 14.) The Thebais of the 
Greeks, and Said of the Arabs, 
the same with upper or southern 
Egypt. Some of the Jews had 
withdrawn to this region, and 
there given themselves up to 
idolatry; but Jeremiah forewarns 
them of the tremendous judgments 
which awaited them. The Path- 
rusim, its inhabitants and early 
settlers, were descendants of Miz- 
raim. (Gen. x. 14.) 

PATHRUSIM. (See Path- 

ROS.) 

PATMOS. (Rev. i. 9.) An 
^land in the Egean Sea, now 


PAT 

called Patimo or Patmosa, situ¬ 
ated near the promontory of Mi¬ 
letus, between Samos and Naxos, 
about twenty or twenty-five miles 
in circumference. It was used by 
the Romans as a place of exile for 
convicts, and is distinguished as 
the place to which John the Evan¬ 
gelist was banished by Domitian, 
A. D. 94. 

Its soil is very thin and sterile, 
lying on a rugged rock, probably 
of volcanic origin. About a mile 
back from the beach is a chapel, 
enclosing the cave which, it is 
said, John occupied when writing 
the book of Revelation during his 
banishment. 

PATRIARCH. (Acts ii. 29.) 
In the early history of the Jews, 
we find the ancestor or father of 
a family retaining authority over 
his children, and his children’s 
children, so long as he lived, what¬ 
ever new connections they might 
form. When the father died, the 
branch-families did not break off 
and form new communities, but 
usually united under another 
common head. The eldest son 
was generally invested with this 
dignity. His authority was pa¬ 
ternal. He was honoured as the 
central point of connection, aud 
as the representative of the whole 
kindred. Thus each great family 
had its patriarch or head, and 
each tribe its prince selected from 
the several heads of the families 
it embraced. These princes were 
called elders of Israel. (See El¬ 
ders.) The word patriarch is 
also applied to the founder of a 
family, or any illustrious ancestor. 
(Acts ii. 29.) In later ages of the 
church, the same title is found, 
but is applied to ecclesiastical 
dignitaries, and denotes the sup¬ 
posed paternal character of theii 
Ml 



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PLACES VISITED BY THE APOSTLE PAT/L. 




























































PAU 

authority. The sons of Jacob, as 
the progenitors of the Jewish na¬ 
tion, are called, by way of dis¬ 
tinction, the twelve patriarchs. 
'Acts vii. 8.) 

PAUL, or SAUL, (Acts xiii. 9,) 
was a native of Tarsus, in Cilicia, 
and inherited the privileges of a 
Roman citizen. (Acts xxii. 28,29.) 
Hi's descent and education were 
wholly Jewish, and the latter was 
of the highest order. Under the 
instruction of Gamaliel, a distin¬ 
guished Jewish Rabbi at Jerusa¬ 
lem, (Acts v. 34,) he became mas¬ 
ter of tho Jewish law, (Acts xxii. 
3; Gal. i. 14;) and was also 
taught a useful mechanical trade, 
according to the custom of the 
nation. (Acts xviii. 3.) His resi¬ 
dence at Jerusalem commenced 
at an early period, (Acts xxvi. 4,) 
and he was probably from twenty- 
two to twenty-five years old when 
Christ commenced his public mi¬ 
nistry. He belonged to the sect 
of the Pharisees, as did also his 
father. (Acts xxiii. 6.) 

The preaching of the gospel by 
the apostles, and especially the 
fact of Christ’s resurrection from 
the dead, on which they placed 
their chief stress, excited of 
course, a violent opposition among 
the Jews, which, before long, 
broke out in open violence. Ste¬ 
phen, an eloquent and powerful 
advocate of the new religion, was 
seized and stoned to death. 
Among the spectators, and per¬ 
haps promoters, of this bloody 
deed, was Paul; who we may sup¬ 
pose, from the manner in which 
he was regarded by the murder¬ 
ers, and, indeed, from his own 
confession, wtts fully with tLom 
in the act. (Acts vii. 58. Comp, 
xxii. 20.) Ilis temperament, ta¬ 
lents and education fitted him to 

2 


PAU 

become a leader in the persecution 
of the apostles and their adhe¬ 
rents; and he commenced his ca¬ 
reer with a degree of zeal border¬ 
ing on madness. He even sought 
for authority to go to Damascus, 
whither many of his disciples had 
fled after the murder of Stephen, 
and bind and drag to Jerusalem, 
without distinction of age or sex, 
all the followers of Christ whom 
he could find. Just before he 
reached Damascus, however, he 
was arrested by a miraculous light, 
so intense as to deprive him of 
sight. (Acts xxii. 11.) At the 
same time Christ revealed himself 
as the real object of his persecu¬ 
tion. (Acts xxvi. 15. Comp. 1 
Cor. xv. 8.) From this time he 
became a new man, and received 
from the lips of Christ himself his 
commission as an apostle to the 
Gentiles. (Acts xxvi. 16.) Tho 
miraculous restoration of his 
sight his baptism, and the gifts 
of the Holy Spirit, followed in 
quick succession; and we soon 
find him zealously preaching the 
faith he had set out to subvert. 
(Acts ix. 20, 21; Gal. i. 16.) To 
this one purpose he thenceforth 
gave all the energies of his mind 
and all the affections of his heart. 
Forsaking, and indeed forgetting, 
all other purposes and pursuits, 
he seems to have resolved to crowd 
into the residue of his life what¬ 
ever he could do to repair the in¬ 
jury he had done to the causo of 
Christ, and to show his strong and 
exclusive attachment to the in¬ 
terests of his kingdom. The mi¬ 
racles he wrought; the churches ho 
gathered; his sermons, orations 
and letters; the extent and success 
of his missionary tours; the visions 
and revelations with which he was 
favoured, and the final attestation 
II 513 




PAU 

which it is generally supposed he 
gave to the faith he had preached, 
by the suffering of martyrdom, (2 
Tim. iv. 6, 7,) all place him among 
the very chief of tne apostles. 

A. D. 

Paul’s conversion, (Acts. ix. 21st year of 

Tiberius).•.36 

Be goes into Arabia, (see Arabia,) and re¬ 
turns to Damascus, (Gal. i. 17 ;) at the 
end of three yearsin all, he escapes from 
Damascus and goes to Jerusalem. (Acts 

ix. 23, &c.)...39 

From Jerusalem Paul goes to Cilicia and 
Syria. (Acts ix. 30; Gal i. 21.) From 
Antioch he is sent with Barnabas to Je¬ 
rusalem to carry alms. (Acts xi. 30.).. 45 
The first missionary journey of Paul and 
Barnabas from Antioch, continued about 
two years, (Acts xiii. xiv.) commencing 45 
After spending several years in Antioch, 
(Acts xiv. 28,) Paul and Barnabas are 
sent a second time to Jerusalem, to con¬ 
sult the apostles respecting circum¬ 
cision, &c. (Acts xv. 2.).52 

The Jews expelled from Rome, a. d 52- 
54; Paul, on his second missionary 
journey, (Acts xv. 40,) after passing 
through Asia Minor to Europe, finds 

The places visited by the apos¬ 
tle, in his various journeys, are 
presented at one view in the pre¬ 
ceding sketch. 

After he was recognised as a 
disciple by the brethren at Jeru¬ 
salem, he became so bold an ad¬ 
vocate for the truth, as to excite 
the anger of the Grecians, who 
were taking measures to slay him. 
This led to his first journey from 
Jerusalem, in the course of which 
he visited Cesarea, Tarsus, (where 
he continued four years,) Antioch, 
in Syria, (where he tarried one 
year,) thence to Jerusalem. 

Second journey. —From Jeru- 
salein to Antioch, Seleucia, Sala- 
mis, and Paphos in the island of 
Cyprus, Perga, Antioch in Pisi- 
dia, Iconium, Lystra, Derbe, Pisi- 
dia, Pamphylia, Perga, Attalia, 
Antioch in Syria, Phenice, Sama¬ 
ria, and thence to Jerusalem. 

Third journey. —From Jerusa¬ 
lem to Antioch, Syria, Cilicia, 
Derbe, Lystra, Phrygia, Galatia, 
514 


PAU 

The following chronological ar. 
rangement will enable the stu 
dent to connect the principal 
events in the life of Paul:— 

A. 1 


Aquila and Priscilla at Corinth. (Acts 

xviii. 2.).54 

Paul remains eighteen mouths iu Corinth. 
(Acts xviii. 11.) After being brought 
before Gallio, he departs for Jerusa¬ 
lem the fourth time, and then goes to 

Antioch. (Acts xviii. 22.).-.... ini 

The apostle winters at Nioopolis, (Tit. iii. 
12,) and then goes to Ephesus. (Acts 

xix. 1.).57 

After a residence of two years or more at 
Ephesus, Paul departs for Macedonia. 

(Acts xx. 1.). 59 

After wintering in Achaia, Paul goes the 
fifth time to Jerusalem, where he is im¬ 
prisoned. (Acts xx. xxi.). 6C 


The apostle remains two yearsin prison at 
Cesarea, and is then sent to Rome, where 
he arrives iu the spring, after wintering 
in Malta. (Acts xxiv. 27 ; xxv.-xxviii.) 63 
The history in Acts concludes, aud Paul 
is supposed to have been set at liberty.. 65 
Probable martyrdom. 65 

Mysia, Troas, (where he was joined 
by Luke,) Samothracia, Neapolis, 
Philippi, Amphipolis, Apollonia, 
Thessalonica, Berea, Athens, Co¬ 
rinth, Cenchrea, Ephesus, Cesa¬ 
rea, and thence to Jerusalem. 

Fourth journey. —From Jerusa¬ 
lem to Antioch, Galatia, Phrygia, 
Ephesus, Macedonia, Greece, Phi¬ 
lippi, Troas, Assos, Mitylene, Chi¬ 
os, Samos, Trogyllium, Miletus, 
Coos, Rhodes, Patara, Tyre, Pto- 
lemais, Cesarea, and thence to Je¬ 
rusalem. 

Fifth journey. —From Jerusa¬ 
lem to Antipatris, Cesarea, Sidon, 
Myra, Fair Haven, Melita, Syra¬ 
cuse, Rhegium, Puteoli, Appii Fo¬ 
rum, Three Taverns, Rome, where 
die narrative in the Acts ends. 

Probable journeys f rom, his first 
to his second imprisonment in 
Home. —Spain, France, Britain, 
Jerusalem, Antioch in Syria, Co- 
losse, Ephesus, Philippi, Corinth, 
Troas, Miletus, Rome, where he 
suffered martyrdom. iFor a ful’ 
















PAV 

and complete biography of the 
apostle Paul, with a map of his 
travels, see Life of Paul, Union 
Questions, vol. v., and Help to 
the Acts, parts i. and ii.; see 
also a large outline map of Paul’s 
travels drawn on muslin.) 

Epistles of. These are four¬ 
teen in number, and are unques¬ 
tionably among the most import¬ 
ant of the primitive documents of 
the Christian religion, even apart 
from their inspired character. Al¬ 
though they have reference often to 
transient circumstances and tem¬ 
porary relations, yet they every¬ 
where bear the stamp of the great 
and original mind of the apostle, 
as purified, elevated and sus¬ 
tained by the influences of the 
Holy Spirit. (For the order in 
which these letters were written, 
and the date of them, see Epis¬ 
tles.) 

PAVEMENT. (John xix. 13.) 
An area in Pilate’s court-room, tho 
floor of which was paved with 
marble or other stones. (Esth. i. 6.) 

PAVILION. (Jer. xliii. 10.) 
A small moveable tabernacle or 
tent, chiefly used for a king, 
prince or general. (1 Kings xx. 
12-16.) Jahn thinks it was the 
cloth used for Jewish meals, and 
which, when done with, was drawn 
up by a cord, like a wine skin or 
bottle, and hung upon a nail. 

The Psalmist sublimely de¬ 
scribes Jehovah as surrounding 
himself with dark waters, and 
thick clouds of the skies, as with 
a tent or pavillion. (Ps. xviii. 11.) 

PEACOCKS. (1 Kings x. 22.) 
This singular and beautiful bird 
is mentioned among the articles 
imported by Solomon, though 
some suppose the original word 
might be more properly rendered 
parrots. In Job xxxix. 13, also, 


PEA 

the word peacocks would be bet¬ 
ter rendered ostriches, and the 
word ostrich should be translated 
(as it is elsewhere) stork. The 
wings of the ostrich cannot raise 
it from tho ground; yet, in run¬ 
ning, it catches (or, as the word 
rendered goodly imports, drinks 
in) the wind. The construction 
of the ostrich and the stork are 
thus contrasted, as are also their 
habits; for the stork is as prover¬ 
bial for her tenderness to her 
young, as the ostrich for her seem¬ 
ing indifference. (Job xxxix. 14- 
16. See Ostrich. See, also, 
for description and engravings, 
Youth’s Friend for June, 1829, 
and Natural History of Bible, 
art. Peacock. (See cut p. 526.) 

PEARLS (Matt. xiii. 45,46) are 
produced by a shell-fish of the 
oyster species. It is a malady of 
the animal, which completely de- 
velopes itself in seven years. If 
not secured at or about the end 
of that period, the animal dies, 
and the pearl is lost. The pearl- 
oysters are found in clusters on 
rocks, (hence called pearl banks,) 
in the Persian Gulf, on the west¬ 
ern Coast of Ceylon, and on the 
coasts of Java, Sumatra, &c., and 
in some parts of Europe. The 
shells are obtained by diving, and 
this is done by a class of persons 
trained to the business. The Cey¬ 
lon pearl-fishery bank, is about 
fifteen miles from the shore, and 
seventy-two feet deep on an ave¬ 
rage. The fishery bogins in April, 
when the sea is most calm, and 
continues five or six weeks. One 
shell contains from eight to twelve 
pearls. The largest are of the size 
of a walnut, but they are rarely 
as large as a cherry-stone. The 
shells of the pearl-oyster, or, more 
properly, the interior coat, is 
515 



PEA 


PEL 



Called mother of pearl . A single 
pearl has been valued at $350,000. 

In our version of the Old Testa¬ 
ment, this word occurs only in 
Job xxviii. 18. In Prov. iii. 15; 
viii. 11; xx. 15; xxxi. 10; Lam. 
iv. 7, the word translated rubies 
some suppose means coral, but it 
probably means pearls; and in 
the passage last cited, reference *s 
probably had to the beautiful red 
blush of some species of the pearl. 

Pearls were anciently used in 
the East as personal onniments, 
(1. Tim. ii. 9. Rev. xvii. 4; 
xviii. 13—16,) and are so used now. 
From the various illustrations in 
which the pearl is introduced, it 
was evidently regarded as among 
516 


the most precious substances. 
(Matt. vii. 6; xiii. 45, 46; Rev. 
xxi. 21.) 

PEKAII. (2 Kings xv. 25.) A 
general of the Israelitish army. 
He assassinated the king Peka- 
hiah in his palace, and usurped 
the government. His reign, which 
lasted twenty years, was highly 
inauspicious; the country was in¬ 
vaded and greatly harassed bj 
the Assyrians, and Pekah him¬ 
self was the victim of a conspi¬ 
racy. 

PEKAHIAH. (See Pekah.) 

PELATIAH (Ezek. xi. 1) was 
one of the five-and-twenty men 
who withstood the prophet, aDd 
counselled tho people of Israel 




















PEL 

wickedly. He was suddenly 
struck dead, while the prophet 
was uttering his prediction. 
(Ezek. xi. 13.) 

PELETHITES. (See Chere- 

THIMS.) 

PELICAN. (Deut. xiv. 17.) A 
voracious water-bird, unclean by 
the Levitical law, (Lev. xi. 18,) 
of singular construction and ha¬ 
bits, resembling the goose, though 
nearly twice as large. Its bill is 
fifteen inches long. The female 
has a large pouch, or bag, capable 
of containing two or three gallons 
of water, and food enough for six 
common men. Out of this pouch 
she feeds herself and her young, 
whence the vulgar notion that she 
feeds them on her own blood. It 
is classed with the bittern, and 
other birds who delight in soli¬ 
tary and desolate places, and its 
cry is harsh and melancholy, (Job. 
xxx. 29; Ps. cii. 6; Isa. xxxiv. 
11; Zeph. ii. 14;) in some of 
which passages the same word is 
translated owl, cormorant, or bit¬ 
tern, which, in others, is trans¬ 
lated pelican. (For description and 
engraving, see Youth’s Friend 
for July, 1829.) 

PEN. (Judg. v. 14.) The in¬ 
struments with which the charac¬ 
ters were formed in the writing 
of the ancients, varied with the 
materials upon which the letters 
wero to be traced. (1.) Upon 
hard substances, such as stone or 
metallic plates, a graver of steel 
was used, the same which Job 
calls an iron pen. It is possible 
that an instrument pointed with 
diamond, such as glaziers now use, 
was not unknown, as the sin of 
Judah is written icith a pen of iron, 
and with a point of a diamond ; it 
is graven upon the table of their 
heart, and upon the h<rna of your 

44 


PEO 

alters. (Jer. xvii. 1.) Pliny 
gives an account of such an in¬ 
strument as having been long in 
use. (2.) Upon tablets oi wax a 
metallic pen or stylus was em¬ 
ployed, having one end pointed 
to trace the letters, the other 
broad and flat, to erase any erro¬ 
neous marks by smoothing the 
wax. We have seen a copper 
style, several inches in length, 
now used by the natives of Cey¬ 
lon in writing upon the leaves of 
trees. 

Upon paper, linen, cotton, skins 
and parchments, it was in very 
early times common to paint the 
letters with a hair-pencil, brought 
to a fine p( int, as the Chinese do 
at this day. Afterwards, however, 
the reed pen was introduced, which 
was at first used without being 
split at the point. The reed pen 
is used by the modern Turks, 
Syrians, Persians, Abyssinians, 
Arabs and other Orientals, as 
their languages could not be writ¬ 
ten without difficulty with pens 
made, like ours, from quills. A 
particular kind of knife is used to 
split the reed. (Jer. xxxvi. 23. 
See Book.) 

PENIEL, (Gen. xxxii. 30,) or 
PENUEL. (Judg. viii. 9.) The 
place at the ford of the Jabbok, 
east of Jordan, where Jacob 
wrestled with the angel on his re¬ 
turn from Mesopotamia. There 
was a town built here, the tower 
of which was beaten down by 
Gideon. (Judg. viii. 17.) Jero- 
boam rebuilt and fortified the 
place. (1 Kings xii. 25.) 

PENNY. (See Measures, &c.) 

PENTECOST. (See Feast.) 

PENUEL. v See Peniel.) 

PEOR, mount. (Num. xxiii. 
28.) A rise of ground east of the 
Jordan, and part of the same 
517 



PER 

eftain with Nebo and Pisgah. It 
Is supposed to have been the site 
)f an idol temple. (Num xxv. 3 ; 
Deut. iv. 3-46.) 

PERAZIM, mount. (SeeBAAU- 

PERAZIM.) 

PEREZ. (See Mene.) 

PERFECTION. (Ps. 1, 2.) 
That which is entire and complete 
in all its parts, without defect, 
blemish or redundancy, is called 
perfect. The word perfection is 
used in various senses, which can 
generally be determined by the 
subject and connection. The 
most desirable things in the view 
of worldly men, are honour, wealth, 
pleasure, learning; and to see an 
end of these , is to see how insuffi¬ 
cient any thing but God himself is, 
to satisfy an immortal soul. (Ps. 
cxix. 96.) The word also means 
the more mysterious principles of 
the Christian faith, (Heb. vi. 1,) 
or the full measure and degree 
Df excellence, holiness, or happi¬ 
ness. (2 Cor. xiii. 9.) 

PERFUME. (Ex. xxx. 35.) 
The use of perfumery to give an 
agreeable odour to the person and 
apparel, is, and ever has been, 
widely prevalent in Eastern coun¬ 
ties. In the passage cited, how¬ 
ever, the composition which is 
called a perfume was to be used 
in the tabernacle service. The 
composition of it is prescribed with 
great particularity, and the mak¬ 
ing or using it for any other pur¬ 
pose was forbidden under severe 
nenalties. It is of little import¬ 
ance what the ingredients were, 
or what was specially denoted in 
the manner of using it. It had 
fts value as a test of obedience, 
and may have had some signifi- 
cancy to the view, which we can¬ 
not appreciate. The “art of the 
apothecary,” after or according 


PER 

to which the compound was to be 
made, probably consisted quite as 
much in the preparation of per¬ 
fumes, as in the sale of drugs and 
medicines. In some Hindoo tem¬ 
ples,a man is employed exclusively 
in distilling sweet waters from 
flowers, and extracting oil from 
wood ; and the combination of 
office of perfumer and apothecary, 
is also recognised in a couplet of 
the great English Dramatist: “ An 
ounce of civet, good apothecary, 
to sweeten mine imagination.” 

PERGA. (See Pamphylia.) 

PERGAMOS, (Rev. i. 11,) now 
Bergamo. A city of the province 
of Troas, in Asia Minor, about 
sixty miles north of Smyrna. 
Here was one of the seven churches 
of Asia addressed by John, from 
whose language we infer that the 
city was infested by false teach¬ 
ers, who grossly corrupted the 
people, and led them into many 
abominable errors. There are still 
to be seen evidences of the former 
magnificence of this place, such 
as granite walls and marble co¬ 
lumns, and the ruins of what is 
said to have been the temple of 
Esculapius. 

The population of the modern 
city is variously estimated from 
15,000 to 30,000, and among them 
3000 nominal Christians. It was 
the birthplace of Galen. Thera 
was once at Pergamos a royal 
library, containing 200,000 vo¬ 
lumes, which were added by Cleo¬ 
patra to the Alexandrian library. 
It is said that pergamentum, the 
Latin word for parchment, is de¬ 
rived from this place. (See Parch¬ 
ment.) Pergamos was visited by 
Messrs. Fisk and Parsons, Ameri¬ 
can missionaries, in November, 
1820. The people of the place 
pretend to show the very church 



PER 

where the disciples assembled, to 
whom John’s messago was ad¬ 
dressed, (Rev. ii. 12,) and also 
the tomb of Antipas. (Rev. ii. 13.) 

PERIZZITES, (Gen. xxxiv. 
30,) signifying lowlanders, inhabit¬ 
ants of the plain, or of unwalled 
rillages; a tribe of the Canaanites, 
or a people mingled with them, 
and scattered over the land. (Gen. 
xiii. 7; Josh. xvii. 15; Judg. iii. 
5; 1 Kings ix. 20; 2 Chron. viii. 
7; Ezra ix. 1.) 

PERSIA. (Ezek. xxvii. 10.) 
An ancient kingdom of Asia, 
whose limits have varied consider¬ 
ably at different periods. The 
kingdom as such was founded 
by Cyrus, its inhabitants having 
been anciently called Elamites, 
from their ancestor Elam, the son 
of Shem, and in later times Par- 
thians. The thrones of Media 
and Persia were united under 
Cyrus, b. c. 536, (comp. Dan. vi. 
8, 12;) and indeed the whole 
country, from Egypt to the Gan¬ 
ges, became incorporated in what 
was called the Persian empire. 

This empire was overthrown by 
Alexander’s invasion, and in the 
seventh century fell into the power 
of the Saracens, subject to the 
caliphs of Bagdad, until the mid¬ 
dle of the thirteenth century, when 
it was taken by Gongis Khan, and 
in the close of the fourteenth by 
Timour, or Tamerlane. 

Modern Persia is bounded nortu 
by Georgia, the Caspian Sea and 
Tartary, east by Afghanistan and 
Beloochistan, south by the Per¬ 
sian Gulf and straits of Ormus, 
and west by Turkey. But the 
district known to the Hebrews as 
Persia is the modern Farsistan, 
bounded by Irak-Adjemi on the 
north, Kerman on the east, Saris- 
tan and the gulf on the south, and 


PET 

Khusistan on the west; and it 
about equal in extent to France. 

For some time, the Persians 
have been governed by their own 
kings; and no country has ever 
been the theatre of more cruelty 
and confusion ; but still it has, as 
a country, retained its name and 
integrity; and modern travellers 
are of opinion, that the manners 
described in the Bible are nowhere 
upon earth so perfectly retained as 
in Persia, of which they give 
many illustrations. 

An interesting American mis¬ 
sion is now in successful progress 
in Persia. The translation of the 
Bible into the language of the 
Nestorians has been commenced, 
and schools have been opened 
with flattering prospects. 

PESTILENCE, (Jer. xxi. 6,) or 
plague, expresses all sorts of dis¬ 
tempers and calamities. The He¬ 
brew word, which properly signi¬ 
fies the plague,is applied to all epi¬ 
demical and contagious diseases. 

Pestilences are still very com¬ 
mon in Asia and Africa. It is 
supposed to have been by a 
species of pestilence that the first¬ 
born of Egypt were cut off. (Ps. 
lxxviii. 50, 51.) 

A pestilent fellow is one who is 
mischievous, and disposed to cor¬ 
rupt and ruin a multitude. (Acts 
xxiv. 5.) 

^ PETER, (John i. 40,) the son 
of Jonas, or Jona, and brother of 
Andrew, was a native of Both- 
saida. His original name was 
Simon, or Simeon. The name 
Cephas (a Syriac word signifying 
a rock, and in Latin Petra, trans¬ 
lated Peter) was given him when 
he was called to the apostleship. 
(John i. 42. Comp. Matt. xvi. 18.) 
He had a family resident at Ca¬ 
pernaum, (Matt. viii. 14; Mark 




PET 

i.29; Luke iv. 38,) and was by 
occupation a fisherman. (Luke v. 
1-3.) The religious life of this 
apostle, from its commencement 
to its close, is filled with the most 
interesting incidents. He was 
with Christ during his ministry, 
probably more than any other 
man. He was the most decided 
and forward of the disciples, fol¬ 
lowed his Divine Master in his 
most eventful journeys, and was 
with him when he performed his 
most wonderful miracles; and 
though he fell into some dread¬ 
ful sins, he perhaps did more to 
extend the religion of the Re¬ 
deemer than any other man that 
ever lived. 

From the beginning to the end 
of his illustrious course, we are 
struck with Peter’s fearlessness 
and simplicity; his strong faith 
and ardent love; the promptness 
and decision with which he car¬ 
ried out his Master’s instructions; 
and the distinguished regard in 
which he was held by his fellow- 
apostles. 

That Peter was too forward 
and positive in his professions of 
attachment to Christ may be ad¬ 
mitted, without any impeachment 
of his motives, or doubt of his 
sincerity. Certainly, we see no¬ 
thing in him like cunning or hy¬ 
pocrisy. The general impression 
made on the mind of a superfi¬ 
cial reader of the Bible respect¬ 
ing Peter’s character, might, 
however, be unfavourable ; and, 
besides this general impression 
against him, which is confirmed 
and strengthened by the frequent 
and severe reproofs he received 
from the lips of Christ, there is 
the one deep and aggravated sin 
of denying him. Peter was alone 
in denying his Master; but he 
520 


PET 

was not alone in forsaking and 
fleeing from him. Then all the 
disciples forsook him, and fled, is. 
the mournful record of inspiration. 
The fulness of Peter’s forgiveness 
exceeded, immeasurably, all the 
guilt and aggravation of his sin; 
and the history of his life and 
apostleship is, of itself, an eter¬ 
nal monument of the purity, con¬ 
sistency and elevation of his 
Christian character. 

It is quite uncertain when or 
where Peter died. It is supposed 
that he suffered martyrdom; and 
the circumstances of his arrest, 
imprisonment and crucifixion are 
related very particularly by some 
of the ancient historians. There 
is, however, so little confidence 
to be placed in these accounts, 
that we shall present only one 
of them to the reader, and 
that rather as a matter of curi¬ 
osity. 

There is an ancient prison in 
Rome called the Mamertine prison. 
It is considered the oldest build 
ing of any kind in the city, ana 
derives its name from Martius, 
or Mamertinus, the fourth king 
of Rome, by whom it was built. 

The tradition is, that Peter and 
Paul were both confined in this 
prison by order of Nero, the Ro¬ 
man emperor, and it is not im¬ 
probable that they both suffered 
martyrdom here about the yeai 
65. But few can be found credu¬ 
lous enough to believe the guides 
in the Mamertine prison, when 
they pretend to show the very 
pillar to which Peter was fastened 
when he sealed his faithfulness 
as an apostle of the Lord Jesus 
with the blood of a martyr. (For 
a full history of Peter, and his 
letftrs, with a beautiful view of 
his birthplace, and illus‘\rativ< 



PET 

map* inj cuts, see Life of 
Peter.) 

Epistles of. ‘They are called 
epistles general because they were 
not addressed to any particular 
church or community of believers. 
They are supposed to have been 
written in a time of violent per¬ 
secution, by which the converts 
were scattered abroad. (1 Pet. i. 
1; iv. 16-19.) The date usually 
assigned to them is between a. d. 
64 and 66. Babylon, from which 
the first of these epistles was 
written, (1 Pet. v. 13,) is supposed 
to be Babylon on the Euphrates, 
which, though in ruins, contain¬ 
ed many thousand inhabitants, 
among whom were very many 
Jews. There is no reason to be¬ 
lieve that this Babylon is not in¬ 
tended} and, in the absence of 
all evidence in favour of any 
other place, it is safest to take 
that which is most generally 
known and mentioned by that 
name. Both the epistles of Peter 
express the noble vehemence and 
fervour of his spirit; his deep 
knowledge of the genius and 
tendency of Christianity, and his 
strong assurance of the truth and 
certainty of all he taught. (See 
preface to the letters of Peter in 
Life of Peter, pp. 213, 214.) 

PETIIOR. (Deut. xxiii. 4.) 
A city of Mesopotamia, and the 
residence of the prophet Baalam. 
(Num. xxii. 5.) 

PHABAOII. (Gen. xii. 15.) 
o.n Egyptian word signifying 
king, adopted into the Hebrew, 
and applied to eight or ten dif¬ 
ferent persons mentioned in the 
Bible as kings of Egypt. (Gen. 
xii. 17; xxxix. 1; Ex. i. 8, II; 
l Kings iii. 1 : xi 29 -21; 2 Kings 
xxiii. 29; Jer. xliv. 30.) After 
the subjugation of Egypt, the 
44* 


PHA 

word Ptolemy was substituted 
The Pharaoh who is distinguished 
as the oppressor of Israel, and 
the object of such signal judg¬ 
ments from the Almighty, is sup¬ 
posed to have reigned from b. c. 
1493 to 1473. It is said by the 
sacred historian that God harden¬ 
ed his heart, (Ex. iv. 21;) by 
which we are to understand sim¬ 
ply that he did not impose upon 
him those providential and gra 
cious restraints by which men are 
kept from the commission of 
crimes, but suffered him to be¬ 
come the slave of his own heart’s 
lusts, (Ex. viii. 15,) and to be led 
captive by Satan at his will. To 
one thus abandoned, all the deal¬ 
ings and dispensations of God 
serve only as occasions of increas¬ 
ing obduracy and pride, obsti¬ 
nacy and presumption. In the 
case of Pharaoh, God simply let 
him alone; forebore to extend to 
him the gracious influences of his 
Spirit, and suffered his character 
to develope itself under the cir¬ 
cumstances in which he wa3 
placed. 

PII A R A 0 H-H 0 PII R A H, 
against whom several of Ezekiel’s 
prophecies are uttered, (Ezek. 
xxix. xxxii.,) and with whom 
Zedekiah formed an alliance 
against Nebuchadnezzar king of 
Babylon, reigned over Egypt 
twenty-five years. The prophecy 
against him (Jer. xliv. 30) was 
literally fulfilled. He was unfor¬ 
tunate in an expedition against 
Cyrene, and his army was dis¬ 
contented. Arnasis, one of hi? 
generals, was sent to suppress 
a rebellion which had broken 
out; but, instead of submitting 
to his expostulations, tho army 
made him king, and he marched 
at its head against Pharaoh, 



PHA 

and fit ally took him prisoner. 
Amasis was disposed to save him; 
but the enraged soldiery forced 
the unhappy monarch from under 
his protection, and strangled him. 

PHARISEES. (Math xxiii. 
26.) A famous sect which arose 
among the Jews after their return 
from their long captivity in Ba¬ 
bylon. Their name is derived 
from a Hebrew word which signi 
fies to separate; but the historj 
of their origin is buried in ob¬ 
scurity. Pride and hypocrisy 
were their prominent character¬ 
istics. They affected uncommon 
6anctity, and abounded in rites 
of purification, which they re- 
seived on the authority of tradi¬ 
tion, (Matt ix. II;) but in many 
cases they made void the law of 
God by their superstitious obser¬ 
vance of the commandments of 
men, and were the slaves of lusts 
and avarice and pride. They 
were reproved by our Saviour, 
particularly for ostentation in 
their prayers and alms, (Matt, 
vi. 2, 5;) for pride in dress, salu¬ 
tations, titles, broad phylacteries 
and taking the highest seats at 
feasts and in the synagogues. 
(Matt, xxiii. 2-36.) On account 
of the detection of their hypo¬ 
crisy and the open denunciation 
of their crimes, they became 
almost universally the bitter ene¬ 
mies of Christ. Their theologi¬ 
cal opinions were more correct 
than those of the Sadducees; as 
they believed in the resurrection 
of the body, and in a future state 
of rewards and punishments, as 
tlso in the existence of angels 
*nd spirits. (Acts xxiii. 8.) 

PHARPAR. (See Abana.) 

PHEBE. (Rom. xvi. 1.) A 
distinguished member of the 
ehurch at Cenchrea, a city of 
5 22 


PHI 

Corinth. She is called a servant 
of the church, (see Deacox;) 
and the strong dommendation of 
the apostle shows her to have 
been prominent in works of faith 
and labours of love. 

PHENICE. (Acts xxvii. 12.) 
A winter harbour on the southern 
shore of Crete. (See Crete.) 

PHENICIA. (Acts xxi. 2.) 
A province of Syria, and, in the 
largest extent of the term, em¬ 
bracing a strip of land adjoining 
the eastern coast of the Mediter¬ 
ranean, eighty miles long and 
twelve broad. Properly, however, 
it included only the territories of 
Tyre and Sidon. The Phenicians 
were descendants of the Canaan- 
ijps, and a Syro-Phenician was a 
Phenician of Syria. Phenicia 
wa§ also subject to the Greek 
government in the time of our 
Saviour, and hence Tyre and 
Sidon might be regarded as 
Greek cities. (Comp. Matt xv. 
22 ; Mark vii. 26.) The Jews 
regarded all the rest of the world 
as Greeks. (See Greece.) Phe¬ 
nicia is now subject to the Turks, 
and is included in the pashalio 
of Acre. , 

Phenicia is considered as the 
birthplace of commerce, if not of 
letters. The soil is still fertile, 
producing a rich variety of grains 
and truits; but all the enterprise 
and prosperity of the people is 
blasted by the despotism of the 
government. 

Carthage was established by n 
colony of Phenicians; and Cadiz, 
in Spain, is also supposed to have 
been settled by the same people 
about one thousand years before 
Christ. 

PHILADELPHIA. (Rev.iii. 
7-13.) A city of the province 
of Lydia, in Asia Minor, about 



PHI 

teventy miles east of Smyrna. 
Its modern name is Allahshehr, 
or Alahsher, (city of God.) It 
contains a population of about 
fifteen thousaud, one-twelfth of 
whom are nominal Christians. 
This church was highly com¬ 
mended, more than any of the 
seven churches of Asia; and while 
her sister cities have fallen into 
decay, she still survives, with the 
remains of her Christian temples 
and worship. Her population is 
said to be the purest in Asia Mi¬ 
nor. Even Gibbon says of her: 
“Among the Greek colonies and 
churches of Asia, Philadelphia is 
still erect—a column in a scene 
of ruins.” 

This place was visited by 
two of our American mission¬ 
aries, in the autumn of 1820. 
The inhabitants pretend to show 
the church in which the dis¬ 
ciples, to whom the message of 
John was addressed, formerly as¬ 
sembled. 

PHILEMON (Phile. 1) is gene¬ 
rally supposed to have been a 
resident at Colosse, and a Chris¬ 
tian of some distinction, who was 
probably converted under Paul’s 
preaching. (Phile. 19.) 

Epistle to, was written by 
Paul from Rome, where he was 
detained as a prisoner. Onesi- 
mus, a servant of Philemon, had 
fled to that city, and was there 
converted to the faith of the gos¬ 
pel. Being about to return to 
Philemon, Paul wrote this letter, 
chiefly with a design to conciliate 
the feelings of Philemon towards 
his penitent servant, and now fel¬ 
low-disciple. The letter has been 
regarded by learned cruies as a 
master-piece of epistolary com¬ 
position. An eminent critic of 
ancient days says of it: “ The 


PHI 

apostle craves pardon in behalf 
of a fugitive and pilfering slave, 
whom he sends back to his mas¬ 
ter ; but while pleading his cause, 
he discourses with so much weight 
respecting the rules of Christian 
kindness, that he seems to be 
consulting for the whole church, 
rather than managing the busi¬ 
ness of a particular individual. 
He intercedes for the humble maD 
so modestly and submissively, as 
to show, more clearly than almost 
anywhere else, the gentleness of 
his nature, which is here drawn 
to the life.” 

PHILIP, (1.) THE APOSTLE, 
(John i. 43,) was a native of 
Bethsaida, and a firm believer in 
the Messiahship of Christ. (John 
i. 25.) 

(2.) The evangelist, (Acts 
xxi. 8,) one of the seven persons 
appointed to the office of deacon 
in the primitive church in Jeru¬ 
salem, (Acts vi. 3-5,) and who 
afterwards went to Samaria, and 
there preached the gospel with 
great success. (Acts viii. 6-8.) 
While in Samaria, Philip received 
a divine intimation (comp. Acts 
viii. 26, 29 and 39) to go south¬ 
ward from Samaria, to the road 
leading from Jerusalem to Gaza. 
In the course of this journey, he 
found a distinguished Ethiopian 
traveller, on his way home from 
Jerusalem. He was, probably, 
either a Jew or a proselyte to the 
Jewish religion; and had been 
to the city of their solemnities to 
celebrate some feast. Ho was an 
officer of high rank in the court 
of Candace, queen of Ethiopia; 
and as he was sitting in his 
chariot, in the leisurely pursuit 
of his journey, he read aloud a 
portion of the Jewish Scriptures. 
At this time Philip saw him, and 
523 



PHI 

was divinely admonished to ap¬ 
proach him. Philip, without he¬ 
sitation, obeyed the suggestion, 
and ran to overtake the chariot. 
He overheard him reading Isa. 
liii. 7, 8, and immediately in¬ 
quired of him if he understood 
the force and scope of the pas¬ 
sage. The traveller meekly ac¬ 
knowledged his need of instruc¬ 
tion, and invited Philip to take 
a seat with him in the chariot. 
The latter improved the opportu¬ 
nity to explain the great subject 
of redemption, to which the pas¬ 
sage so naturally led; and the 
result was, that the traveller be¬ 
came a convert to the faith of the 
gospel, and was baptized. Philip, 
again divinely directed, imme¬ 
diately separated himself from 
the traveller, who pursued his 
journey towards Egypt, while 
he himself proceeded to Azotus, 
about forty miles from Gaza, in 
the opposite direction. He after¬ 
wards settled, it is supposed, in 
Cesarea. (Acts xxi. 8.) He had 
four daughters, who were endued 
with gifts of prophecy. (Acts 
xxi. 9.) 

3. The tetrarch. (Luke iii. 
1. See Herod.) 

4. The husband of Herodias. 
(Matt. xiv. 3. See Herod.) 

PHILIPPI. (Acts xvi. 12.) 
A city of Macedonia, formerly 
called Dathos; but being rebuilt 
and greatly magnified by Philip, 
father of Alexander the Great, it 
took from him the name Philippi. 
It is at the head of the Egean 
Sea, nine or ten miles north-west 
of Neapolis, and its modern name 
is Diliba. It is a place of great 
celebrity in profane history, and 
is called the chief or first city of 
that part of Macedonia, and a 
tolony. The latter expression ie- 
524 


PHI 

notes that it enjoyed the privi¬ 
leges of a Roman colony, a fact 
established by ancient modals; 
and the former may mean sitnei 
that Philippi was the first city 
they arrived at in that part of 
Macedonia, or that it was the 
chief city of that district of the 
country. 

About A. D. 50, a church was 
gathered in Philippi by Paul and 
Silas, the former of whom ad¬ 
dressed to them the affectionate 
and grateful letter called the 
Epistle to the Philippians. This 
was the first apostolic labour on 
European ground. 

At Philippi, Lydia was con¬ 
verted under Paul’s preaching, 
(Acts xvi. 14-16,) and hospitably 
entertained the apostles at her 
house. The populace became ex¬ 
cited against them, however, and 
they suffered scourging and im¬ 
prisonment in the‘most cruel 
form. By miraculous power the 
prison doors were all opened .it 
midnight, and the bands of the 
prisoners were all loosed, though 
none escaped. The jailer, fear¬ 
ing that the prisoners had escaped, 
and knowing that death might 
be the penalty for his seeming 
neglect, (Acts xii. 19,) was about 
to commit suicide. At Paul’s en¬ 
treaty he desisted, and imme¬ 
diately applied to the apostles to 
teach him the way of salvation. 
This they did, and their teaching 
being made effectual by the Spirit 
of God, he and all his were im¬ 
mediately baptized. ('Acts xvi. 
22-34.) At the solicitation of 
the magistrates, they soon afte* 
left the city. 

Two American missionaries 
visited the site of Philippi in 
May, 1834. They describe some 
of the monuments of the former 




pm 

magnificence of the city. They 
saw the ruins of what might have 
been the forum or market-place, 
where the apostles were beaten, 
(Acts xvi. 19;) and, also, the 
fragments of a splendid palace. 
The road by which Paul went 
from Neapolis to Philippi, they 
think, is the same that is now 
travelled, as it is cut through 
the most difficult passes of the 
mountains, and is paved through¬ 
out. 

PIIILIPPIANS, EPISTLE TO, 
is the eleventh in the order of 
the books of the New Testament, 
and was addressed by Paul to 
the Christians at Philippi. It 
was probably written about A. D. 
62, when Paul was a prisoner at 
Fvome. (Phil. iv. 22.) The Phi- 
lippians had kindly ministered 
to his necessities, by sending 
Epaphroditus to him with the 
fruits of their"benevolence. (Phil, 
iv. 18.) On his return to Phi¬ 
lippi, Paul acknowledged their 
kindness in grateful and affect¬ 
ing terms, and mingled with his 
thanks some of the most sublime 
and animating exhibitions of di¬ 
vine truth that are to be found in 
the sacred pages. 

PHILISTIA, (Ps. lx. 8,) or 
the land of the Philistines, (Ex. 
xiii. 17,) was situated on the coast 
of the Mediterranean, between 
Joppa and the border of Egypt. 
It is sumoosed that the Philistines 
were of Egyptian origin, (Gen. x. 
14,) and that they came to Canaan 
from Caphtor, or Crete, (Amos ix. 
T,) whence they are called Caph- 
torims. (Deut. ii. 28.) When the 
Hebrews took possession of Ca¬ 
naan, Philistia was divided into 
five districts, or satrapies. (Josh, 
xiii. 3.) The historical books of 
tne Old Testament abound with 


PHI 

accounts of the conflicts of the 
Philistines and the Hebrews, and 
their alternate victories and de¬ 
feats. (1 Sam. iv.; vii.: xvii.; 2 
Sam. v. 17; viii. 1; xxiii. 9; 2 
Kings xviii. 8; 2 Chron. xxi. 16: 
xxvi. 6, 7; xxviii. 18; Isa. xx 
1.) They are the subject of seve¬ 
ral remarkable prophecies, (Jer. 
xlvii.; Ezek. xxv. 15-17; Amos 
i. 6-8; Zech. ix. 5,) which were 
fulfilled to the very letter; and 
they are scarcely mentioned as a 
distinct people after the destruc¬ 
tion of Gaza by Alexander the 
Great. 

Volney describes the former 
land of the Philistines particu¬ 
larly, and he says, that except 
the immediate environs of a few 
villages, the whole country is a 
desert abandoned to the Bedouin 
Arabs, who feed their flocks on 
it. (Zeph. ii. 5, 6.) Another tra¬ 
veller tells us, that while Gaza 
still subsists, and Ashkelon and 
Ashdod retain their names in 
their ruins, the very name of Ek- 
ron is missing. (Zeph. ii. 4.) 

PHILOSOPHY. (Col. ii. 8.) 
This term denotes the system of 
opinions embraced by various 
sects, both among Jews and Gen¬ 
tiles, as the Epicureans, Stoics, 
<fcc., in the apostolic age. (Acts 
xvii. 18.) As their system was 
framed according to human tra¬ 
ditions and the principles of 
worldly science, and not accord¬ 
ing to the doctrine of Christ, it 
was vain and false, and therefore 
a proper subject of caution. ^1 
Tim. vi. 20.) 

PHINEHAS. 1. (1 Sam. i. 3.) 
A son of Eli, and noted for his 
wickedness. (See Eli.) 

2. (Ex. vi. 25.) A son of Elea- 
zar and grandson of Aaron. He 
filled the office of high-priest oi 
525 



PHR 

the Jews for nearly twenty years. 
His zeal and promptitude in 
punishing the sin of Zimri, a 
distinguished Simeonite, turned 
away the anger of the Lord 
against the nation, and secured 
to him and his family the right 
of perpetual succession in the 
Jewish priesthood. This promise 
was fulfilled; for, except the in¬ 
terval from Eli to Zadok, the 
priesthood continued in the fami¬ 
ly of Phinehas until the destruc¬ 
tion of the temple and the cap¬ 
tivity of the nation. Phinehas 
was remarkable for his zealous 
attachment to the purity and in¬ 
tegrity of the Jewish church. 
(Num. xxv. 7; Josh. xxii. 30, 31. 
See Eleazar.) 

PHRYGIA. (Acts ii. 10.) The 
largest province of Asia Minor, 
having Bithynia north, and Lycia 
south. Its chief towns were Co- 
losse, Laodicea, and Hierapolis. 
Some of its inhabitants were at 
Jerusalem, and among the con¬ 
verts, on the day of Pentecost. 
The province was more than once 
visited by the apostle Paul. (Acts 
xvi. 6 ; xviii. 23.) 

PHUT. (Gen. x. 6,) or PUT, 
(Nah. iii. 9,) was the third son 
of Ham; and his descendants, 
sometimes called Libyans, are 
supposed to be the Mauritanians, 
or Moors of modern times. They 
served the Egyptians and Tyrians 
as soldiers. (Jer. xlvi. 9; Ezek. 
xxvii. 10; xxx. 5; xxxviii. 5.) 

PHYLACTERIES. (Matt, 
xxiii. 5.) The original word de¬ 
notes preservation; and may in¬ 
dicate either the preserving of 
the words of the law in the me¬ 
mory, or the preservation of the 
person from danger, as by the 
amulets or ch arms of modern su¬ 
perstition. 

526 


PHY 

The practice of using phylac¬ 
teries was founded on a literal 
interpretation of that passage, 
where God commands the He¬ 
brews to bind the law as a sign 
on their foreheads, and as front- 
lets between their eyes. (Ex. xiii. 
16. Comp. Prov. iii. 1, 3 ; vi. 21.) 
It is probable that the use of 
phylacteries came in late with 
other superstitions ; but it should 
be remembered, that our Lord 
does not censure the Pharisees 
for wearing them, but for making 
them broad, out of ostentation; 
and it is still uncertain whether 
the words referred to ought not to 
be taken literally. One kind of 
phylactery was called a frontlet, 
and was composed of four pieces 
of parchment; on the first of 
which was written, Ex. xii. 2-10; 
on the second, Ex. xiii. 11-21; 
on the third, Deut. vi. 4-9; and 
on the fourth, Deut. xi. 18-21. 
These pieces of parchment, thus 
inscribed, they enclosed in a piece 
of tough skin, making a square, 
on one side of which is placed 
the Hebrew letter shin, tt>, and 






PHY 

oound them round their foreheads 
with a thong or riband, when 
they went to the synagogues. 
Some wore them evening and 
morning; and others only at the 
morning prayer. 

As the token upon the hand 
was required, as well as the front¬ 
lets between the eyes, the Jews 
made two rolls of parchment, 
written in square letters, with an 
ink made on purpose, and with 
much care. They were rolled up 
to a point, and enclosed in a sort 
of case of black calfskin. They 
then were put upon a square bit 
of the same leather, whence hung 
a thong of the same, of about a 
finger in breadth, and about two 
feet long. These rolls were placed 
at the bending of the left arm, 
and after one end of the thong 
had .been made into a little knot 
in the form of the Hebrew letter 
yod, i, it was wound about the 
arm in a spiral line, which ended 
at the top of the middle linger. 
(See Omar, p. 23.) 

PHYSICIAN. (Mark v. 2fi.) 
Physicians are mentioned in the 
time of Joseph, (Gen. i. 2;) and 
many suppose that medicine was 
among the professions of Egypt, 
and that Moses was learned in it. 
There is abundant evidence that 
the healing art, in some branches, 
was a profession. (2 Chron. xvi. 
12; Prov. xvii. 22; Jer. viii. 22; 
xlvi. 11; Ezek. xxx. 21; Matt, 
ix. 12; Luke iv. 23; Col. iv. 14.) 

PIBESETH. (Ezek. xxx. 17.) 
The Bubastis of modern geogra¬ 
phers, the ruins of which are 
supposed to be dncernable be¬ 
tween Cairo and Sin, or Pelusium. 

PIGEON. (See Dove.) / 

PILATE, (John xix. 1,) or 
PONTIUS PILATE,(Matt. xxvi. 
2,'* was appointed the Roman go- 


PIL 

vernor or procurator of Judea, a d. 
29, and was in office at the time 
of Christ’s trial, and some years 
after. His proper residence was 
Cesarea; but he went up to Je¬ 
rusalem at stated periods, and 
though his chief duty respected 
the revenues, he exercised his 
judicial authority there (John 
xix. 10) in a palatfe or govern¬ 
ment house provided for the pur¬ 
pose. (John xviii. 28.) His ad¬ 
ministration was exceedingly of¬ 
fensive. Profane history tells us 
that he was accustomed to sell 
justice, and, for money, to pro¬ 
nounce any sentence that was de¬ 
sired. It mentions his rapines, 
his injuries, his murders, the tor¬ 
ments he inflicted on the inno¬ 
cent, and the persons he put to 
death without form or process. 
In short, he seems to have been 
a man that exercised excessivo 
cruelty during all the time of his 
government. (Luke xiii. 1.) He 
was finally recalled and banished, 
and died in exile, probably by 
suicide. 

The character of Pilate renders 
more remarkable the fact, that 
when Jesus was arraigned before 
him, he was not only anxious to 
avoid trying him, (Luke xxiii. 4, 
7,) but he once and again, in the 
most solemn and impressive man¬ 
ner, even in presence of his mali¬ 
cious and bloodthirsty persecu¬ 
tors, declared his conviction of 
his perfect innocence. (Luke xxiii. 
14; John xix. 6.) He even re¬ 
monstrated with them on the ini¬ 
quity and unreasonableness of 
their conduct, and would fain 
throw upon them the whole re¬ 
sponsibility of the deed they were 
about to perpetrate. This they 
assume!!! in the most dreadful im¬ 
precation ever uttered bv human 
527 


I 



PIL 

lips. (Matt, xxvii. 2*5.) Pilate, 
moved probably by a fear of 
losing his office, (John xix. 12.) 
notwithstanding his full convic¬ 
tion of his innocence, scourged 
him, and then resigned him to 
the hands of the enraged multi¬ 
tude to be crucified. 

He directed the form of inscrip¬ 
tion which was placed on the 
cross ; and when the Jews would 
persuade him to alter the phrase¬ 
ology, so as to represent him 
claiming to be king of the Jews, 
and not as being so in fact, Pilate, 
conscious probably of having 
already sacrificed justice to ex¬ 
pediency or popularity, peremp¬ 
torily refused to do it. (John xix. 
19-22.) He gave Joseph the 
privilege of removing the body 
from the cross, and placing it in 
his own tomb; and, at the soli¬ 
citation of the Jews, he appointed 
a guard to protect it from viola¬ 
tion. (Matt, xxvii. 57-66.) 

PILLAR. (Ex. xiii. 21.) This 
word is used in the Bible for the 
most part metaphorically. Thus 
a pillar of fire, cloud, smoke, &c., 
denote a fire, a cloud, or a column 
of smoke in the form of a pillar. 
(Ex. xiii. 21; Judg. xx. 40.) It 
was common to erect a pillar as a 
monument of some distinguished 
person or event. (Gen. xxviii. 18; 
xxxv. 20, Josh. xxiv. 26.) 

Pillar of salt. (See Salt.) 

Pillar of Absalom. (2 Sam. 
xviii. 18.) This proud prince, 
during his own life, erected in 
the valley of Jehoshaphat a pil¬ 
lar, or column, as a monument to 
himself, to perpetuate the remem¬ 
brance of his name; as at that 
time he had no children to pre¬ 
serve it. 

PILLED. (Gen. xxx. ft.) The 
»ume with peeled 
528 


PIS 

PILLOWS. (Ezek. xiii. 18., 
In this passage those women ars 
intended who utter false prophe¬ 
cies, and use every art and device 
to allure to luxury and voluptuous¬ 
ness. “Wo to those who sew or 
embroider luxurious cushions for 
all arms, making pillows, bolsters, 
head-coverings, <fcc., for persons 
of every stature, age and condi¬ 
tion; so nicely adapted in their 
dimensions as to suit all leaning 
arms, and produce their full vo¬ 
luptuous effect, thus making ef¬ 
feminacy more effeminate. These 
are like toils and snares, by which 
hunters secure their game.”— 
(Comp. Amos vi. 4.) 

PINE. (Neh. viii. 15.) The 
original word denotes a class of 
oily or gummy plants or trees, 
and probably means here the 
cypress, or some tree of that fami¬ 
ly. I he pine is a stately and 
beautiful tree, and hence is used 
as an emblem of the flourishing 
state of a church. (Isa. xli. 19; 
lx. 13.) 

PINNACLE. (Matt. iv. 5.> 
The word translated pinnacle 
signifies not a summit, but a 
wing; and the part of the tem¬ 
ple to which our Lord was taken 
by Satan, was probably the ele¬ 
vation over the roof of Solomon’s 
porch, to which there was a pas 
sage by stairs, and which over¬ 
looked the valley of the east, and 
had beneath a perpendicular 
depth of six or seven hundred 
feet; for at this part of the val¬ 
ley a wall had been carried up to 
a level with the ground on which 
the temple stood, (some historian* 
say seven hundred and fifty feet.) 

PIPE. (See Flute.) 

PISGAII. (See Abarim.) 

PISIDIA. (Acts xiii. 14.) A 
province of Asia Minor, north 



PIT 

of Pamphvlia. Antioch, though 
within the province of Phrygia, 
oelonged to Pisidia, and was call¬ 
ed Antioch in (or of) Pisidia, to 
distinguish it from Antioch in 
Syria. Paul laboured in the 
gospel not only at Antioch, but 
throughout the province. (Acts 
xiv. 24.) 

PIT. (Gen. xxxvii. 20.) This 
term denotes an empty cistern, or 
a reservoir, which the Eastern 
people are in the habit of prepar¬ 
ing in those regions where there 
are few or no springs, for the 
purpose of preserving rain-water 
for travellers and cattle. These 
cisterns and trenches are often 
without water, no supply being 
to be had for them, except from 
the rain. 

It was into such a dry cistern 
that Joseph was cast. In old de¬ 
cayed cisterns, the water leaks 
out, or becomes slimy. (Jer. ii. 
13.) The word is often used for 
the grave, (Ps. xxviii. 1; xxx. 3, 
9; lxxxviii. 4,) and for the place 
used to entrap game. (Ezek. xix. 
8.) The pit hero spoken of is 
used at this day in all wild 
countries. A deep hole in the 
earth is covered very slightly with 
boughs or shrubs, upon which is 
placed a living lamb, which by 
its cries allures the lion or wolf; 
and when the beast makes a sud¬ 
den spring upon his prey, he is 
caught in the pit below. This 
affords a significant figure of the 
devices of crafty men and devils. 
(Ps. cxix. 85; Prov. xxvi. 27; 
Ezek. xix. 4. See Biblical An- 
tiq., ch. vii. § 2.) 

PITCH. (Gen. vi. 14.) This 
word is supposed to be used in the 
Jbove passage, and in Ex. ii. 3, 
for a sort of bitumen or aephaltum, 
elsewhere called dime. (Gen. xi. 

45 2 


PLA 

3; xiv. 10.) It is obtained in z 
soft or liquid state, in pits, and 
on the surface of the Dead Sea, 
(hence called the lake of Asphal 
tites,) and becomes dry and hard, 
like mortar, when exposed to the 
weather. It is found at this day 
in masses of wall and other ruins 
on the supposed site of Babylon, 
and is now employed for the like 
purpose in that part of the world. 

PITCHER. (Gen. xxiv. 14.) 
The custom of drawing water in 
pitchers still prevails in the East, 
an earthen vessel with two handles 
being used for the purpose; and 
the letting down of the pitcher upon 
the hand (Gen. xxiv. 18) justifies 
the inference that it was carried 
upon the head, or left shoulder, 
and balanced with the right hand, 
and, when presented, was rested 
on the left hand. 

PITHOM. (Ex. i. 11.) One 
of Pharaoh’s treasure-cities, pub¬ 
lic granaries, or places for the 
storage of grain. It is supposed, 
from its relative situation, to be 
the Patoumos of the Greeks, inas¬ 
much as the facilities of access to 
it, and transportation from it, 
would lead to its selection for this 
purpose. 

PLAGUE. (Ex. xi. 1.) An 
eminently contagious and destruc¬ 
tive disease, prevalent in the East 
from the earliest ages. It has 
ranged over the principal parts oi 
the habitable world, and some¬ 
times for many successive years. 
The sacred writers employ the 
word to express any terrific and 
desolating disease, (Lev. xiii. 3; 
1 Kings viii. 37,) and not unfre- 
quently as a general term for the 
judgment of God. (Ex. ix. 14.) 
It is also used to denote any severe 
calamity or scourge. (Mark v. 
29, 34; Luke vii. 21.1 Thejudg- 
I 529 



PLA 

ments of God on Pharaoh are 
called plagues. (See Pharaoh. 
See also Biblical Antiquities, 
ch. vii. 3 6.) 

PLAIN. (Deut. i. 1; ii. 8.) 
This word is often used alone, 
leaving the particular plain in¬ 
tended, to be inferred, as in the 
above passages, from the connec¬ 
tion. So of Gen. xiii. 12; 2 Kings 
xxv. 4, <fcc., where the plain of 
Jordan is obviously intended. 

PLAITING. (1 Pet. iii. 3.) 
Weaving or braiding the hair. 
The business of dressing the hair 
l's mentioned by Jewish writers 
as an art by itself, practised by 
women. It was folded up in curls, 
tied up in knots, and put into the 
form of horns and lowers, made 
by their crisping-pins, with their 
cauls and round tires, like the 
moon, (Isa. iii. 18-22,) as was 
the custom of those times, and 
still is. 

PLANETS. (See Stars.) 

PLATTED. (Matt, xxvii. 29.) 
Woven together. 

PLEDGE. (Ezek. xxxiii. 15.) 
That which is given as security 
for the performance of a contract. 
The Jewish law contained many 
wise and benevolent provisions on 
this subject. (Ex. xxii. 25, 26: 
Deut. xxiv. 6, 10, 12, 17;) and 
any thing like oppression in re¬ 
spect to pledges was severely re¬ 
probated. (Job xxii. 6; xxiv. 
3-7.) For a Jew to be obliged to 
give these pledges, and then to 
see them used by idolaters in their 
vain worship, was a sore grief to 
aim. (Amos ii. 8.) 

PLEIADES. (Job ix. 9; 
xxxviii. 31.) A cluster of stars, 
placed in modern times in the 
neck or near the shoulder of the 
eonstellation Taurus. They ap¬ 
pear about the middle of April, 
530 


PLO 

and hence are associated wi f h th« 
return of spring, the season of 
sweet influences. 

PLOUGH. (Luke ix. 62.) The 
process of ploughing is mentioned 
so early as the time of Job. It is 
also mentioned in Gen. xlv. 6 ; for 
earing properly means ploughing , 
and the original word is elsewhere 
translated so. (1 Sam. viii. 12.) 

Considering the shape of the 
share and coulter, we may see 
that the prophecy; Isa. ii. 4, and 
Joel iii. 10, might well have been 
literally fulfilled. The proper di¬ 
rection of so light a plough re¬ 
quires constant and close atten¬ 
tion; and the least diversion of 
the husbandman from his work 
would not only make a crooked 
furrow, but probably his whole 
weight was required to secure 
the entrance of so light an imple¬ 
ment into the soil. Hence the 
figure in the above passage from 
Luke. 

In the first instance the plough 
was probably nothing more than 
the bough of a tree, from which 
another limb cr piece projected, 
which was sharpened, and tore up 
the earth in a rude manner. At 
the present day they have in East¬ 
ern countries ploughs which aro 
entirely wooden. Travellers de¬ 
scribe ploughs of the former con¬ 
struction as usual in Syria. They 
are drawn chiefly by cows and 
asses. In Persia one ox or one 
ass is used. The next improve¬ 
ment was the addition of handles 
or stilts, by which it might be 
more easily directed. In process 
of time, the various forms of the 
implement, as known among our 
selves, were added; though it is 
probable that the best of ancient 
ploughs was inferior to the worst 
which wo have ever seen. 




PLU 

The following cut represents 
the form, Ac. of the Eastern plough* 


PLUMB-LINE, (Amos vii. 7, 
8,) PLUMMET. (Isa. xxviii. 17.) 
A line by which a plummet or 
leaden weight hangs, and by the 
application of which, the exact¬ 
ness of perpendicularity may be 
ascertained. 

POETS. (Acts xvii. 28.) The 
poet referred to in this verse is 
supposed to be Aratus, a citizen 
of Cilicia, and of course a towns- 
nan of Paul. Aratus was speak- 


POM 

ing of a hoathen deity as (he 
author and upnolder of all things; 
and Paul attempts to per 
suade them that, if thin 
sentiment is true, (as ij 
emphatically is when ap 
plied to the true God,) w» 
should worship him, and 
not a senseless image, 
graven by art and man’s 
device. 

POLL, POLLED. (Num. iii. 
47.) When used as a noun, poll 
means a head; and when used, as 
a verb, it means to cut the hair 
from the head. (2 Sam. xiv. 26.) 
POLLUX. (See Castor.) 
POMEGRANATE, (Num. xiii. 
23,) or granate apple, grows wild 
in Palestine, (Num. xx. 5; Deut. 
viii. 8; 1 Sam. xiv. 2,) and Syria, 
as well as in Persia, Arabia, Egypt 
and some parts of Europe, Africa 




and the United States. The fruit 
is of the size of an orange, flat¬ 
tened at the ends like an apple; 
and when cultivated, is of a beau¬ 
tiful colour, (Sol. Song iv. 3 ; vi 
7,) and of a highly grateful fla¬ 
vour. (Soi. Song iv. 13.) It was 
sometimes used, perhaps, as 
lemon-juice is at the present 
day, to which reference may be 


had in Sol. Song viii. 2. The 
rind is at first green; but, iD 
August and September, when the 
fruit is ripe, it assumes a brown¬ 
ish-red colour, becomes thick and 
hard, yet easily broken. The in¬ 
side of the pomegranate is of a 
bright pink, with skinny parti¬ 
tions liko those of the orange; 
abounds with a juieo which ip 
631 

















PON 

both sweet and acid, and a great | 
multitude cf little white and pur¬ 
plish-red seeds. Henry IV. of 
Spain chose this fruit for his royal 
arms, with the motto, “ Sour, yet 
sweet;” intimating that in a good 
king severity should be thus tem¬ 
pered with mildness. 

Figures resembling the pome¬ 
granate in appearance were work¬ 
ed into the high-priest’s robe, 
(Ex. xxviii. 33,) and were also 
used in the ornamental work of 
architecture. (1 Kings vii. 18.) 

PONTUS. (1 Pet. i. 1.) The 
north-eastern province of Asia 
Minor, lying along the Black Sea, 
having Colchis on the east, Cap¬ 
padocia south, and Paphlagonia 
west. Many Jews resided here in 
the time of Christ, (Acts ii. 9,) and 
the gospel was early introduced 
and entertained by many, whom 
Peter addresses in his first epistle. 

Aquila, Paul’s companion, was 
of this province. (Acts xviii. 2.) 
It became a province of Rome in 
the time of Pompey. 

POOLS OF WATER. (Eccles. 
ii. 6. See Cisterns, Water.) 

POOLS OF SOLOMON. (See 
Solomon.) 

POOR. (Matt. xxvi. 11.) Un¬ 
der the Jewish dispensation, God 
accommodated almost every kind 
of offering to the case of the poor; 
he seems to take special notice 
of them; he appointed the glean¬ 
ings of fields and vineyards, and 
the increase of the seventh year, 
and part of the third tithe, to be 
their’s. (Lev. xix. 10 ; xxv. 25- 
47.) Christians are also charged 
to provide for them; and a bless¬ 
ing is promised on such as wisely 
consider their case and help 
them. (Ps. xli. 1-3; Gal. ii. 10.) 
Judges are charged to do them 
justice, nut not unjustly to favour 
532 


POS 

them for their poverty. (Ex, 
xxiii. 6; Lev. xix. 15; Ps. lxxxii. 

4. ) God claims to be the special 
protector of them. (Prov. xiv. 31. ) 

POPLAR. (Hos. iv. 13.) Pro¬ 
bably the white poplar, common 
in the south of Europe, is here 
meant, as it is a handsome shade- 
tree; and hence might be chose® 
for idolatrous worship. 

PORCH. (See Dwellings.) 

Solomon’s porch. (See Tem¬ 
ple.) 

PORTERS. (1 Chron. xvi. 
42.) Such as attend the gate of 
a city or house, to open and shut 
it. (2 Sam. xviii. 26; 2 Kings 
vii. 10.) The temple had four 
thousand of them. (1 Chron. xxiii. 

5. ) They were classified, and 
had leaders or directors. (1 Chron. 
xxvi. 1-13; 2 Chron. viii. 14.) 

PORTION. (Neh. viii. 10.) 
Among the Egytians, Greeks, and 
Hebrews of ancient times, the 
portion of food intended for every 
guest was set before him sepa¬ 
rately. Something of the same 
kind is common at the court of 
Persia. When it was intended to 
confer special honour upon any 
one, a portion much greater than 
common was given to him. (Gen. 
xliii. 34.) A worthy portion (1 Sam. 
i. 5) means, literally, a double 
portion. 

POSSESSED. (Matt. iv. 24.) 
The possession of devils, which 
is often mentioned in the sacred 
Scriptures, is generally regarded 
as an actual and complete posses¬ 
sion of the faculties, held by one 
or more ovil spirits, and mani¬ 
festing itself in various diseases 
of the mind and body, such as 
melancholy, madness, epilepsy, 
&c. They are represented as 
going out of persons, and enter¬ 
ing into them. They speak and 



PCS 

are spoken to, ask and answer 
questions, express their know¬ 
ledge and fear of Christ, are 
threatened and commanded, and, 
indeed, are always treated and 
regarded as living, active, sen¬ 
sible beings. The same degree 
of power which was given to Sa¬ 
tan in the case of Job, may be 
exercised in various forms, and 
with greater or less malignity, on 
others. Nor is there any thing 
more irrational or anomalous (so 
far as we know) in the fact that 
evil spirits should have power, 
under the government of God, 
to execute his will in one form, 
than that holy angels should be 
employed to minister to his pur¬ 
poses in another. (Heb. i. 14.) 
It is much more difficult to re¬ 
concile the language of the sacred 
writers with the idea that posses¬ 
sions so called were merely bodily 
diseases affecting the mind, and 
leading the sufferer to suppose 
himself possessed, than it is to 
admit that the possession was 
real; though an entire ignorance 
of the nature of spiritual exist¬ 
ences prevents us from understand¬ 
ing how it could be. (Comp. Matt, 
x. 1; Mark vi. 12, 13; Luke ix. 
38-42; x. 17-20. Seo Biblical 
Antiquities, vol. i. ch. vii. $ 1.) 

POST. (Job ix. 25.) A mes¬ 
senger or bearer of tidings. (2 Sam. 
xviii. 27; Jer. li. 31.) There is 
reason to believe that persons, 
fleet of foot, were trained to the 
business of running; and we are 
told, by profane historians, of 
those who travtiled from Tyro 
to Jerusalem, a distance of one 
hundred miles, in twenty-four 
successive hours. To convey in¬ 
telligence quickly, the Persian 
kings had sentinels placed at 
proper distances, who, by crying 


POT 

one to anothir, gave notice of 
public occurrences. This method, 
however, was impracticable fo* 
secret intelligence. Cyrus there¬ 
fore settled posts that rode night 
and day, in the manner of our 
expresses. (Esth. iii. 13.) No¬ 
thing swifter was known for a 
journey by land. 

The expression (Ezek. xliii. 8) 
that the Jews set up their posts by 
God’8 post, figuratively alludes to 
their valuing and observing their 
idolatries and traditions equally 
with his statutes and worship. 

POT. (Job xli. 20.) The word 
here translated pot is translated 
basket, (Jer. xxiv. 2,) kettle, (1 
Sam. ii. 14,) and caldron', (2 
Chron. xxxv. 13.) In Ps. lxxxi 
6, reference is probably had to 
the close-wrought baskets which 
the Eastern labourers now use as 
we do the hod for carrying mortar. 
The same vessel is probably in 
tended in Judg. vi. 19; 2 Kings 
x. vii.; Jer. vi. 9. 

Ranges for pots (Lev. xi. 35) 
probably means the excavations 
for the fire over which the pots 
were placed. Such excavations 
arc still found in Persia and 
Arabia, and are used in like 
manner. (See Oven.) 

POTIPHAR. (Gen. xxxvii. 
36.) A distinguished officer in 
Pharaoh’s court, who elevated 
Joseph to a place of trust, and 
committed to him the charge of 
the household. 

POTI -PHERAII. (Gen. xll 
45.) A priest or prince of On, 
and father-in-law of Joseph. 

POTSHERD. (Isa.xlv.9.; The 
fragment of an earthen vessel. (Job 
ii. 8.) When such fragments are 
brought into collision, being alili9 
brittle, each breaks the other into 
nieces. Not so in the unenuaJ 
633 



POT 

contest between m&n and his 
aflaker. 

POTTAGE. (Gen. xxv. 29.) At 
this day, in many parts of the 
East, lentiles are boiled or stewed 
•ike beans with oil and garlic, and 
make a dish of a chocolate colour, 
which is eaten as pottage. Other 
ingredients were used, as in soups 
of modern times. (2 Kings iv. 39.) 

POTTER. (Rom. ix. 21.) A 
manufacturer of earthen-ware. 
The manner of working the clay 


into shape is alluded to by the 
prophet, (Jer. xviii. 3,) and may 
be seen in some branches of the 
modern manufacture. The free¬ 
dom of the potter to make what 
tort of vessel he chooses, and to 
mould or mar it at his pleasure, 
is used as an illustration of God’s 
dominion over the works of his 
aands. (Ps. ii. 9. See also the 
passages before cited from Jere¬ 
miah and Romans.) 

POTTER’S FIELD. (See 
Aceldama. See also Seltjmiel, 
pp. 187-194.) 

POUND. (See Measures.) 

534 


PR A 

PRAISE. (Ps. xxxiii. 1.) Ia 
the ordinary Scripture use of the 
term, it denotes an act.of worship, 
and is often used synonymously 
with thanksgiving. It is called 
forth by the contemplation of the 
character and attributes of God, 
however they are displayed; and 
it implies a grateful sense and ac¬ 
knowledgment of past mercies. 
Expressions of praise abound in 
the Psalms of David, in almost 
every variety of force and beauty; 
and the nature of the duty, 
as well as the proper man¬ 
ner of its performance, 
may be best ascertained by 
a diligent study of his lan¬ 
guage and spirit. 

PRAYER (2 Sam. vii. 
27) is the expression of 
our desires unto God. It 
is a privilege with which 
our Maker has favoured 
us, and a necessary part of 
that obedience which he 
has required of us, to pray 
without ceasing; in every 
thing, by prayer and sup¬ 
plication, with thanksgiv¬ 
ing, letting our requests be 
made known unto God; 
praying always with all 
prayer and supplication. (Eph. 

vi. 18; Phil. iv. 6 ; 1 Thess. v. 17.) 
Considered as a duty of worship, 
prayer has been regarded as con¬ 
sisting of invocation, (Ps. v. 2;) 
adoration, (2 Chron. xx. 6;) con¬ 
fession, (Ezraix. 6 ;) petition, (Ps. 

vii. 1;) pleading, (Jer. xii. 1;) pro¬ 
fession or .self-dedication, (Ps. 
lxxiii. 25 ;) thanksgiving, (Ps. 
cxlvii.; 1 Tim. ii. 1;) blessing, (Ps. 
ciii. 20-22.) 

God is the only object of prayer. 
His throne of grace is to be ap¬ 
proached by sinful and dying men, 
through Christ the one Mediator 



An Egyptian Potter. 















PRE 

between God and man, and in en¬ 
tire dependence on the Holy Spirit 
to help our infirmities. This is 
not the place to enter upon the 
consideration of the kinds, forms, 
and postures of prayer. (For 
valuable suggestions in aid of a 
spirit of prayer, see The Suppli¬ 
ant.) 

PREACH. (Isa. lxi. 1.) To 
preach is to discourse publicly on 
religious subjects. From the ear¬ 
liest period of associations for the 
worship of God, preaching has 
been the chief instrument by 
which the knowledge of the truth 
has been spread, (2 Pet. ii. 5 ; 
Jude 14, 15,) and is still to be so. 
(1 Cor. i. 21.) We have a beau¬ 
tiful account of the ancient mode 
of preaching in Neh. viii., from 
which time till the appearance of 
Christ, public preaching was uni¬ 
versal ; synagogues were multi¬ 
plied and well attended, and offi¬ 
cers were duly appointed for the 
purpose of order and instruction. 
John the Baptist was especially 
commissioned to preach the com¬ 
ing of Christ,—the great teacher 
Bent from God. Since the intro¬ 
duction of the gospel, the preach¬ 
ing of it has been generally re¬ 
garded as a sacred profession, and 
has, for the most part, been con¬ 
fined to an appointed order of men. 

PREPARATION. (Matt, xxvii. 
62.) The first day of the feast 
if the passover was called the day 
of preparation, because all things 
were on that day made ready for 
the solemnities of the paschal 
week. (See Passover.) 

PRESBYTERY. (1 Tim. iv. 
14.) A court or council of eccle¬ 
siastics, for ordaining officers, and 
governing the church. 

PRESENTS. (1 Sam. ix. 7.) 
Gifts or offerings with which men 


PRI 

in authority or high esteem ara 
approached. In many Eastern 
countries at this day, even the 
common people, in their familiar 
visits, take a flower, or an orange, 
or some other token of respect, to 
the person visited. 

PRESSES, (Isa. xvi. 10,) or 
PRESSFATS, (Hag. ii. 16,) were 
vessels or cisterns placed in the 
side of a hill, into which the juice 
of grapes flowed when it was 
pressed out by treading them with 
the feet, or by pressing them with 
a machine. (Prov. iii. 10; Matt, 
xxi. 33.) Such are now used in 
Persia. The upper vessel, being 
eight feet square and four deep, 
is used to press out the juice, 
which runs into another cistern 
below. (For an illustration of 
the process, see Wine.) 

PRETORIUM. (Mark xv.16.) 
The palace in Jerusalem where 
the pretor or Roman governor re¬ 
sided, and in the hall of which he 
sat to administer justice. (Comp. 
Matt, xxvii. 27,* John xviii. 28, 
33.) There was a similar place 
at Cesarea. (Acts xxiii. 35.) 

PRICKS, (Acts ix. 5,) or goads. 
Long, sharp-pointed sticks, which 
were used to drive cattle, Ac., by 
pricking them. The expression 
in this passage was a proverb, 
and originated in this,—that res¬ 
tive oxen often push themselves 
or kick back against the goads, 
and thus wound themselves the 
more deeply. Hence the pro¬ 
verb is used to denote the folly 
and madness of resisting lawful 
authority. A great numbor of 
heathen writers use the proverb 
familiarly, and always to signify 
the absurdity of such rebellion. 

PRIEST. (Gen. xiv. 18.) This 
is the general name for ministers 
of religion in all ages and coun- 
535 




PRI 

tries. In the sacred Scriptures 
it denotes one who offers sacrifice. 
Previous to the Mosaic ritual, the 
offering of sacrifices pertained to 
private individuals. Fathers were 
the priests of their own families. 
Perhaps a more general priestly 
office existed, such as that exer¬ 
cised by Melchizedek. But when 
the dispensation by Moses was 
introduced, a particular order of 
men was appointed to that spe¬ 
cial service, (Ex. xxviii.,) with 


PRI 

very solemn and imposing cere¬ 
monies; and from that time the 
offering of sacrifices was chiefiy 
restricted to those who were duly 
invested with the priestly offico. 
(2 Chron. xxvi. 18.) All the male 
descendants of Aaron were priests, 
and the first-born of hie de¬ 
scendants, in regular succession 
sustained the dignified and im¬ 
portant offico of high-priest. (Sec 
High-priest.) The principal 
employments of the priests, next 


fco attending on the sacrifices and the instruction of the people and 
the temple service, consisted in the deciding of controversies and 
53 b 

































PRO 

questions arising under the ad¬ 
ministration of the Jewish Jaw 
which were very numerous. In 
time of war their duty was to carry 
the ark of the covenant ; ttf con¬ 
sult the Lord; to sound the holy 
trumpets, and to encourage the 
army. (Num. x. 8, 9; Deut. xx. 
2. For a full account of the man¬ 
ner of their consecration, dress, 
duties, <fec. see Ex. xxix. 1-35; 
Lev. viii. 1-36. See also Bibli¬ 
cal Antiquities, ch. iv. $ ii. and 
iii., and Evening Recreations, 
vol. iv. pp. 26-43.) 

PROPHECY, (Matt. xiii. 14,) 
PROPHETS, (1 Sam. x. 5,) or 
SEERS. (1 Sam. ix. 9.) To 
prophesy is to foretell, under di¬ 
vine inspiration, certain things 
which are to happen. Of course 
prophecy is a revelation from God, 
made through man to man, re¬ 
specting future events. (2 Pet. i. 
21.) In a strict sense, a prophet 
is one to whom the knowledge of 
secret things is revealed, whether 
past, (John iv. 19,) present, (2 
Kings v. 26,) or to come. (Luke 
i. 76-79.) 

Different modes seem to have 
been employed to convey to the 
prophets the knowledge of future 
events. Some suppose that the 
events passed before their minds 
like a picture or panorama, and 
that they describe its parts in suc¬ 
cession, as one would an extended 
landscape. This, it is supposed, 
will account for their often speak¬ 
ing of the occurrences which they 
predict as passing at the moment, 
or already passed: as, for instance, 
in the liii. chapter of Isaiah. Ob¬ 
jects and symbols were presented 
to the prophetic eye waking and 
sleeping, and sometimes there 
was probably an articulate audi¬ 
ble voice; but in whatever form 


PRO 

the communication was made, the 
impression was doubtless as dis¬ 
tinct and vivid as were objects of 
occular vision. The spirit of pro¬ 
phecy, seating itself in the rational 
powers, informed, enlightened 
and employed them to understand 
and declare to others the will of 
God. 

Some think it uncertain whether 
the prophets always or even gene¬ 
rally knew the time of the future 
events, or the meaning of what 
was communicated to them. 
Hence it is said that Daniel and 
John made inquiries as to the 
meaning of certain portions of 
their revelations, and they were 
distinctly explained to them, 
(Dan. viii. 15, <fcc.; Rev. xvii. 7. 
<fcc. Comp. Dan. xii. 8, 9; 1 Pet. 
i. 11.) 

Others, on the contrary, main¬ 
tain that there is no sufficient 
ground for this opinion, and that 
there is every reason to believe 
that the faculties of the prophets 
were purified, strengthened and 
elevated in a supernatural de¬ 
gree; that they understood dis¬ 
tinctly the subject of prophetic 
revelation ; and that the obscurity 
in which the prophetic writings 
are involved in our view, arises 
from our imperfect conceptions, 
and not from any want of clear¬ 
ness in the prophecies themselves. 

The predictions were sometimes 
announced by the prophets to the 
people, both in assemblies and by 
writing. (Isa. viii. 2; lviii. 1, &c.; 
Jer. vii. 2.) Sometimes they wore 
posted up on the public gates, and 
sometimes announced with the 
most affecting tokens upon the 
persons or in the conduct of the 
prophets, that the predictions they 
uttered were true. (Isa. xx; Jer 
xix. and xxvii.) 


537 



PRO 


The heathen poets are called 
prophets, because it was supposed 
they wrote under the influence of 
the gods. (Tit. i. 12.) Aaron is 
called the prophet of Moses, (Ex. 
vii. l,)becausehe declaredthe com¬ 
munications of Moses to thepeople. 

The term prophesy is also used 
analogically, (1 Cor. xi. 4, 5; xiv. 

, &g.,) probably because those 
who exercised these functions 
were regarded as under the di¬ 
rection of the Holy Spirit. So it 
is said that Judas and Silas were 
prophets; and in Acts xiii. 1, that 
there were in the church at An¬ 
tioch certain prophets and teach¬ 
ers; that is, official instructors. 
(Comp. 1 Cor. xii. 28. See also 
Acts xxi. 9; Eph. ii. 20; Rev. 
xviii. 20.) It is also applied to 
the sacred musicians. (1 Chron. 
xxv. 1.) It may be only because 
Miriam led the concert (Ex. xv. 
20, 21) that she is reckoned as a 
prophetess. 

Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and 
Daniel are called the greater pro¬ 
phets from the size of their books, 
and the extent and importance 
of their prophecies. The others 
are called the minor or lesser 
prophets. 

The supposed chronological ar¬ 
rangement of the prophecies, and 
the order in which they may be 
most intelligibly read, is as fol¬ 
lows : 


Jonah. 

Amos. 

Hosea„. 

Isaiah. 

Joel. 

Micah.. 

Nahum. 

Zephauiah.. 
Jeremiah... 
Habakkuk .. 

Daniel. 

Obadiah. 
Ezekiel.. 
Haggai ..... 
Zeehariah... 
Malaohi.... 

538 


.B.C. 856-784 

.810-785 

.810-725 

.810-698 

.810-660 

..758-699 

.720-698 

.640-609 

.628-586 

.612-598 

.606-534 

.588-583 

.595—536 

•.620-518 

.520-518 

.436-420 


PRO 

A useful classification of the 
prophets assigns the first eight 
to the period before the Babylo¬ 
nian captivity; the five next to a 
period near to and during the 
captivity; and the three last af¬ 
ter the return of the Jews from 
Babylon. The historical books 
of these three periods illustrate 
the prophetical. They were all 
uttered within a period of about 
four hundred years. 

The prophets were the divines, 
the philosophers, the instructors 
and the guides of the Hebrews in 
piety and virtue. They generally 
lived retired. Their habitations 
and mode of life were plain and 
simple and consistent. 

(For a full and simple analysis 
of the several prophetical books, see 
Mine Explored, part iii. ch. iv.) 

Sons op the prophets. (2 
Kings ii. 3, 5.) Probably pupils 
of the prophets, trained up by 
them in a knowledge of religion, 
and in habits of devotion and 
piety. Perhaps they were em¬ 
ployed as assistants to the pro¬ 
phets, and stood in the relation 
which evangelists are supposed 
by some to have borne to the 
apostles. 

The phrase, that it might beful 
filled which was spolzen, &c., (Matt 
i. 22,) does not always mean that 
the event happened, or was 
brought about, in order to make 
good the prediction; but often 
merely that thus, or in this man¬ 
ner, a certain prophecy was ac¬ 
complished. (See Fulfilled.) 

PROPHETESS. (Ex. xv. 20.) 
Prophetess signifies not only the 
wife of a prophet, (Isa. viii. 3,) 
but also a woman that has tho 
gift of prophecy. Among these 
were Miriam, Deborah, HannaO 
and Anna. 



















PRO 

PROPITIATION. (Rom. iii. 
25.) The word, wherever it oc¬ 
curs in our Scriptures, (1 John ii. 
2; iv. 10,) is of like derivation, 
and denotes, in the original use 
of it, the action of a person who 
in some appointed way afverts the 
wrath of a deity, or pacifies an 
offended party. A word of kin¬ 
dred origin is elsewhere trans¬ 
lated sin-offering, (Ezek. xliv. 27 ; 
and xlv. 19;) and atonement, 
(Num. v. 8,) the mercy-seat, (Heb. 
ix. 5,) or the place or instrument 
of propitiation, where the blood of 
the sin-offering was sprinkled by 
the high-priest to make an atone¬ 
ment for sin. (Lev. xvi. 14.) 

PROSELYTE. (Matt, xxiii. 
15.) A name given by the Jews 
to such as were converted from 
heathenism to the Jewish faith. 
The Jewish Rabbins mention at 
least two classes. Proselytes of 
righteousness, who fully embraced 
the Jewish religion, were admitted 
to the enjoyment of all its rites 
and ordinances; (proselytes of 
this class are described in Ezra 

vi. 21;) and proselytes of the gate, 
who renounced heathenism, and 
informed in some respects to the 
Jewish religion, but were allowed 
only limited privileges. (See Bi¬ 
blical Antiquities, vol. ii. ch. 

vii. ) It seems to be the better 
opinion, however, that this dis¬ 
tinction is without authority, and 
that the only proselytes were such 
as embraced the whole system of 
Jewish wcrship. 

PROVERB. (1 Sam. x. 12.) 
This word is sometimes used as 
synonymous with parable. (John 
xvi. 29.) Strictly speaking, a pro¬ 
verb is a short moral sentence, 
expressing an important principle 
in a striking and forcible manner. 

The Proverbs of Solomon 


PSA 

constitute an important portioa 
(and the twentieth in order of th* 
books) of the Old Testament. It 
is a collection of wise maxims o* 
sayings, chiefly of Solomon, con¬ 
cerning almost every duty and re¬ 
lation of life. It is indeed a store¬ 
house of wisdom, and abounds 
with the most plain and practi 
cal rules for the regulation of th 
life and heart. 

The first ten chapters contain 
cautions and exhortations on a 
variety of subjects. From ch. x. 
to ch. xxii. 16, we find what are, 
strictly speaking, proverbs. From 
ch. xxii. 17, to ch. xxii. we have 
important instruction addressed 
in a connected form to a pupil 
supposed to be present. Ch. xxiii. 
-xxix. constitute a collection of 
inspired proverbs, which there ie 
some reason to believe were de¬ 
rived not exclusively from the 
lips of Solomon. Ch. xxx. con¬ 
tains the admonitions of Agur, 
and ch. xxxi. the counsels given 
to King Lemuel by his mother. 
The general similarity of the mat¬ 
ter which constitutes the book of 
Proverbs may well account for 
the mingling of authors, without 
resorting to the presumption that 
Agur and Lemuel were none other 
than Solomon himself, under a fic¬ 
titious name. It is said by judi¬ 
cious critics that the canonical 
authority of no part of the Old 
Testament is better ratified by the 
evidence of apostolic quotations 
than the book of Proverbs. (See 
Proverbs of Solomon, arranged 
under proper heads, and indexed.) 

PSALMS, (Luke xxiv. 44,) or 
holy songs. A psalm is & poetic 
composition adapted to music, vo¬ 
cal or instrumental, but especially 
the latter. When psalms, hymns 
and spiritual songs are mentioned 
639 




PSA 

together, psalms may denote such 
as were sung on instruments; 
hymns , such as contain only mat¬ 
ter of praise; and spiritual songs, 
such as contain doctrinos, history 
and prophecy for men’s instruc¬ 
tion. (Eph. v. 19.) 

The Psalms of David consti¬ 
tute the nineteenth in the order 
of the books of the Old Testament, 
and their right to a place in the 
canon has never been disputed. 
They consist of inspired hymns 
and songs, meditations and pray¬ 
ers, chiefly of David. It is sup¬ 
posed they were collected into 
one book by Ezra, though with¬ 
out any regard to chronological 
order. They are a completo and 
perfect manual of devotional ex¬ 
ercises ; and there is scarcely a 
grief or disease of the soul, for 
which there is not in this divine 
book a present comfortable remedy 
always to be found by those who 
rightly seek it. 

They are sometimes called The 
Psalter, from the psaltery, a mu¬ 
sical instrument used to accom¬ 
pany them when sung. 

The titles of the Psalms some¬ 
times have reference to a choice 
of tunes, or instruments, or con¬ 
tain some directions to persons 
appointed to set them to music, 
or to the leaders of the choir, or 
iomething peculiar in the subject, 
season or style of the composi¬ 
tion. The conjectures as to their 
meaning are various. 

This book was once published 
in five parts, each concluding 
with a doxology, viz. i.-xli.; xlii.- 
Ixxii.; lxxiii.-lxxxix.; xc.-cvi. ; 
evii.-cl.; but it is cited as one 
book, Luke xx. 42 

The original collection would 
seem to have comprised psalms 
L-lxxii. (See the subscription, 
540 


PUL 

Ps. Jxxii. 20. And for achronolo. 
gical arrangement of the Psalms- 
with the occasion which l«d to 
the composition of them, see Lifh 
of David, pp. 273-275.) 

PSALTERY (Ps. xxxiii 2) 
was a Babylonish instrument. In 
our version of the Bible the name 
is given to other instruments : but 
the genuine psaltery was a string¬ 
ed instrument, as far as we can 
learn, like the ten-stringed lyre 
or harp. (See Harp.) 

The modern instrument called 
psaltery is flat, and in the form 
of a trapezium, or triangle cut off 
at the top, and is strung with 
thirteen strings. It is struck with 
a plectrum, or small iron rod. 

PTOLEMAIS. (See Accho.) 

PUBLICAN. (Matt, xviii. 17.) 
An inferior collector of the Ro¬ 
man tribute. The principal farm¬ 
ers of this revenue were men of 
great <?redit and influence; but 
the undet-farmers, or publicans, 
were remarkable for their rapa¬ 
city and extortion, and were ac¬ 
counted as oppressive thieves and 
pick-pockets. Hence it is even 
said that the Jews would not allow 
them to enter the temple or the 
synagogues; to partake of the 
public prayers or offices of judi¬ 
cature ; or to give testimony in a 
court of justice. 

There were many publicans in 
Judea in the time of our Saviour. 
Zaccheus, probably, was one of 
the principal receivers, since he 
is called chief among the publi 
cans, (Luke xix. 2 ;) but Matthew 
was only an inferior publican. 
(Luke v. 27.) The Jews reproach¬ 
ed Jesus with being a friend of 
publicans and sinners, and eating 
with them. (Luke vii. 34.) 

PUL. (2 Kings xv. 19.) The 
first king of Assyria, who invaded 



PUL 

Canaan, and by a present of one 
thousand talents of silver, (equi¬ 
valent to nearly two millions of 
dollars ir our day,) was prevailed 
an by Menahem to withdraw his 
troops, and recognise the title of 
that wicked usurper. This is the 
first mention of Assyria in the 
sacred history after the days of 
Nimrod, and Pul was the first 
Assyrian invader of Judea. A 
town of this name is mentioned 
Isa. lxvi. 19; which is supposed, 
without authority, to be the island 
of Phi Ice, in the Nile, not far from 
Syene, where are found magnifi¬ 
cent ruins. 

PULSE. (2 Sam. xvii. 28.) 
Coarse grain, as peas, beans, and 
the like. (Dan. i. 12, 16.) 

PUR or PURIM, feast of. 
(See Feasts.) 

PURPLE. (Ex. xxv. 4.) The 
purple dye, so famous among the 
Orientals of ancient days, was 
much used by the Babylonians. 
(Jer. x. 9; Ezek. xxiii. 15 ; xxvii. 
16.) The hangings of the temple 
and some of the priests’garments 
were of this colour. (Ex. xxv. 4; 
xxxv. 6 ; xxxix. 29 ; 2 Chron. iii. 
14.) It was imported from some 
country beyond Persia, and there 
is good reason to believe that it 
was obtained froL* the body of an 
insect. The robes of royalty and 
distinction were of purple, and 
hence the intended grossness of 
the insult and mockery of our 
Saviour. (John xix. 2, 5.) The 
colour called purple was probably 
scarlet. The term purple was ap¬ 
plied to any colour into which red 
entered. 

PURSE. (Mark vi. 8.) A sort 
of girdle, such as is often found 
at the present day in Eastern 
countries. A part of the girdle, 
sufficient to encompass the body, 
46 


PYG 

is sewed double, and fastened with 
a buckle. The residue is w< und 
around above or below the first 
fold, and tucked under. The first 
fold has an opening, closed with a 
leathern cover and strap, through 
which the contents of the purse 
are passed. (See Clothes.) 

A modern traveller says—“ I 
bought to-day in the bazaar a 
woollen girdle, whose construc¬ 
tion amply explains the phrase so 
often occurring in Oriental tales, 
of ‘ carrying money in the belt .’ 
On one end being passed once 
round the waist, it is fastened by 
a buckle ; and this entire portion, 
being sewed double all round, 
contains the money, which is 
extracted by means of a small 
opening in the front, closed with 
a leathern cover and strap. This 
being secured, the remainder of 
the zone is folded around the 
body till the successive envelope- 
ments take up all the cloth, the 
end of which is then tucked in at 
the side so as to secure the folds.” 

The word translated purses, in 
Matt. x. 9, signifies literally 
girdles; and from their adapta¬ 
tion to the use pointed out by 
our Saviour, were undoubtedly 
of the same fashion with that 
which is above described. 

PUTEOLI, (Acts xxviii. 13,) 
or the wells, now Pozzuoli, a city 
eight miles north-west from Na¬ 
ples, containing about ten thou¬ 
sand inhabitants, formerly cele¬ 
brated for its warm baths and 
springs. The harbour was once 
regarded as the best in Italy. 

PYGARG (Deut. xiv. 5) is the 
name of a bird of me eagle Kind; 
but here, probably, denotes a beau¬ 
tiful species of the gazelle, or the 
mountain goat, found in Africa 
and Asia. 


541 




QUA 

UAILS, (Ex. xvi. IS,) or part¬ 
ridges, as they are called in 
some parts of the United States, 
were a part of the food miracu¬ 
lously supplied to the Israelites 
in the wilderness. (Ps. lxxviii. 
27.) Quails are still common in 
the deserts of Arabia, and are 
brought to the market at Jeru¬ 
salem by thousands. The supply 
to the Israelites was furnished on 
two occasions. (Ex. xvi. 13; 
Num. xi. 31.) Both were at the 
season when the quails pass from 
Asia into Europe, and are found 
in immense flocks on the coast of 
the Mediterranean and Red Sea. 
That they were thrown in such 
vast quantities into the camp of 
the Israelites as to suffice for the 
food of perhaps a million of per¬ 
sons for more than a month, is 
certainly supernatural. The de¬ 
scription of the quantity is liable 


to misapprehension. The origi-' 
nal does not represent the exact 
height, as our translation does; 
and some suppose it has no refer¬ 
ence at all to quantity; nor does 
it mean that the least amount 
gathered was exactly a homer. 
In the latter instance a large but 
642 


QUi 

indefinite quantity is intended. 
They were probably dried in the 
sun and salted, as many kinds of 
provisions are at this day. Hence 
the expression, they spread, (hem 
abroad for themselves round about 
the camp . (Num. xi. 32.) 

QUATERNION. (Acts xii. 4 .) 
When Peter is said to have been 
delivered to four quaternions of 
soldiers, it is to be understood 
that he was guarded by four men 
at a time, viz. two in the prison 
with him, (ver. 6,) and two be¬ 
fore the doors, and that they were 
relieved every three hours, or 
at each successive watch of the 
night, by four others; making 
in all sixteen men. (See Life 
of Peter, pp. 194—196.) 

QUEEN OF HEAVEN. (Jer. 
vii. 18.) The title under which 
the moon was worshipped by 
the heathens. Cakes, having the 
image of the moon 
stamped on them, are 
supposed to have 
been presented in sac. 
rifice, as a part of 
their idolatrous wor¬ 
ship. 

QUICKSANDS. 
(Acts xxvii. 17.) Re¬ 
ference is had in this 
passage (as it is sup¬ 
posed) to two very 
dangerous sandbars 
on the coast of Africa, 
over against Sicily, 
which were continual¬ 
ly shifting their pot’i- 
tion, and forming powerful cur¬ 
rents, by which ships were drawu 
from their course. 

QUIVER. (Ps, cxxvii. 5.) 
The box or case for arrows. The 
word is often used figuratively. 
(Isa. xlix. 2 ; Lam. iii. 2.) In 
Jer. v. 16. the slaughter and de- 






RAA 

Bolation which should be brought 
upon the Israelites by the inva¬ 
sion of the Chaldeans, is expressed 


It AC 

by calling their quivers an open 
sepulchre, or their arrows certain 
death. (See Armour.) 


RAA 

AAMAII. (Ezek. xxvii. 22.) 
A country or district of Ara¬ 
bia, trading with Tyre, in spices, 
stones and gold; and is supposed 
to have been settled by the de¬ 
scendants of Raamah, grandson 
of Ham. (Gen. x. 7.) 

RAAMSES or RAMESES. 
(Gen. xlvii. 11 ; Ex. xii. 37 ; 
Num. xxxiii. 3.) One of Pharaoh’s 
treasure cities, or public grana¬ 
ries, probably fortified for the 
security of the stores. Travellers 
tell us of a mass of ruins found 
at the modern village of Aben- 
keyshid, about forty miles from 
Suez, and near the canal con¬ 
necting that city with the Nile. 
The central and convenient loca¬ 
tion of this place points it out as 
the probable site of the ancient 
city. (See Pithom.) 

RABBATH, of the children of 
Ammon, (Deut. iii. 11,) was the 
chief city of the land of the Am¬ 
monites, and was situated in the 
mountains of Gilead, not far from 
the source of the Arnon. It was 
hero that Uriah lost his life in the 
Beige of the city by Joab, (2 Sam. 

xi. 17;) and afterwards it was 
captured, David himself taking 
the head of the array. (2 Sam. 

xii. 29.) As the capital of the 
Ammonites, the severest judg¬ 
ments are denounced against it 
in several prophecies. (Jer. xlix. 
1-3; Ezek. xxi. 20; xxv. 5.) Its 
modern name is Ammon, about 
twenty miles south-east of Szalt, 
where extensive ruins are now 
found. (See Ammonites.) 


RAC 

RABBATH-MOAB. (See Ar.; 

RABBI. (Matt, xxiii. 7.) A 
title of dignity, literally signify¬ 
ing great or chief. It was given 
by the Jews to distinguished 
teachers of their law. 

RABBONI. (John xx. 16.) A 
Hebrew word signifying my mas¬ 
ter, and regarded as the highest 
title of honour among the Jews. 

RABSHAKEII, (2 Kings xviii. 
17,) or the chief butler or cup¬ 
bearer, was sent with Rabsaris, 
or the chief of the eunuchs, and 
Tartan, messengers of the king 
of Assyria, to Hezekiah, summon¬ 
ing him, in the most indecent 
and blasphemous manner, to sur¬ 
render his capital. The history 
is recorded in 2 Kings xviii. 17- 
37. 

RACA. (Matt. v. 22.) A Sy¬ 
riac term denoting perfect con¬ 
tempt of the individual to whom 
it is applied. 

RACE. (1 Cor. ix. 24.) The 
word which is rendered race (Ps. 
xix. 5) signifies toay, road, or 
path. Races were known to the 
Hebrews. (Eccl. ix. 11.) The 
Eastern couriers are usually taken 
from among the strong or distin¬ 
guished officers of the king’s 
forces. Hence the sun, in the 
above passage from Psalms, is 
represented as an officer honoured 
by the Almighty to bear the an¬ 
nouncement of his power through 
every clime of his dominion, in 
language silent, but expressive, 
and equally intelligible to all. 

When the word occurs in th? 

543 










RAC 

New Testament, it alludes to the 
Grecian games for the trial of 
strength and skill in running on 
foot or horseback or in chariots. 



To win a prize at these games 
was considered as the highest 
honour to be attained on earth. 
The most strict and laborious 
preparation was made for it, (1 
Cor. ix. 24-27,) and the contest 
was governed by established 
rules. (2 Tim. ii. 5.) Those who 
contended for the prize were di¬ 
vested of clothing; every impe¬ 
diment was removed; the prize 
was in full view; and the crown 
was placed upon the conqueror’s 
head the moment the issue was 
proclaimed. (Phil. iii. 12-14; 2 
Tim. iv. 6-8; Heb. xii. 1.) 

RACHEL. (Gen. xxix. 6.) 
The daughter of Laban, the wife 
of the patriarch Jacob, and the 
mother of Joseph and Benjamin. 
(See Jacob.) The name of Ra¬ 
chel is used by the prophet (Jer. 
xxxi. 15) figuratively, as the ma¬ 
ternal ancestor of the tribes of 
Ephriam and Manasseh; and the 
orophecy he uttered is supposed 
544 


RAH 

to have been fulfilled when those 
tribes were carried captive bo- 
yon d the Euphrates. A similar 
use is made of her name by the 
evangelist, (Matt. ii. 18,) where 
Rachel, who was buried in that 
vicinity, is supposed to renew her 
lamentations at the slaughter of 
so many of her descendants as 
fell under the barbarous edict of 
Herod. (See Rama. See Nota¬ 
ble Women of Scripture, Art 
Rache-l.) 

RAGUEL. (See Jethro.) 

RAHAB. (Josh. ii. 1.) A wo¬ 
man of Jericho, who kept a pub¬ 
lic house, and, as some suppose, 
was of depraved character. She 
had heard of the Israelites, and 
of the favour of God towards 
them, (Josh. ii. 8-11;) and when 
the two spies sent out by Joshua 
came to Jericho to explore the land 
of promise, she concealed them 
from the officers who were sent 
in search of them, and at a con¬ 
venient time let them down by a 
cord, upon the outside of the city 
wall, to which her house joined : 
and, following her directions, they 
escaped. It was agreed between 
her and the spies, that she should 
take a scarlet thread and fasten 
it in the window or aperture 
through which they had escaped ; 
and when the city was destroyed, 
her house and all that were in it 
should be protected. (Josh. ii. 
17-23.) The intelligence re¬ 
ceived from Rahab induced 
Joshua to go forward at once to 
the seige of Jericho; and when 
the city was taken and burnt, 
Rahab and her family were re¬ 
scued and preserved, according 
to the promise of the spies. (Josh, 
vi. 17-25.) The faith of Ranab 
is commended, (Heb. xi. 3l; 
James ii. 25;) and it is supposed 









EAI 

ih© married into a noble family 
of the tribe of Judah. (Matt. i. 5.) 
The term Rahab is used poetical¬ 
ly as descriptive of Egypt, in Ps. 
xxxvii. '4; lxxxix. 10; Isa. li. 9. 
(See Egypt.) 

RAIMENT. (See Clothes.) 

RAIN. (Gen. ii. 5.) The force 
of the various allusions to this 
subject cannot be apprehended 
without some knowledge of the 
seasons in Judea. (See Seasons.) 
Rain falls very frequently during 
what we call the cold months, 
from November to April. Some¬ 
times it rains powerfully for se¬ 
veral days, with thunder and light¬ 
ning, and a strong wind. In the 
summer season, from May to Oc¬ 
tober, the earth is parched, ver¬ 
dure is destroyed, and vegetation 
languishes. The first rain after 
the summer drought usually falls 
in October, and is called the former 
or autumnal rain, because it pre¬ 
ceded seed-time, and prepares the 
earth for cultivation. The latter 
rain falls in April, just before 
harvest, and perfects the fruits 
of the earth. (Hos. vi. 3 ; Joel ii. 
23. See Evening Recreations, 
vol. i. p. 82, and Bedouin Arabs, 
ch. i.) 

RAINBOW. (Rev. iv. 3.) A 
natural phenomenon which con¬ 
sists of two arches, and is always 
formed in the part of the sky 
which is opposite to the sun. It 
is never seen except when the 
sun shines while rain is fallin §> 
through which the rays of the 
sun pass, and are so reflected as 
to produce the rainbow. The 
same phenomenon is produced by 
the spray of a water-fall, and 
even by throwing water up from 
a brush or syringe, w'uen the 
sun’s rays can pass through and 
he reflected’on an opposite sur- 
46* 2 


RAM 

face. The same laws bv which 
this effect is produced were pro¬ 
bably in operation before the de¬ 
luge, and we may suppose, there 
fore, that the bow was then em¬ 
ployed or appointed as a sign of 
the covenant that the earth should 
not be again destroyed by a flood. 
The phrase, / do set my bote in 
the clouds, (Gen. ix. 13,) might 
with equal propriety be translated, 
/ have set, &c. The language 
of the covenant would be in sub 
stance, “ As surely as that bow it 
the result of established laws 
which must continue as long a& 
the sun and atmosphere endure, 
so surely shall the world be pre¬ 
served from destruction by a de¬ 
luge. Its preservation shall be 
as necessary an effect of my pro¬ 
mise as that bow is the necessary 
effect of the shining of the sun 
upon the falling drops of rain.” 
RAISINS. (See Grapes.) 

RAM. (Mic. vi. 7.) A clean 
animal by the ceremonial law, 
and used for sacrifice. (Gen. xv. 
9.) In prophetic language the 
ram denotes power and wealth, 
and also cruelty and oppression. 

The ram of consecration, (Ex. 
xxix. 26,) was sacrificed when 
the priests were invested with 
their office; and the putting of 
part of the blood of this sacrifice 
on the three extremities of the 
body, aptly denoted the consecra¬ 
tion of the whole body to the ser¬ 
vice of the Lord. 

RAM SKINS. (Ex. xxv. 5.) 
Probably the beautiful article 
common at this day in Asiatic 
Turkey and Morocco, made of 
gcat skins and dyed red. (Comp. 
2 Kings iii. 4.) 

RAM, battering. (See Ba* 
tering Ram.) 

RAMA, (Matt. ii. 18.) or RA 
K 645 



RAM 

MAH, (1 Sam.i. 19,) was a small I 
town, situated on an eminence in 
the territory of Benjamin, (Josh, 
xviii. 25,) and about six miles 
north of Jerusalem, on the way 
to Bethel. The name Rama, or 
Ramoth, signifies an eminence , 
and hence is a constituent part 
of the names of several places, 
and is sometimes used generally 
for any high place. It was here 
that the Jews were assembled 
after the destruction of Jerusa¬ 
lem by Nebuzaradan, (Jer. xl. 1,) 
to take their departure from their 
beloved country, and to go as 
captives into a land of strangers, 
if not of tyrants. It was this 
place that Baasha, king of Israel, 
once possessed and fortified ; but 
the king of Judah by stratagem 
wrested it from him. (1 Kings 
xv. 17.) Near to Ramah Rachel 
was buried; and she is repre¬ 
sented by the prophet (Jer. xxxi. 
15) as weeping over the loss of 
her children, and refusing to be 
comforted because of their cap¬ 
tivity. This, though called Ra- 
mathaim-zophim, was also the 
place of Samuel’s birth, residence, 
death and burial, and where he 
anointed Saul as king. (1 Sam. i. 
1, 19; ii. 11; vii. 17; viii. 4; 
xix. 18; xxv. 1.) Ramah, or 
Ramathaim, or Ramathaim-zo- 
phim of the Old, is the Arimathea 
of the New Testament, where 
dwelt Joseph, in whose tomb the 
body of Christ was buried. (John 
xix. 38.) There is now a village 
on the hill which was the site of 
Ramah, called Samuele by the 
Arabs. Jerusalem is easily seen 
from this height. 

There was another Rama in 
Naphtali. (Josh. xix. 36.) An 
American missionary, was at 
Arimathea, now Romba, in Feb- 
640 


RAM 

I ruary, 1824, and sold to the Arabs 

! several copies of the Bible in 
Arabic; and another American 
missionary was there in April, 
1835. He says, “The situation 
is exceedingly beautiful.. It is 
about two hours distant from Je¬ 
rusalem, to the north-west, on an 
eminence commanding a view of 
a wide extent of beautifully di- 
versified country. Hills, plains 
and valleys, highly cultivated 
fields of wheat and barley, vine¬ 
yards and olive-yards, are spread 
out before you as on a map; and 
numerous villages are scattered 
here and there over the whole 
view. To the west and north¬ 
west, beyond the hill-country, 
appears the vast plain of Sharon, 
and farther still you look out upon 
the great and wide sea. It oc¬ 
curred to me as not improbable 
that in the days of David and 
Solomon, this place may have 
been a favourite retreat during 
the heat of summer; and that 
here the former may have often 
struck his sacred lyre. Some of 
the psalms, or at least one of them, 
(see Ps. civ. 25,) seem to have 
been composed in some place 
which commanded a view of the 
Mediterranean; and this is the 
only place, I believe, in the vici¬ 
nity of Jerusalem, that affords 
such a view.” 

Ramah was once a strongly 
fortified city, but there is no city 
here at present. A half-ruined 
Mohammedan mosque, which was 
originally a Christian church, 
stands over the tomb of the pro¬ 
phet; besides which, a few mise 
rable dwellings are the only build¬ 
ings that remain on this once cele¬ 
brated spot. 

There is a town about thirty 
miles north-west of Jerusalem, on 



RAM 

the road to Joppa, now called 
Rnmla, or llamle, which is de¬ 
scribed by many geographers, 
and some of the best maps, as the 
Rama of Samuel, and the Arima- 
thea of Joseph. It commanded 
a vie'*' of the whole valley of 
Sharon, from the mountains of 
Jerusalem to the sea, and from 
the foot of Carmel to the hills of 
Gaza. 

RAMATHAIM-ZOPHIM. (See 

Rama.) 

RAMESES. (See Raamses.) 

RAMOTH, (Josh. xx. 8,) or 
RAMOTH-GILEAD, (1 Kings 
xxii. 29,) or RAMATH MIZ- 
PEH, (Josh. xiii. 26,) or watch- 
tower. It was a famous city in 
the mountains of Gilead, within 
the territory of Gad, about fifteen 
miles from Rabbah. It was ap¬ 
pointed for one of the cities of 
refuge. (Deut. iv. 43.) During 
the reigns of the latter kings of 
Israel, this place was the occa¬ 
sion of several wars between 
them and the kings of Damascus, 
who had conquered it, and from 
whom the kings of Israel endea¬ 
voured to regain it. (1 Kings xvii; 
2 Kings viii. 28, 29. See Omar, 
p. 137.) 

South Ramoth (1 Sam. xxx. 
27) is probably so called to dis¬ 
tinguish it from Ramoth beyond 
Jordan. 

RANSOM. (Matt. xx. 28; 
Mark x. 45.) The price paid to 
purchase the freedom of a cap¬ 
tive or slave. (1 Cor. vi. 19, 20; 
1 Tim. ii. 6.) Under the Leviti- 
cal law, an offering was required 
of every Israelite over twenty 
years of age, at the time the cen¬ 
sus was taken. This offering is 
called a ransom, or atonement 
money. (Ex. xxx. 12-16.) It 
amounted to half a shekel, oi 


' RAV 

1 about twenty-five cents. It waj 
to be made upon penalty of the 
plague; and every person, rich 
or poor, was required to give that 
sum, and neither more nor less. 
(1 Pet. i. 18, 19.) 

RAVEN. (Gen. viii. 7.) A 
bird of prey, resembling the com¬ 
mon crow of the United States in 



size, shape and colour, and cere¬ 
monially unclean, (Lev. xi. 15;) 
and delighting in deserted and 
solitary places. (Isa. xxxiv. 11.) 
When about to feed upon a dead 
body, it is said to seize first upon 
the eyes. Hence the allusion, 
Prov. xxx. 17, implying the ex¬ 
posure of the body in the open 
field, than which nothing was re* 
garded as more disgraceful. (See 
Burial.) 

The young of the ravens leave 
the nest early, beforo they are 
able to supply themselves with 
food. This fact is alluded to, 
Job xxxviii. 41; Ps. cxlvii. 9; 
Luke xii. 24. Whether the* raven 
sent out of the ark by Noah ever 
returned to him, is not agreed : 
according to the literal reading 
of the Hebrew, also of the Sama 
ritan text, and the Chaldee, it 
547 


















REB 

did; but a different opinion is 
supported by the LXX., the Sy¬ 
riac, the Latin, and mist of the 
fathers. (Gen. viii. 7.) There is 
also some difference of opinion 
respecting the ravens by which 
Elijah was fed at the brook Che- 
rith. An ingenious writer has 
discovered that in that region 
there was a village called iErobi, 
and a brook called Corith,and he 
conjectures that the ASrobites sup¬ 
plied the prophet with food; but if 
they supplied him with food, why 
not with water, when the brook 
failed ? and why, in that case, could 
not Ahab fin'd him? (1 Kings 
xvii. 4-7.) There seems to be no 
good reason to doubt that the 
natural and commonly received 
impression of the history is just. 
(For cut and explanation, see 
Fouth’s Friend.) 

REBEKAH. (Gen. xxiv. 15.) 
The sister of Laban and wife of 
[saac. The circumstances of her 
marriage with Isaac constitute 
one of the most simple and beau¬ 
tiful passages of the sacred history. 
(Gen. xxiv. See Christian Po¬ 
liteness, pp. 40-45, and Story 
of Isaac, pp. 65-76.) After she 
had been married twenty years, 
she became the mother of Jacob 
and Esau, and at the same time 
received a remarkable divine in¬ 
timation concerning the future 
destiny of the infants. When 
thoy grew up, Jacob became the 
favourite of his mother, and this 
undue partiality was the source 
of much mischief. (See Jacob.) 

She died before Isaac, and was 
buried in Abraham’s tomb. (Gen. 
xlix. 31.) 

RECHAB, RECHABITES. 
'Jer. xxxv. 16, 18.) TheRechab- 
ites were a tribe of Kenites or 
Midianites, (1 Chron. ii. 55,) do- 
548 


REl 

scended from Jonadab, or Jeho- 
nadab, the son or descendant of 
Rechab, (2 Kings x. 15,) fron 
which last they derive their name. 
(Comp. Num. x. 29-32, with Judg. 
i. 16, and iv. 11.) J(nadab ap 
pears to have been zealous for thf 
pure worship of God, and was as 
sociated with Jehu in the de¬ 
struction of the idolatrous house 
of Ahab. He established a rule 
for his posterity, that they should 
possess neither land nor houses, 
but should live in tents; and 
should drink no wine or strong 
drink. In obedience to this rule* 
the Rechabites continued a sepa¬ 
rate but peaceable people, living 
in tents, and removing from place 
to place,as circumstances required. 
When Judea was first invaded by 
Nebuchadnezzar they fled to Je¬ 
rusalem for safety, where it pleas¬ 
ed God, by the prophet Jeremiah, 
to exhibit them to the wicked in¬ 
habitants of Jerusalem, as an ex¬ 
ample of constancy in their obe¬ 
dience to the mandates of an 
earthly father. (Jer. xxxv. 2-19.) 

Some highly interesting facts 
are known respecting the pre¬ 
sent condition of the Rechabites. 
They still dwell in the mountain¬ 
ous tropical country to the north¬ 
east of Medina. They are called 
Beni Kliaibr, sons of Heber ; and 
their land is called Khaibr. They 
have no intercourse with their 
brethren, the Jews, who are dis¬ 
persed over Asia ; and are esteem¬ 
ed as falne brethren , because they 
observe not the law. These per¬ 
sons cannot accompany a caravan, 
because their religion permits 
them not to travel on the Sab¬ 
bath ; yet their country is so sur¬ 
rounded by deserts, that unless in 
a caravan, it can neither be en¬ 
tered nor left safely. 



REC 

A late traveller inquired of a 
Jew about them, and whether 
they ever came to Jerusalem : and 
the Jew proved that they came to 
that city in the time of Jeremiah, 
by reading ch. xxxv. of his pro¬ 
phecy. This Jew stated that 
these persons, who were unques- 
tionablv the descendants of the 
Rechabites, are now known to 
drink no wine; to have neither 
vineyards, field nor seed; and to 
be wandering nomades, dwelling 
like Arabs in tents; and they 
have never wanted a man to stand 
before the Lord, but have main¬ 
tained strictly and constantly the 
worship of the true God. 

RECONCILE, (Eph. ii. 16.) 
RECONCILIATION. (Heb. ii. 
17.) These terms, as used by the 
sacred writers, imply the restora¬ 
tion of man to the favour and 
grace of God, through the atone¬ 
ment made by Jesus Christ. (2. 
Cor. v. 19.) They suppose a pre¬ 
vious state of variance and hos¬ 
tility, such as must necessarily 
exist between beings so perfectly 
opposite in character as the holy 
God and his fallen, sinful creature, 
man. (Rom. vii. 5-25.) 

RED SEA. (Ex. xiii. 18.) A 
gulf setting up eleven hundred 
and sixty miles from the Arabian 
Sea., through the straits of Babel- 
rnandel, nearly to Cairo on the 
Nile. Its mean breadth is about 
one hundred and twenty miles. 
It derives its name probably from 
the fact that it was bordered by 
the possessions of Edom, (which 
signifies red.) The original is 
supposed to mean weedy sea ; but 
the significancy of this name is 
still more obscure; for a modern 
traveller tells us that the water 
of the Red Sea is so very clear, 
that be read on the wooden stock 


RED 

of an anchor the name of the 
ship, at the depth of twenty-five 
fathoms, (one hundred and fifty 
feet.) Still, the bottom is covered 
with coral reefs; and if examined 
in calm weather, has the appear¬ 
ance of verdant meadows and sub¬ 
marine forests. Hence it is sup¬ 
posed the Jews and Arabs have 
called it the sea of green weeds. 

The northern extremity of the 
Red Sea is divided into two gulfs, 
Akaba and Suez. The latter was 
crossed by the Israelites in their 
passage from Egypt to Canaan. 
The precise point at which this 
miraculous event happened is not 
certainly known. 

The remembrance of this me¬ 
morable transaction is preserved 
in the local traditions of the in¬ 
habitants. The Wells of Moses 
(Ayoun Mousa) and the Baths of 
Pharaoh ( Hammarn Faraoun) are 
associated with the names of the 
Jewish deliverer and the Egyptian 
monarch; and the superstitious 
Arabs call the gulf the Bahr of 
Kolzoum, or Sea of Destruction; 
in whose roaring waters they still 
pretend to hear the cries and 
wailings of the ghosts of the 
drowned Egyptians. 

Diodorus seems distinctly to 
allude to the passage of the Isra¬ 
elites: ‘‘It has been an ancient 
report among the Ichthyophagi, 
continued down to them from 
their forefathers, that by a mighty 
reflux of the waters, which hap¬ 
pened in former days, the whole 
gulf became dry land, and ap¬ 
peared green all over, the water 
overflowing the opposite shore; 
and that, all the ground being 
thus left bare to the very lowest 
bottom of the gulf, the sea, by an 
extraordinary high tide, returned 
again into its ancient channel * 
549 



RED 


RED 



7)es.of Sins 


Sinai 


1 NOPH or MEMPHIS. 

17 Rimmon-parez. 

2 SAIS or SIN. 

18 Libnah. 

8 ON or HELIOPOLIS. 

19 Kadesh-barnea. 

4 IIAMESES. 

20 Rissah. 

6 Succoth. 

21 Kehclathab. 

6 Etbam. 

22 Shanher. 

7 MigdoL 

23 Haradah. 

8 BAAL-ZEPHON. 

24 Makeloth. 

9 Marah. 

25 Tahath. 

10 Elim. 

26 Tarah. 

11 Dophkah. 

27 Mithcah. 

12 Alusb. 

28 Hash men ah; 

13 Rephidim. 

29 Mosoroth. 

14 Kibroth-hattaavah. 

30 Bene-jaakam. 

16 Hazeroth. 

31 Hor-hagidgad. 

16 Rithmah. 

32 Jothbathab. 


33 Ebronab. 

48 Pisgab. 

34 Elath. 

49 Nebo. 

35 EZION-GEBER. 

60 Zarad or Benthamraed. 

36 Kadesb. 

61 Joktheel. 

37 Zalmonab. 

62 HESHBON. 

38 Punon. 

63 Abarim. 

39 Obotb. 

64 JERICHO. 

40 Iie-abarim. 

65 Bethlehem. 

41 Aroer. 

66 HEBRON. 

42 BIBON. 

67 Hor. 

43 Beer 

. 68 GAZA. 

44 Almon-diblathaim. 

69 ASCALON. 

45 Mattanab. 

GO ASHPOD. 

46 Nahaiiel. 

61 EKRON. 

47 Bamoth. 

62 JERUSALEM. 























































RED 

It is not unimportant t© find a 
heathen writer unconsciously 
hearing testimony to the truth of 
Scripture history. 

The passage of the Red Sea 
has been attributed to the pecu¬ 
liarities .of the tides, aided by the 
winds; but this is no less the act 
of God than an immediate or su¬ 
pernatural interposition. It is 
well known, say the skeptical, 
that in the Arabian Gulf, the Per¬ 
sian Gulf, the Ganges, and other 
openings into the great ocean, 
these tides are often overwhelm¬ 
ing. So that the Hebrews, whose 
knowledge was confined to the 
limits of the tideless sea, were 
strongly impressed by an event 
which caused the destruction of 
their enemies upon ground which 
they had passed dry-shod, in con¬ 
sequence of a receding tide, as¬ 
sisted by a strong east wind all 
that night. This interpretation, 
however, is entirely gratuitous 
and fanciful. The inspired his¬ 
torian declares explicitly that the 
children of Israel went through 
the midst of the sea.. The routers 
were a wall unto them on the right 
hand and on the left. The whole 
account gives the impression of a 
stupendous miracle. (See Life 
of Moses, ch. xi., and Evening 
Recreations, vol. iii. pp. 96-104.) 

REDEEM, (Luke i. 68,) RE¬ 
DEEMER. (Job xix. 25.) To 
redeem a person is to purchase 
his liberty for him. The price 
paid is called the ransom. (See 
Ransom.) Sinners are in bondage 
to sin, and of course they are in 
the bondage of condemnation. 
The Lord Jesus Christ having 
given his life or his blood a ran¬ 
som for them, he redeems them, 
and is therefore called their Re¬ 
deemer. (Matt. xx. 28; 1 Pot. i. 


REF 

18 .) This ransom, though suffi¬ 
cient to redeem all men from 
captivity, avails only for the re¬ 
demption of such as are in Christ 
Jesus, and walk not after the 
flesh, but after the Spirit. 

REED. (Job xl. 21.) A plant 
of the grass family. The bamboc 
and common cane are species of 
the reed, and so are the calamus 
and flag. Fishpoles, canes and 
rods (Matt, xxvii. 29) are formed 
of it. These plants flourish in 
marshes or in the vicinity of 
water-courses : hence the allusion, 
Job xl. 21-23. It is often used 
by the sacred writers to illustrate 
weakness and fragility. (2 Kings 
xviii. 21; Isa. xxxvi. 6; xlii. 3; 
Ezek. xxix. 6; Matt. xii. 20.) 

Reeds were also used as pens 
are now, (see Pen,) and also as 
measuring rods. (Ezek. xl. 5. 
See Measures.) From their 
height and slender shape, plants 
of this kind are moved by the 
slightest breath of wind, (1 Kings 
xiv. 15,) and hence nothing could 
be more unimportant in itself 
than such a motion, and nothing 
more strikingly illustrative of 
fickleness and instability. (Comp. 
Matt. xi. 7; Luke vii. 24; Eph. 
iv. 14.) 

Measuring reed. (See Mea¬ 
sures.) 

REFINER. (Mai. iii. 3.) This 
word is often used figuratively by 
the sacred writers. Its peculiar 
force in the passage cited will be 
seen, when it is remembered that 
refiners of silver sit with their 
eyes steadily fixod on the furnace, 
that they may watch the process; 
and that the process is complete 
and perfected only when the re¬ 
finer sees his own image in the 
melted mass. When Christ sees 
his image perfectly reflected in 





REF 

the holy life and conversation &f 
his people, the object of the xe- 
finingr process is accomplished. 

REFUGE. (See City.) 

REGENERATION. (Matt, 
xix. 28; Tit. iii. 5.) This term 
occurs in no other passages of the 
Bible. It signifies being born 
again. As used by Matthew, the 
meaning of the word will depend 
on the punctuation of the passage, 
and will either refer to the nexc- 
birth which the followers of Christ 
had undergone, or to the renova¬ 
tion or consummation of all things 
at Christ’s second advent, when 
there shall be new heavens and a, 
new earth. The last is the most 
natural construction. By the 
washing of regeneration , in the 
latter passage, is to be understood 
what is uMerstood by other words 
conveying precisely the same 
idea, and which are of frequent 
occurrence. Our Saviour says to 
Nicodemus, Except a man be born 
again, he cannot see the kingdom 
of God. (John iii. 3.) Christians 
are described as born of God, 
(John i. 12, 13; 1 John ii. 29; v. 
1, 4.) They are also represented 
as begotten of God, or by the 
word of God. (James i. 18; \1 
Pet. i. 3, 23.) And the same 
thing, in substance, is presented 
under the idea of a new creation, 
(2 Cor. v. 17;) a renewing of the 
mind, (Rom. xii. 2;) a renewing 
of the Holy Ghost, (Titus iii. 5;) 
a resurrection from the dead, 
(Eph. ii. 6;) a being quickened, 
Ac. (Eph. ii. 1, 5.) Regenera¬ 
tion then, may be regarded as 
the communication of spiritual 
life to a soul previously dead in 
trespasses and sins, by the al¬ 
mighty energy of the Holy Spirit, 
making use of the word of truth 
as the instrument: in consequence 
552 


REH 

of which divine operation the soul 
begins to apprehend spiritual 
things in a new light; to believe 
them in a new manner; to love 
them with an affection not before 
felt; and to act henceforth from 
new motives and to new ends. 
The effects of regeneration cannot 
but be very perceptible, in the 
humble penitence and contrition 
for sin which is produced: in the 
ardent breathings after the know¬ 
ledge of God ; after conformity to 
his holiness, and communion with 
him through Christ Jesus; and 
in the kind and fraternal feelings 
which spontaneously flow from 
tho regenerated soul towards all 
men, and especially towards the 
household of faith: for to the 
brethren of Christ the soul born 
of God cannot but entertain an 
affection of peculiar strength and 
tenderness; both because they 
belong to Christ, and because they 
possess and manifest something 
of the lovely image of Him that 
hath begotten them anew. 

REHOB. (Num. xiii. 21.) Pro¬ 
bably the same with Beth-rehob, 
(Judg. xviii. 28,) a city of Syria, 
north of Cesarea Philppi, and neai 
Dan. It belonged to the tribe of 
Asher. (Josh. xix. 28.) 

REHOBOAM, (1 Kings xiv. 
21,) son and successor of Solomon, 
ascended the throne of Judah ai 
the age of forty-one, and reigned 
seventeen years. At the com¬ 
mencement of his career, he had 
an opportunity to conciliate the 
prejudices and discontents which 
had been excited by the closing 
acts of his father’s reign ; but re¬ 
jecting the wise counsel of the 
aged, and adopting the precipi¬ 
tate counsel of the young, he in¬ 
flamed his subjects by the most 
insolent and tyrannical reply to 



REH 

their petitions and representa¬ 
tions, (2 Chron. x. 1-14,) and 
hastened a division of the king¬ 
dom. Ten of the tribes revolted, 
(sec Jeroboam,) leaving Judah 
and Benjamin alone in their alle¬ 
giance to Rehoboam. The latter 
proposed at once to employ force 
for the purpose of reducing the 
rebels, but was divinely admon 
ished to forbear. (1 Kings xii. 
24.) Continual wars prevailed, 
however, between the two par¬ 
ties. (2 Chron. xii. 15.) In about 
three years after the division of 
the kingdom, the tribes of Judah 
followed the tribes of Israel in 
their idolatrous practices; and 
for this they suffered the invasion 
of Shishak, king of Egypt, who de¬ 
solated the country, and threat¬ 
ened the utter destruction of their 
city; but upon their repentance, 
the scourge was stayed, though 
they suffered immense loss, and 
were made tributary to the inva¬ 
der. (2 Chron. xii. 2-12.) We 
are told that a history of Reho- 
boam’s reign was written by 
Sbemaiah and Iddo, (2 Chron. xii. 
15,) but it has not been preserved. 
A distinguished modern antiquary 
has furnished evidence that on 
the remains of edifices believed to 
have been erected by this very 
Shishak, he has discovered se¬ 
veral effigies of captive kings, and 
among them one of Rehoboam, 
the son and successor of Solomon. 

llEHOBOTA, (Gen. x. 11; 
meaning ample room, Gen. xxvi. 
22) is supposed to express, in the 
passage cited, either the spacious¬ 
ness of the streets or the extent 
of the city of Nineveh. If it was 
a city, we have no knowledge of 
its site. 

Rehoboth by the river, 
CGen. xxxvi. 37,) the birthplace 
47 


REN 

of Saul the Idumean King, was 
probably a town on the Euphrates, 
the site of which is supposed to 
be occupied by the modern town 
of Errachabi. 

Rehoboth is also the name of a 
famous well of Isaac, near to 
Gerar. (Gen. xxvi. 22.) 

REINS. (Job xvi. 13.) This 
word, which properly signifies the 
1 'ins, or reigion of the kidneys, 
is used figuratively by the sacred 
writers, to denote the seat of the 
affections and dispositions. 

REMPHAN. (Acts vii. 43.) 
Probably a name given to some 
planet (perhaps Saturn) which 
was regarded as an object of wor¬ 
ship. The imago of the object of 
their idolatry, being enclosed in a 
small tabernacle or portable case, 
was carried atK/Ut from place to 
place like other baggage. Such 
were the shrines, Acts xix. 24. 
(Comp. Isa. xlvi. 7.) What the 
prophet calls Chinn, (Amos v. 
26,) the martyr calls Remphan. 
Probably the words signify the 
same thing in different languages. 

REND. (Gen. xxxvii. 29-34.) 
To rend the garments, or tare 
them, (2 Sam. xiii. 31,) was from 
the earliest period a sign of grief 
or penitence. Jacob and David 
did it on various occasions; and 
so did Joshua, (Josh. vii. 6,) and 
Hezekiah. (2 Kings xix. 1.) The 
high-priest was forbidden to rend 
his clothes, (Lev. x. 6; xxi. 10,) 
probably meaning his sacred gar¬ 
ments. Perhaps those referred 
to, Matt. xxvi. 65, were such as 
were ordinarily worn, or merely 
judicial and not pontifical gar¬ 
ments. Sometimes it denoted 
anger or indignation, mingled 
with sorrow. (Isa. xxxvi. 22; 
xxxvii. 1; Acts xiv. 14.) The 
phrase to rend the /ace^Jer. iv. 




REN 

30; alludes to the practice of in¬ 
troducing paints into the flesh, 
particularly the eyelids. (See 
Eyelids.) 

RENEW, RENEWING-. (See 
Regeneration.) 

REPENT, REPENTANCE, 
(Ezek. xiv. 6; Matt. ix. 13,) is a 
change of mind, accompanied 
with regiet and sorrow for some¬ 
thing done, and an earnest wish 
that it was undone. Such was 
the repentance of Judas, (Matt, 
xxvii. 3;) and so it is said that 
Esau found no place of repentance 
in his father Isaac, although he 
sought it with tears, (Heb. xii. 
17 ;) i.e. Isaac would not change 
what he had done, and revoke the 
blessing given to Jacob. (Gen. 
xxvii. 34—40.) 

Repentance unto life is sorrow 
for sin, grief for having com¬ 
mitted it, and a turning away 
from it with abhorrence, accom¬ 
panied with sincere endeavours,. 
in reliance on God's grace and 
the aid of the Holy Spirit, to live 
in humble and holy obedience to 
the commands and will of God. 
(Jer. iii. 10; Matt. iii. 8; Actsv. 
31; xi. 18, 23; 2 Cor. vii. 8-10; 
2 Tim. ii. 25.) This is that re¬ 
pentance to which is promised the 
free forgiveness of sin through the 
merits of Jesus Christ. 

The expression in Rom. xi. 29, 
denotes generally the stability and 
unchangeableness of God’s corn- 
man is and purposes, winch will 
not be altered or revoked from 
any change of mind or purpose in 
him, and particularly in relation 
to the Jews, that God was mind¬ 
ful of his covenant with them, and 
that it was firm and irrevocable. 

When God is said to repent, it 
does not imply any change or 
iorrow, for he is of one mind, (1 
554 


REP 

Sam. xv. 294 Job xxiii. 13; Jer. 
xviii. 7-10;) but it denotes a 
course of proceeding which, if 
pursued by men, would be indica¬ 
tive of repentance or change of 
purpose. For example, if one at¬ 
tempts to build a house, and be¬ 
cause he is unsuccessful, or disap¬ 
pointed in the appearance or con¬ 
struction of it, pulls it down, such 
a course indicates regret and sor¬ 
row. So when it is said of God, 
that when he saw the great wick¬ 
edness of the world, it repented 
him that he had made man on 
the earth, (Gen. vi. 6,) the ex¬ 
pression is to be regarded in this 
figurative sense, as denoting an 
emotion which in man is called 
repentance, but of which, in that 
sense, the divine mind is incapa¬ 
ble. The purpose of God com¬ 
prehends all the apparent changes 
in his dispensations. 

REPETITIONS, vain, (Matt, 
vi. 7,) were short forms or par¬ 
ticular expressions in prayer, 
which the Jews were accustomed 
to repeat a certain number of 
times. There are still those who 
repeat the Lord’s prayer, and 
other prayers, a great number of 
times, and vainly think that the 
oftener the prayer is repeated, 
the more efficacious it is; i. e. if 
repeated two hundred times, it 
will be twice-as good as if re¬ 
peated only one hundred times. 
It was a maxim among the Jews 
that he who multiplies prayers 
must be heard; but as their 
prayers were in words or for form 
merely, they were justly liable to 
the censure which this passage 
implies. 

REP HAIM, (2 Sam. xxiii. 13,' 
or valley of the giants. (Josh, 
xv. 8; xviii. 16.) A remarkably 
fertile valley (Isa. xvii. 5) be 




REP 

tween Bethlehem and Jerusalem, 
formerly inhabited by a race of 
giants, (Gen. xiv. 5,) and re¬ 
markable for two of David’s vic¬ 
tories over the Philistines. (2 
Sam. v. 18-22; 1 Chron. xi. 14; 
xiv. 9-11.) 

REPHIDIM. (Ex. xvii. 1.) 
One of the stations of the Israel¬ 
ites, on the. western arm of the 
Red Sea. It is distinguished as 
the place where water was mira¬ 
culously supplied to the murmur¬ 
ing people, (Ex. xvii. 6;) and, 
also, for Joshua’s victory over 
Amalek. (Ex. xvii. 8-10.) Here, 
too, Jethro and his family came 
to visit Moses, and united with 
the elders of Israel in acts of wor¬ 
ship. (Ex. xviii. 1-12. Comp. 
Ex. iii. 12.) 

This place is called Meribah 
(strife or contention) from the cir¬ 
cumstance of the conduct of the 
Israelites above mentioned. Mo¬ 
dern travellers tell us that the 
supposed rock from which the 
water was supplied is a beautiful 
granite, about fifteen feet in height 
and breadth, and quite insulated 
in a narrow valley, which opens 
directly into a vast plain; that 
the Arabs reverence it, and stuff 
shrubs into the fissures, which 
become impregnated, as they say, 
with medicinal virtues, and of 
which the camels are made to 
eat when they are sick, for the 
purpose of restoring them. 

REPROBATE, (Jer. vi. 30,) 
CAST AWAY, (1 Cor. ix. 27,) or 
REJECTED, (Heb. vi. 8,) are 
nearly synonymous. As used, 
Titus i. 16, it may mean either 
that the persons described are 
without knowledge, (comp. Jer. 
iv. 22; Rom. i. 28;) or that, so 
far as any good works are con¬ 
cerned, tfiey are rejected; or that 


RES 

[ their supposed good works, like 
base coin, are spurious and uncur¬ 
rent. (2 Cor. xiii. 5-7.) 

To be reprobate concerning the 
faith, (2 Tim. iii. 8,) is to prove 
corrupt, false or unsound as t< 
the true faith. 

RESURRECTION. (1 Cor. xv. 
21.) That there shall be a resur¬ 
rection or raising of the dead, both 
of the just and unjust, is a funda¬ 
mental doctrine of the Christian 
faith, and one of unspeakable im¬ 
portance. For if the dead rise 
not, then is not Christ raised; 

. and if Christ is not raised, then 
is our faith vain ; we are yet in 
our sins. No truth is more clearly 
and forcibly presented in the 
Scriptures, than the resurrection 
of Jesus Christ. (1.) It was pro¬ 
phesied. (Ps. xvi. 10, 11 ; Acts 
ii. 25-32.) (2.) Christ himself 

repeatedly and distinctly foretold 
it. (3.) The precautions of his 
enemies to prevent it; the failure 
of all these precautions, and the 
measures taken to disprove the 
event, prove it. (4.) The abund¬ 
ant, decided and consistent testi¬ 
mony of witnesses who could not 
be deceived, and who had no in¬ 
ducement to deceive others, and 
all this in the face of every dan¬ 
ger ; (5.) the change which took 
place in the minds and conduct 
of the apostles immediately after 
and in consequence of his resur¬ 
rection; and (6.) the supernatu¬ 
ral evidence arising from the ful¬ 
filment of the promise that the 
Holy Spirit should be poured out 
on them,—all attest the same 
truth. 

Thus the resurrection of Christ 
from the dead is clearly proved ; 
and being proved, it ratifies and 
confirms, in the fullest manner, 
the truth and divinity of his char- 
555 



RF.U 

ractor and mission ; shows the effi¬ 
cacy of his atonement; is an evi¬ 
dence, earnest and example of 
the resurrection of his people, 
(John xiv. 19,) and imports that 
all judgment is committed into 
his hand. (Acts xvii. 30, 31.) It 
is a sufficient answer to the cavils 
of infidels on this subject, that 
there is no evidence from reason 
or the analogy of nature against 
the resurrection of the dead, while 
there is much—very much—from 
both these sources in its favour. 
Indeed, so deep-rooted is the na¬ 
tural conviction of the human 
mind on this point, that no na¬ 
tion, people or tribe have ever 
yet been found who do not, in 
some form, recognise the doctrine 
of a state of existence after the 
death of the body; and this con¬ 
viction is satisfactorily met only 
by the simple and sublime doc¬ 
trine of our holy religion, which 
brings life and immortality to 
light. (John v. 28. For a full 
and simple exposition of this 
whole subject, see Susan Ell- 
maker, or, an answer to the ques¬ 
tion, If a man die, shall he 

LIVE AGAIN?) 

REUBEN, (Gen. xxix. 32.) 
signifying behold a son, was the 
eldest son of Jacob and Leah. 
He lost the privileges of birth¬ 
right in consequence of a griev¬ 
ous sin, (Gen. xxxv. 22; xlix. 3, 
4,) and his posterity was neitt ar 
numerous nor powerful. 

Tribe of, took their portion 
of the promised land east of Jor¬ 
dan, between Arnon on the south, 
and Jazer on the north, and 
Gilead east, and Jordan west. It 
is the same district that is now 
called Belkah, and it still famous 
for its pasturage. 

REVELATION. (1 Cor. xiv 
556 


REV 

26.) An extraordinary and super¬ 
natural disclosure made by dream, 
vision or otherwise. (Dan. ii. 19.) 
The apostle Paul was favoured 
with many special revelations, 
(2 Cor. xii. 1 ; Gal. i. 12;) but 
the most full and complete com¬ 
munication of this character waa 
made to the apostle John, when 
he was a prisoner upon the isle 
of Patmos; and it is hence some¬ 
times called by way of eminence 

The Book of the Revela¬ 
tion. This is the last in the 
order of the books of the Bible, 
and is commonly called the Apo¬ 
calypse, from a Greek word which 
signifies revelation. It is sup¬ 
posed to have been written about 
the years 95-96. It is the design 
of this book to present the pro¬ 
phetic history of the church, un¬ 
til the end of the world; and it 
is called the revelation of St. John 
the divine, because to him was 
more fully revealed the divine 
counsels than to any other pro¬ 
phet under the Christian dispen¬ 
sation. It has been observed 
that hardly any one book has re¬ 
ceived more early, more authen¬ 
tic, and more lasting attestations 
to its genuineness than this; and 
the gradual accomplishment of 
its mysterious predictions are well 
calculated to afford, in every suc¬ 
ceeding age, additional testimony 
to the divine origin of the sacred 
canon. 

REVENGE, (Jer. xv. 15,) ».r re¬ 
turning evil for evil, is expressly 
forbidden by the divine law. (Lev. 
xix. 17, 18 ; 1 Pet. iii. 9.) When 
God is spoken of as a revenger, 
it is in the same sense in which 
he is said to be furious, or to be 
a jealous God, or to repent. He 
does that in infinite justice and 
holiness which sinful man dooa 




REV 

from anger and malice, or other | 
unholy passion or emotion. The 
term is used to denote the effect 
of God’s dealings, and not the 
motive. (See Avenge.) 

REVENGER. (See Avenge.) 

REZEPH. (2 Kings xix. 12.) 
Probably it stood where Arsoff'a 
now is, from twenty to thirty 
miles west of the Euphrates. Rab- 
shakeh mentions it among the 
cities conquered by the Assy¬ 
rians. (Isa. xxxvii. 12.) 

REZON, (1 Kings xi. 23,) son 
of Eliadah, revolted from Hadad- 
czer, and having enlisted a com¬ 
pany of adventurers, and made 
several incursions into the coun¬ 
try around Damascus, finally 
succeeded in obtaining the crown, 
and became a sore vexation to 
Israel in the days of David and 
Solomon. 

RIIEGIUM, (Acts xxviii. 13,) 
now Reggio , is a maritime city 
of Italy, on the southwest point, 
about ten miles from Messina in 
Sicily, where Paul tarried a day 
on his way to Rome. In 1782, 
it was nearly destroyed by an 
earthquake. It is now a consider¬ 
able town, with a population of 
sixteen thousand, and flourishing 
manufactures. 

RHODES. (Acts xxi. 1.) An 
island in the Levant, off the south¬ 
west point of Asia Minor, contain¬ 
ing a city of the same name. It 
is forty miles long, and fifteen 
broad, having a population of 
eighteen thousand, anciently cele¬ 
brated for its schools, and for the 
flourishing state of the arts and 
sciences, as well as for a colossal 
etatue one hundred and five feet 
in height, standing astride of the 
harbour’s mouth, so that vessels 
could pass under it. It stood fifty- 
six years, and was then over- 
47* 


RIG 

[thrown by an earthquake, and 
the brass of it loaded uine hun¬ 
dred camels, ana weighed seven 
hundred and twenty thousand 
pounds. In the fifteenth century 
it was the residence of the knights 
of St. John of Jerusalem. At this 
island Paul touched, on his way 
from Miletus to Jerusalem. It is 
supposed by some that the name 
Rhodes is derived from the mul¬ 
titude of roses produced on th» 
island. The modern town occu¬ 
pies about a quarter of the site of 
the ancient city. One of its har¬ 
bours is still called Rhodes, but 
no traces of the glory of Rhodes 
are discernible. 

RIBLAH. (Num. xxxiv. 11.) 
Probably the Rebla mentioned by 
modern travellers on the Orontes, 
thirty miles south of Hamath. 
This must at least have been the 
neighbourhood, as it was on the 
northeast border of the land, and 
not far from Hamath. It was 
doubtless a pleasant place, and 
therefore chosen by tho kings of 
Babylon as a residence. Pharaoh- 
necho stopped here, on his return 
from Carchemish, (2 Kings xxiii. 
33,) and deposed Jehoahaz, put¬ 
ting Jehoiakim in his place; and 
here Nebuchadnezzar abode while 
Nebuzaradan, his chief command¬ 
er, laid siege to Jerusalem. Hither 
the prisoners were brought, when 
Zedekiah’s children and many 
others were put to death, and that 
king himself deprived of his eyes 
and cast into prison. 

RIGHTEOUSNESS (Isa. xlv. 
23) is an essential attribute of tha 
divine nature; and as it is fre¬ 
quently used, is nearly allied to, 
if not the same with, justice, noli- 
ness and faithfulness. (Ps. cxix. 
142 ; Isa. xlvi. 13; li. 5, 6, 8 ; Ivi. 
1.) It is also used to denote the 
557 



RIG 


Riff 


perfect obedience of the Son of 
God. (Rom. v. 18, 19.) The 
righteousness tchich is of faith 
(Rom. x 6) is the righteousness 
which Is obtained by the grace of 
God through faith in Jeans Christ. 
(Rom. iii. 21-26; x. 4, 10; 2 Cor. 
v. 21; Gal. ii. 21.) Righteous¬ 
ness is very commonly used for 
uprightness and just dealing be¬ 
tween man and man, as in Isa. 
lx. 17; and for holiness of life 
and conversation, as in Dan. iv. 
27; Luke i. 6; Rom. xiv. 17; 
Eph. v. 9. 

RIGHT HAND. (Ps. xxi. 8.) 
The right hand is the symbol of 
power and strength; whence the 
effects of the divine omnipotence 
are often ascribed to the right 
hand of the Most High. (Ex. xv. 
6; Ps. lxxvii. 10.) The right 
hand commonly denotes the south 
as the left hand denotes the north. 
(Gen. xiv. 15.) It is said to have 
been the custom among the Jews 
to swear by the right hand, and 
that this is implied in Isa. lxii. 8. 
It was certainly common to swear 
by the hand. (Gen. xiv. 

22; Deut. xxxii. 40.) To 
give the right hand was 
a mark of friendship. 

(Gal. ii. 9.) Hence the 
force of the expression, 

(Ps. cxliv. 8,) their right 
hand is a right hand of 
falsehood. The right 
hand being a most; use¬ 
ful member of the body, 
especially to labouring 
men, to cut it off implies 
the greatest sacrifice. 

(Matt. v. 30.) To be 
seated at the right hand 
is a token of peculiar mmum, 
; 1 Kings ii. 19;) and when the 
expression is used respecting 
Christ, (Acts vii. 55,) it implies 
558 



his uneqalled dignity and exalt*, 
tion. 

RIMMON, (Josh. xv. 32,) or 
REMMON. (Josh. xix. 7.) 1. A 
city south of Jerusalem, in Judah, 
belonging to Simeon, rebuilt after 
the captivity. The ruins of th* 
place are still discernible. 

2. RIMMON or RIMMON- 
METIIOAR. (Jos*'., xix. 13; 1 
Chron. vi. 77.) A city of Zebu- 
lun, belonging to the Levites. 

3. (Zech. xiv. 10.) A town in 
the southern section of Judea, 
first belonging to Judah, and 
afterwards to Simeon. (1 Chron. 
iv. 32.) There were other places 
in Judea of this name. 

4. (2 Kings v. 18.) The name 
of an idol worshipped in Damas¬ 
cus. Naaman, who was in the 
habit of attending the king in his 
idolatrous services in the templo 
of Rimmon, seems to have been 
perplexed about a question of 
duty as to continuing this prac¬ 
tice. (See Naaman.) 

RINGS (Isa. iii. 21) were used 
for ornaments (James ii. 2) and 



for seals. (1 Kings xxi. 8.) Ths 
they were sometimes used for 
merly as they are in moden 
times is obvious, (Ezek. xvi. 12;) 


















KIN 

and we are told that the servant 
gave a golden ear-ring of half a 
shekel or a-quarter of an ounce 
weight to Rebekah. (Gen. xxiv. 
22.) Rings were doubtless worn 
as ornaments for the hands. (Isa. 
iii. 20, 21; Luke xv. 22; James 
ii. 2.) The ring was also a token 
of authority, and the giving a 
ring the sign of imparting au¬ 
thority. (Gen. xii. 42 ; Esth. iii. 
10, 12; Dan. vi. 17. See Cloth¬ 
ing.) 

RING-STREAKED. (Gen. 
xxx. 35.) Circularly streaked. 

, RIVER, the. (Gen. xxxi. 21.) 
The Nile is called by way of pre¬ 
eminence the river; but the term 
is often used unconnected with 
any specific name, (Ex. iv. 9;) in 
which cases the particular river 
intended is to be determined by 
reference to the place and sub¬ 
ject-matter of narration. It is 
used figuratively to denote great 
abundance. (Isa. xlviiir 18. See 
Egypt, river of.) 

RIZPAH. (2 Sam. iii. 7.) A 
concubine of Saul. A very affect¬ 
ing evidence of the strength of 
maternal feeling was given by 
her, when she watched day and 
night, for many months, (proba¬ 
bly from March to October,) over 
the bodies of her two sons, who 
had been put to a violent death 
by the Gibeonites. (2 Sam. xxi.) 

ROBE. (See Clothes.) 

ROD, (Gen. xxx. 37,) or staff. 
This word has various significa¬ 
tions in the sacred writings. It 
means a shoot or branch of a 
tree, and, in this sense, is applied 
figuratively to Christ, (Isa. xi. 1,) 
and to the tribes of Israel as 
springing from one root, (Ps. 
Ixxiv. 2; Jer. x. 16;) for that 
which supports and strengthens, 
fPs. xxiii. 4; Isa. iii. 1; Ezek. 


ROM 

xxix. 6;) for power and autho¬ 
rity, (Ps. ii. 9; cx. 2; crsv. 3; 
Jer. xlviii. 17; Ezek. xix. 14; 1 
Cor. iv. 21; Rev. ii. 27;' and 
afflictions with which God dis 
ciplines his people. (Job ix. 34 
Comp. Heb. xii. 6, 7.) 

Passing under the rid. 
(Ezek. xx. 37.) It was the cujs- 
tom of the Jews to select th« 
tenth of their sheep (Lev. xxvii., 
32) after this manner: The lambs 
were separated from the dams, 
and enclosed in a sheepcote, with 
only one narrow way out: the 
dams were at the entrance. On 
opening the gate, the lambs has¬ 
tened to join their dams, and a 
man placed at the entrance with 
a rod dipped in ochre touched 
every tenth lamb, and so marked 
it with his rod, saying, Let this bt 
holy in the name of the tenth. 

Aaron’s Rod. (See Aaron.) 

ROE. (See Hart.) 

ROGEL. (See Enrogel.) 

ROLL. (See Books.) 

ROLLS, house of. (See 
House.) 

ROMANS, epistle of Paul 
to, is the sixth iu order of the 
books of the New Testament. It 
was written at Corinth, A. D. 57- 
59, just as he was leaving that 
city for Jerusalem. (Rom. xv. 
25. Comp. Acts xx. 2, 3, 16; 
Rom. xvi. 11, 23; 1 Cor. i. 14; 
2 Tim. iv. 20.) The Reman 
church was composed partly of 
converted heathens and partly of 
Jewish Christians. The Gentile 
converts claimed the same Chris¬ 
tian privileges with the Christian 
Jews; but refused to submit to 
those ceremonies which the mem¬ 
bers of the Jewish church were 
permitted to retain,—such as cir¬ 
cumcision, abstinence from par¬ 
ticular meats, Ac. Ac. The^cw 
559 



KOM 

also had very false notions of the 
doctrine of justification through 
faith. They supposed that their 
former covenant relation to God, 
their knowledge of the Levitical 
law, and their obedience to the 
rites and ceremonies it imposed, 
constituted some part of the 
ground of their acceptance with 
God. 

This epistle is designed to cor¬ 
rect these misapprehensions, and 
to show that the whole system of 
Jewish rites and ceremonies is 
done away by the gospel dispen¬ 
sation, and that the way of salva¬ 
tion through Christ is opened 
alike to Jews and Gentiles, and 
that whosoever will may take of 
the water of life freely. 

ROME. (Acts xxviii. 16.) The 
capital of the Roman empire, the 
seat of the Papal hierarchy, and 
once the metropolis of the world, 
is situated on the river Tiber, in 
Italy. It w T as built by Romulus 
seven hundred and fifty years 
before Christ, and though at first 
it occupied a single hill of less 
than a mile in extent, it included 
in the days of its glory seven 
(some say fifteen) hills, and co¬ 
vered a territory twenty miles 
in circumference, and had a 
population of two or three mil¬ 
lions. It had one hundred and 
fifty thousand houses, besides the 
mansions of the nobility; and it 
had four hundred and twenty 
temples crowded with pagan dei¬ 
ties. The city was given up to 
the grossest idolatry and super¬ 
stition, while in arts and arms 
she was decidedly the mistress 
of the world. This was the state 
f Rome at the birth of Christ. 
Judea formed a part of her im¬ 
mense empire, and many Jews 
were resident in the city. At 
&60 


RO? 

what time the Christian religion 
was introduced is uncertain; pro¬ 
bably soon after the day of Pen¬ 
tecost. (Acts ii. 10.) We know 
that as early as A. D, 64, eight oi 
ten years after a church was es¬ 
tablished there and addressed by 
Paul, (Rom. i. 8; xvi. 19,) the 
emperor Nero commenced a furi¬ 
ous persecution against its mem¬ 
bers, which the emperor Domi- 
tian renewed a. d. 81, and the 
emperor Trajan carried out with 
implacable malice, (a. d. 97-117.) 
Seasons of suffering and repose 
succeeded each other alternately 
until the reign of Constantine, 
(a. d. 325,) when Christianity was 
established as the religion of the 
empire. 

The modorn city is celebrated, 
not only for its own magnificence 
and splendour, but for the ruins 
of its former greatness. It is 
called the great school of paint¬ 
ers, statuaries and architects; 
and the lovers of the arts from all 
quarters of the globe are found 
at all times within her walls, or 
on a pilgrimage thither. In 
1830, Rome contained nearly 
150,000 inhabitants, among whom 
were, of the Papal church, 35 
bishops and archbishops, 1490 
priests, 1983 monks, 2390 nuns, 
and 10,000 Jews, who occupy a 
particular section of the city. 
The majestic ruins; the grandeur 
of the churches and palaces; the 
religious customs; the boundless 
treasures of antiquity and art, 
and the recollections of what 
Rome once was, may well pro¬ 
duce the highest degree of excite¬ 
ment in the mind of the traveller 
to that renowned city. 

ROOF. (See Dwellings.) 

ROOM. (See Dwellings.) 

ROPES, (1 Kings xx. 31,) and 




ROS 

CORDS. (Josn. ii. 15.) The put¬ 
ting ropes upon the neck was 
significant of groat earnestness 
and distress. So when the city 
of Calais was besieged in the time 
of Edward III. of England, six 
of the noblest and wealthiest 
citizens, with ropes around their 
necks, presented themselves to 
the king, and offered their lives 
as a ransom for their fellow-citi¬ 
zens. The cords of sin (Prov. 
v. 22) probably denote the power 
of sinful habits. And in Isa. 
xxxiii. 20, and Jer. x. 20, allusion 
is made to the construction of a 
tent. The silver cord (Eccl. xii. 
6) is generally supposed to refer 
to the spinal marrow, to which, as 
to its form and colour, it may be 
not inaptly compared. 

ROSE. (Sol. Song ii. 1.) In 
the East the pride of flowers for 
fragrance and elegance. It was 
used among the ancients in 
crowns and chaplets, at festive 
meetings and at religious sacri¬ 
fices. A traveller in Persia de¬ 
scribes two rose-trees, full four¬ 
teen feet high, laden with thou¬ 
sands of flowers, in every degree 
of expansion, and of a bloom and 
delicacy of scent that imbued the 
whole atmosphere with the most 
exquisite perfume. (Isa. xxxv. 

I, 2.) The vale of Sharon, from 
its soil and position, was fitted to 
produce the rose in ^reat perfec¬ 
tion. Hence the allusion in the 
passage above cited. 

RUBY. (Prov. iii. 15; viii. 

II. ) A precious stone of a rose- 
red colour, and of great beauty 
and value. (Job xxviii. 18; Prov. 
xxxi. 10.) It is second only to 
the diamond in hardness, and is 
usually found no larger than the 
•inest shot. (See Pearls.) 

RUDIMENTS. (Col. ii. 8.> 

2 


RUT 

The elements, or first and lowest 
principles of ascienceor literature. 
With religion (says one) it fareth 
as with other sciences; the first 
delivery of the elements or rudi¬ 
ments thereof must be framed ac¬ 
cording to the weak and slender 
capacity of young beginners. The 
phrase rudiments of the world sig¬ 
nifies the rites and observances 
of the Jewish religion, which are, 
to the full knowledge imparted in 
the gospel, what the alphabet is 
to a language, or what the ele¬ 
mentary principles are to the 
science of astronomy or chemis¬ 
try. The word is translated ru¬ 
diments or elements without dis¬ 
tinction, as both mean the same 
thing. (Gal. iv. 8, 9; Col. ii. 20. 
See Elements.; 

RUE. (Luke xi. 42.) A small 
well-known garden herb, possess¬ 
ing medicinal properties, and 
among the things which the hy¬ 
pocritical and inconsistent Phari¬ 
sees tithed, though uncommand¬ 
ed, while they neglected to obey 
the important and positive pre¬ 
cepts of the Law. 

RUMAH. (See Arumah.) 

RUSH. (Isa. xix. 15.) A well- 
known plant, found in wet and 
miry ground, (Job. viii. 11,) and 
used for mats, baskets, chair-bot¬ 
toms, &c. The pith is used for 
wicks to burn in lamps, (rusk- 
light.) In the passsage firs! 
cited, it probably means the least 
important class of people; for 
notwithstanding the many uses 
of the rush, it is proverbially 
without value. 

RUTH. (Ruth i. 4.) A Mo- 
abitish woman, who married the 
son of Naomi, and showed her 
strong attachment to her mother- 
in-law by leaving her own coun¬ 
try, and following her mother-in 
L obJ 




RUT 

iaw into Judea. Her kindness 
was abundantly rewarded, as she 
soon found favour in the eyes of 
a kinsman, whom she afterwards 
married, by which event she be¬ 
came the ancestor of the royal 
family of David. 

The Book of Ruth is the 
eighth in order of the books of 
the Old Testament, and is regard¬ 
ed as a kind of supplement to the 
book of Judges. It contains a 
biography of the individual above 
named, and her family. It has 
only four chapters, and though 


RYE 

there are at its close some highly 
important genealogical facts, its 
prominent design is to show th„ 
watchful care of God’s providence 
over such as fear and trust him. 

RYE. (Ex. ix. 32.) A well- 
known species of grain used for 
bread, and for provender for ani¬ 
mals. But the word signifies 
bearded; though barley and some 
kinds of wheat are bearded also. 
The word occurs Isa. xxviii. 25; 
in Ezek. iv. 9, the same word is 
rendered fitches in our English 
Bibles. 


SAB 

ABACTHANI. (Matt, xxvii. 
46.) This is part of the ex¬ 
clamation of our divine Redeemer 
in the extremity of his sufferings 
upon the cross. It is the first 
clause of the twenty-second psalm 
in the Syro-Chaldaic tongue, and 
answers to the word forsaken. 

SABAOTH. (Rom. ix. 29.) A 
Hebrew word, signifying hosts, or 
military bodies, prepared for war; 
and when used in relation to Je¬ 
hovah, indicates his power and 
majesty. 

The Lord of Sabaoth or 
Hosts. The term hosts may re¬ 
fer to angels, to the heavenly 
bodies, or to the people of God— 
or all of them. 

SABBATH. (Ex. xvi. 23.) 
This was the title given to the 
Jewish day of rest. It is from 
a Hebrew word signifying rest. 
Since the Christian era, the day 
of rest is (and, as many think, 
most properly) called the Lord’s- 
day, because it is now commemo¬ 
rative of Christ’s resurrection 
from the dead; and there is thus 
connected with it an affectionate 
562 


SAB 

remembrance of the whole cha¬ 
racter and offices of Him to whose 
service and glory it is to be de¬ 
voted. Sunday was a name given 
by the heathens to the first day 
of the week, because it was the 
day on which they worshipped 
the sun; and this name, together 
with those of the other days of 
the week, has been continued to 
our times. There is reason to be¬ 
lieve that as soon as man was 
created, and endowed with capa¬ 
cities to love and worship God, 
he was required to consecrate at 
least one-seventh of his time to 
the especial and exclusive service 
of his Maker. The sanctification 
of this portion of time is regarded 
throughout the whole of the Old 
Testament as a fundamental prin¬ 
ciple of duty; and no sin, except 
perhaps idolatry, is threatened 
with heavier penalties than Sab¬ 
bath-breaking. 

The divine commandment whieh 
stands fourth in the order of the 
Decalogue, (Ex. xx. 8,) Remem¬ 
ber the Sabbath-day to keep it 
holy, is founded on the fact that 








SAL 

the seventh say was blessed and 
hallowed by God himself, and 
that he requires his creatures to 
keep it holy to him. This com¬ 
mandment is of universal and 
perpetual obligation. The object 
to be accomplished by the insti¬ 
tution is general, and applies to 
all people everywhere with like 
force. Wherever there is a human 
creature capable of contemplat¬ 
ing the character of the Supreme 
Being—of studying his revealed 
will, and of considering his own 
immortal destiny—this command¬ 
ment requires him to consecrate 
at least one-seventh part of his 
time to these holy purposes. The 
terms of the commandment do 
not fix the precise day in order, 
except that it is to be every 
seventh day; in other words, it 
simply requires that after six 
days of labour, one day is to be 
given to rest. 

There is abundant evidence 
from history that the seventh day 
of the week has been observed 
from the earliest times as a day 
of rest; and the change from the 
seventh to the first day does not 
in any degree change or impair 
the obligation to sanctify a se¬ 
venth part of our time. So far 
from it, the sacredness and glory 
of the day are much increased 
by its association with that great 
event on which our hope of life 
and immortality entirely depends. 

It seems to be admitted by in¬ 
telligent men of every class and 
profession, that the observance 
c>f a weekly day of rest is as es¬ 
sential to our intellectual and 
physical, as to our moral and spi¬ 
ritual nature. 

The simple rule as to the mode 
af observing the day seems to 
be this —that there should be a 


SAB 

cheerful resting, all the day, fron 
such worldly employments and 
recreations as may be lawful on 
other days, and the spending the 
whole time in the public or pri¬ 
vate worship of God, except so 
much as may be occupied by 
works of necessity or mercy. To 
test the propriety of any act or 
pursuit on that day, it is only 
needful to inquire whether the 
doing of it will tend to advance 
us in holy exercises and affec¬ 
tions, and in preparation for the 
heavenly rest; or whether it is 
an act of necessity which cannot 
be postponed without serious in¬ 
jury. (See Feasts. See also 
Omar, pp. 211-213, and Biblical 
Antiquities, vol. ii. ch. vi. g 11.) 

The following are among the 
leading authorities of the Bible 
respecting the Sabbath and it* 
proper observance. 

The profanation of the Sabbath 
the cause of national judgments 
(Neh. xiii. 15-18; Ezek. xx. 15 
16 ; xxiii. 38, 47.) 

The divine institution of tin 
Jewish Sabbath. (Gen. ii. 2, 3, 
Ex. xx. 8-11; Deut. v. 12, 15, 
Ezek. xx. 12; xliv. 24.) 

Servile labour forbidden. (Ex. 
xvi. 23, 29 ; xx. 10, 11; xxiii. 12 ; 
xxxiv. 21; xxxv. 2, 3; Deut. v. 
14, 15; Jer. xvii. 21, 22; Mark 
xv. 42; xvi. 1, 2; John xix. 14, 
31, 42.) 

The Jewish Sabbath re-estab¬ 
lished under the gospel dispensa¬ 
tion. (Matt. v. 17; xii. 12; Mark 
ii. 27.) 

The change of the Sabbath 
from the seventh to the first day 
of the week. (Gen. ii. 2 ; Ex. xx. 
11; Luke xxiii. 56; John xx. 
19; Acts xx. 7; 1 Cor. xvi. 2 ; 
Rev. i. 10.) 

The duties of the Sabba A en- 
563 




SAB 

joined. (Lev. xix. 30; xxvi. 2; 
Ezek. xlvi. 3 ; Mark vi. 2; Luke 
iv. 16, 31; Acts xiii. 14-16, 27, 
+2, 44; xvii. 2, 3.) 

Works of necessity and mercy 
to be dona on this day. (Matt, 
xii. 1-3, 5, 7, 12, 13; Mark ii. 
23, 27; iii. 2, 4; Luke vi. 9; xiii. 
15, 16; xiv. 3, 5; John v. 8-10, 
18; vii. 22; ix. 14.) 

Blessings promised to those 
who keep the Sabbath. (Isa. lvi. 
2, 4, 5-7; lviii. 13, 14.) 

Threatenings against Sabbath 
breakers. (Ex. xxxi. 14, 15; 
xxxv. 2; Num. xv. 32-36; Jer. 
xvii. 27; Ezek. xx. 13, 16, 23, 
24; xxii. 8, 14, 26, 31: xxiii. 38, 
46.) 

Sabbath privileges taken away. 
(Isa. i. 13 ; Lam. i. 7 ; ii. 6 ; Hos. 
ii. 11; Amos viii. 11.) 

Sabbath-day’s journey. (See 
Measures.) 

SABEANS. (See Sheba.) 

SACKBUT. (Dan. iii. 5.) A 
musical instrument. It is some¬ 
times described as a stringed in¬ 
strument; and it is said that it 
had four strings, and was played 
with the fingers, and had a very 
penetrating sound. In process 
of time the strings were increased 
to twenty. It was of a triangu¬ 
lar form. 

It is mentioned in a modern 
work on this subject, that one of 
these instruments was discovered 
in Herculaneum, where it had 
been for nearly two thousand 
years under ashes; the lower 
part of it was made with bronze, 
and the upper with the mouth¬ 
piece of gold. It was pi isented 
by the king of Naples to George 
III. of England, and from the 
model, the modern trombone, 
used in military bands with so 
much effect, was fashioned. Ac- 
564 


SAC 

cording to this account, it was a 
wind instrument. 

SACKCLOTH. (Gen. xxxvii 
34.) This was a coarse fabric, 
made of black goats’ hair and 
other materials, and worn either 
as a sign of repentance, (Matt. xi. 
21,) or as a token of mourning. 
(2 Sam. iii. 31; Esth. iv. 1, 2 ; 
Job xvi. 15; Fs. xxx. 11; Isa. 
xx. 2 ; Rev. vi. 12.) Hence the 
frequent occurrence in Scripture 
of figurative language, connect¬ 
ing sackclotli with mourning 
and darkness. (Isa. 1. 3 ; Ezek. 
vii. 18; xxvii. 31 ; Amos viii. 
10 .) 

SACRIFICE. (Gen xxxi. 54.) 
In addition to the distinction 
pointed out under the word offer¬ 
ing, (see Offerings,) it may be 
observed that sacred gifts were in 
use from the earliest periods of 
the world. (Gen. iv. 3, 4.) The 
Jewish religion, however, con¬ 
tained a complete system of sa¬ 
crificial rites, and required theii 
scrupulous observance. Accord¬ 
ing to the law of Moses, sacrifices 
could not be offered upon the 
altar, except by the priests; nor 
at any other place than in the 
court of God’s sanctuary. (Deut. 
xii. 5-28.) 

Animal sacrifices were of four 
general kinds; viz. burnt-offer¬ 
ings, sin-offerings, trespass-offer¬ 
ings, and peace-offerings. We 
have a particular account of these 
in the first seven chapters of Le¬ 
viticus. The three kinds first 
mentioned had an expiatory vir¬ 
tue ; that is, they made atone¬ 
ment for those that offered them. 
The peace-offerings were more 
particularly sacrifices expressive 
of gratitude and praise for mer 
cies leceived, or of supplication 
for mercies desired. Burnt offer- 





SAC 


SAC 



ings, however, wero not exclu¬ 
sively expiatory in thoir cha¬ 
racter but ha<T in them also a 
meaning of thankful and ador¬ 


ing worship presented to tflfl 
Most High; and in them all som« 
regard was had to the guilt ol 
sin. Blood poured out, in sacri 


Clothed, in Saekeloth. 


fice of any sort, could have no 
meaning other than that of atone¬ 
ment. It was solemnly conse¬ 
crated by the Lord to be an 
expiation for the soul, and ac¬ 
cordingly never flowed about the 
altar without a design of calling 
to remembrance the existence of 
sin, and symbolically washing 
away its guilt. (Lev. xvi. 10-1 f; 
Heb. x.) 

The word is sometimes us**l 
figuratively, (Rom. xii. 1; Heb. 
xiii. 15, 16; 1 Pet. ii. 5;) and the 
use of it implies that the duties 
48 


enjoined under the figure are to 
be performed with a view to 
God’s glory, and not without the 
alienation of something from our¬ 
selves, which is dedicated to the 
Lord,—as time, property, ease, 
Ac. (Ps. li. 17.) Meat-offerings 
and drink-offerings were blood¬ 
less sacrifices, always connected 
with each other, howover, and 
generally connected -with bloody 
sacrifices. (See Offerings; Al¬ 
tar, High-priest. And for a 
particular and interesting discus¬ 
sion of the whole subject, see 
565 
























SAD 

Biblical Antiquities, vol ii. ch. 
v M and Selumiel, ch. iv.) 

SACRILEGE. (Rom. ii. 22.) 
The crime of violating or profan¬ 
ing sacred things. The Jews at 
some peiiods were eminently 
guilty in this particular, inas¬ 
much as they withheld the tithes 
and offerings which God re¬ 
quired of them, (Mai. iii. S-10,) 
a,nd converted his holy temple 
into a market. (Matt. xxi. 12, 
13.) 

SADDUCEES. (Matt. iii. 7.) 
A Jewish sect often mentioned in 
the New Testament. Its founder 
was Tzadoc, a disciple of Anti- 
gonus, who was president of the 
Jewish Sanhedrim, and lived 
about two hundred and sixty 
years before Christ. He taught 
that there were no future rewards 
or punishments appointed unto 
men; and, consequently, no world 
of retribution, and no angels or 
spirits. (Matt. xxii. 23; Acts 
xxiii. 8.) The doctrine of the 
Sadducees was received by few; 
though such as did embrace it 
were commonly persons of wealth 
and dignity. As a sect, however, 
they had no influence over the 
people. 

The Sadducees, as well as the 
Pharisees, were bitterly opposed 
to Christ, and often contended 
with him on the points which 
were peculiar to their sect; but 
they seem to have mustered their 
strength, and to have come forth 
with all their power, against the 
apostles, when they preached the 
resurrection of Jesus from the 
dead; which single fact was a 
death-blow to their system. The 
gect of the Sadducees made some 
figure in the third century, and 
again in the eighth; but for a 
long time past they have been 
56B 


SAL 

extinct. (See Mine Explored* 
part ii. ch. iii. § 3.) 

SAFFRON. (Sol. Song iv. 14. 
A well-known flower of the cro¬ 
cus family, used for medicinal 
purposes, and also for colouring. 
There may be a species of it with 
aromatic properties. 

SAINTS. (Heb. vi. 10.) The 
title given by the sacred writers 
to believers in Christ, or the 
people of God. (Ps. xvi. 3 ; Rom. 
i. 7 ; viii. 27.) The literal import 
of the term is holy ones; and in 
Deut. xxxiii. 2, and Jude 14, it 
probably means angels. When 
it is applied to men, it is to such 
as lead holy lives, and give evi¬ 
dence of being renewed and sanc¬ 
tified. As there can be no abso¬ 
lute certainty, however, respecting 
their real character in the sight 
of God, all human decisions as to 
who are to be regarded or treated 
as saints must be fallacious. 

SALAMIS (Acts xiii. 5) was 
the principal city and seaport of 
the island of Cyprus, and receiv¬ 
ed the gospel from Paul and Bar¬ 
nabas, a. d. 44. (See Cyprus.) 
The ruins of Salamis w r ere visited 
in 1835 by two American mission¬ 
aries. Very little of the ancient 
town is standing; but on the out¬ 
side of the city they found the 
remains of a building two hundred 
feet in length, and six or eight 
high; also a stone church, and 
portions of an aqueduct, by which 
water was brought to the city from 
a distance of thirty miles. 

SALCAH, (Deut. iii. 10,) now 
known as Salchat, lies on the 
southeast corner of the terri¬ 
tory of Manasseh, east of Jor¬ 
dan. 

SALEM (Gen. xiv. 18) has 
been generally supposed to bo the 
place which was afterwards called 




SAL 

Jerusalem. (Comp. Ps. lxxvi.2.) 
But some think that the place of 
which Melchizedec was king, was 
the Shalem of Gen. xxxiii. 18, or 
the Salim of the New Testament, 
(see Salim ;) and that the Salem 
■»f the psalmist is a contraction of 
Jerusalem. 

SALIM, (John iii. 23,) or 
SHALEM, (Gen. xxxiii. 18,) or 
SHALIM, (1 Sam. ix. 4,) was 
south of Bethshean, and west of 
Enon. Some suppose it was the 
same with Shalum or Sychem, 
but that is not placed near Enon 
by any geographers. Probably 
Mecliizedec was king of one of 
these places, and notof Jerusalem, 
as some have maintained. 

SALMON, (Ps. lxviii. 14,) or 
ZALMON, (Judg. ix. 48,) was 
one of the high hills which en¬ 
vironed the ancient Shechem, and 
afforded pasturage for Jacob’s 
flocks. (See Zalmon.) 

SALMONE. (See Crete.) 

SALOME, (Mark xv. 40,) the 
wife of Zebedee, and the mother 
of James the elder and John the 
Evangelist, was one of the fol¬ 
lowers of Christ, (Matt, xxvii. 56; 
Mark xv. 40; xvi. 1;) though 
she seems, like many others, to 
have mistaken the true nature of 
his kingdom. (Matt. xx. 21.) 

SALT (Lev. ii. 13) is abundant 
in Palestine. From the water of 
the Dead Sea'an excellent table- 
sail is obtained. On the eastern 
shove it is found in lumps often 
more than a foot thick, in places 
which the lake had overflowed in 
the rainy season Tho stones on 
the shore aro covered with an in¬ 
crustation of lime or gypsum. 
Branches and twigs, which fall 
into the water from the bushes, 
become encased in salt; and if a 
piece of wood is thrown in, it soon 


SAL 

acquires a bark or rind of salt 
From this fact, some havo at¬ 
tempted to explain the transfor¬ 
mation of Lot’s wife into a pillar 
of salt, (Gen. xix. 26;) while 
others suppose that the expres¬ 
sion is figurative, denoting that 
she was made an everlasting 
monument of divine displeasure, 
(salt being an emblem of perpet¬ 
uity;) and others still think that 
she was miraculously transformed 
into a solid column of salt. 

At the south-western extremity 
of the Dead Sea, there is a plain 
of considerable extent, the soil of 
which is entirely covered with 
salt, without the slightest trace 
of vegetation. This is probably 
the valley (or plain) of salt, where 
David’s army vanquished tho 
Edomites. (2 Sam. viii. 13; 1 
Chron. xviii. 12; 2 Chron. xxv. 

n.) 

By the salt-pits (Zep. ii. 9) we 
are not to understand quarries 
from which rock-salt is extracted, 
but such pits as the Arabs, even 
at this day, make upon the shore 
of the Dead Sen, in order that 
they may be filled when the spring 
froshots raise the waters of the 
lake. When the water evapo¬ 
rates, it leaves in the pits a salt 
crust about an inch thick, which 
furnishes the salt used through¬ 
out the country. Pits of this sort 
seem to be alluded to in Ezek. 
xlvii. 11. In Josh. xv. 62, a city 
of salt is mentioned, in the neigh¬ 
bourhood of the Dead Sea. 

The uses of salt are sufficiently 
known. Most food would, with¬ 
out it, be insipid. (Jot vi. 6.) 
Salt being thus essential to the 
enjoyment of food, the word was 
used to denote the subsistence 
which a person obtained in the 
service of another. Thus, in Ezra 
5«7 



EAL 

It. 14, the words transited we 
have our maintenance from the 
king's palace, are in the original, 
we salt (or are salted) with the salt 
of the palace. And even now 
among the Persians and East In¬ 
dians, to eat the salt of any one is 
to be in his employment. Salt 
was also used in sacrifices. (Lev. 
ii. 13; Mark ix. 49.) In the last 
passage reference is had to the 
perpetuity of suffering. 

New-born children were rubbed 
with salt. (Ezek. xvi. 4.) 

As salt is a preservative from 
corruption and dissolution, it was 
customary at the ratification of 
solemn treaties to present a ves¬ 
sel of it, from which cither party 
ate a few grains. Hence an in¬ 
dissoluble and perpetual covenant 
is called a covenant of salt. (Num. 
xviii. 19: 2 Chron. xiii. 5. See 
Bedouin Arabs, pp. 78, 79.) 

No plants can germinate in a 
soil covered with salt. Hence a 
salt land is an unfruitful, desert 
land. (Jer. xvii. 6.) Salt was 
also used as a visible emblem of 
sterility. When Abimelech took 
Shechem, (Judg. ix. 45,) he beat 
doion the city and sowed it with 
salt, as a token that it should 
continue desolate. In like man¬ 
ner the Emperor Frederick Bar- 
barossa, when he destroyed Mi¬ 
lan, in the year 1162, caused the 
ground to be ploughed and strew¬ 
ed with salt. 

On the other hand, as salt 
renders food savoury, it is em¬ 
ployed as an emblem of holy life 
and conversation, (Mark ix. 50; 
Col. iv. 6 ;) and in Matt. v. 13, 
Christ calls his disciples the salt 
of the earth, i.e. of mankind, be¬ 
cause the latter were to be en¬ 
lightened and improved by their 
holy instruction and example. 

568 


SAL 

Salt, valley of. (See Salt.) 

Salt, pillar of. (See Salt.) 

Salt, covenant of. (Ska 
Salt.) 

Salt Sea. (Num. xxxiv. 12.) 
The sea into which the Jordan 
empties, and which occupies the 
ground where once stood the 
cities of the plain, in the vale of 
Siddim. (Gen. xiv. 3.) It is also 
called thi sea of the plain, (Deut. 
iii. 17;) and from its geographi¬ 
cal location, the East Sea, (Joel 
ii. 20.) The Greeks called it 
Asphaltites, from the bitumen 
which it yields; and the Arabs 
the Sea of Lot. Its usual appel¬ 
lation now is the Dead Sea, from 
the destructive influence of its 
exhalations, on both animal and 
vegetable life. As tbe Jordan, 
before the destruction of the plain, 
discharged itself in the same 
place as at present, the conclusion 
is a necessary one, that the lake 
which then existed was subter¬ 
ranean. It was covered with a 
crust of earth, sustained by tho 
asphaltum, a pitchy substance 
which rose up from the bottom of 
the lake, and collected during 
a long course of years in large 
masses. An American missionary 
who visited the spot says, “ The 
water looks remarkably clear and 
pure; but on taking it into my 
mouth, I found it nauseous, and 
bitter, I think, beyond any thing 
I ever tasted. My clothes were 
wet by the waves, and as they 
dried, I found them covered with 
salt. It has been said that birds 
cannot fly over this sea; but we 
saw a great number on its shores, 
and observed three at a time fly¬ 
ing over the water.” Another 
traveller says, “ I went till up to 
the knee into the sea, and took 
some water into my mouth, it 




SAL 

was impossl le keep it there. 
Its saltness is even greater than 
that of the ocean, and it produces 
a sensation on the lips similar to 
that from a strong solution of 
alum. My boots were scarcely 
dry, when they were already co¬ 
vered with salt; our clothes, hats, 
hands, faces, were impregnated 
by this mineral in less than two 
hours." It is agreed by all that 
its water is strongly impregnated 
with saline substances, having 
lime, magnesia and soda, neu¬ 
tralized with hydrochloric and 
sulphuric acids. It yields about 
one-fourth of its weight of salt by 
evaporation. The lake is enclosed, 
except on the northwest, by ran¬ 
ges of broken and barren hills, 
from 1500 to 2000 feet above the 
sea, and the sea itself is depressed 
500 feet below the Mediterranean, 
and is about fifty miles in length, 
and not fifteen in its greatest 
width. Travellers on its shores 
have often searched for the fa¬ 
mous apple of Sodom. The mis¬ 
sionary above cited found two 
species of fruit, either of which, 
ho says, may pass for it; the one, 
on being opened, presenting a dry 
pith like that of the corn-stalk, 
with one or two seeds; the other, 
very inviting in appearance, but 
very bitter to the taste. No sign 
of life of any kind is discernible 
in the waters of this sea. 

The Dead Sea has, apparently, 
no outlet; and though it is com¬ 
puted that the Jordan discharges 
into it upwards of six millions of 
tons daily, it is said there is never 
any perceptible variation in the 
height of its waters. The opinion 
of the Arabs is, that it loses its 
waters by evaporation; but it is 
more probable that it has one or 
more subterraneous outlets. (See 
48* 


SAL 

Evening Recreations rol. iL 
pp. 23, 24.) 

SALUTE, (Matt. x. T 2, > SALU 
TATION. (Luke i. 41.) The salu¬ 
tations of the Jews were usually 
of a religious character, at loast in 
form, and were attended with 
much ceremony. Sometimes there 
was nothing but the simple ex¬ 
clamation, “God be with you/ 
or “Peaev bo with you." To thil 
last and most common form, 
striking allusion is made by our 
Saviour. (John xiv. 27.) The 
time occupied in the ceremonies 
of salutation, repeatedly bowing, 
kissing the beard, &c., was often 
very considerable, (Gen. xxxiii. 
3, 4;) and hence the caution, 2 
Kings iv. 29; Luke x. 4. The 
prohibition in this last passage is 
probably designed to secure the 
close and undivided attention of 
the apostles to the work before 
them, and to prevent the loss of 
time or the waste of thought on 
mere matters of form and cere¬ 
mony. 

SALVATION, (Ex. xiv. 13,) oi 
deliverance, supposes evil or dan¬ 
ger. (Comp. Ps. cvi. 8-10, with 
Isa. lxiii. 8, 9.) But in its ordi¬ 
nary use, in the New Testament 
especially, the term denotes the 
deliverance of sinners from eternal 
perdition, through faith in Christ. 
The day of salvation, (2 Cor. vi. 
2,) the gospel of salvation, (Eph. i. 
13,) and other like phrases, are 
employed in this sense. They all 
suppose mankind to be lost and 
ruined by sin, and hence to be in 
a state of guilt, danger and de¬ 
plorable misery, and exposed to 
tho just and dreadful penalty 
of the divine law. The salva 
tion which the gospel offers in- 
j eludes in it the pardon of sin, and 
I deliverance from its power, pol- 
5 69 



SAM 

lation and consequences; and 
also sanctification of the soul, and 
the joys of the eternal world. 
fMatt. i. 21; Gal. iii. 13; 1 Thess. 
i. 10; Heb. v. 9.) Hence it is 
justly called a great salvation. 
(Heb. ii. 3.) 

SAMARIA. (1 Kings xiii. 32.) 
The central province or section 
of the land of Canaan, having 
Galilee on the north and Judea 
on the south, was called, in the 
time of Christ, Samaria. It in¬ 
cluded the possessions of Ephraim 
and Manasseh, and comprehends 
the modern districts of Areta and 
Nablouse; in the former of which 
are the sites of Cesarea and Car¬ 
mel, and, in the latter, Shechem 
and the city of Samaria. 

2. The city op Samaria, (1 
Kings xvi. 24,) from which the 
above province had its name, was 
situated about forty miles north 
of Jerusalem, and a short distance 
northwest of Nablouse, (She¬ 
chem.) It was founded by Omri, 
king of Israel, as tho capital of 
Israel, or the ten tribes. (1 Kings 
xvi. 29; 2 Kings iii. 1.) The 
territory was purchased of Shc- 
mer, thence Samaria,) and forti¬ 
fied. (2 Kings x. 2.) It with¬ 
stood two unsuccessful sieges by 
Bcnhadad king of Syria, and his 
powerful allies, (1 Kings xx.,) and 
was finally subdued by Shalma- 
nezer, in the reign of Hoshea, 
but not till after a siege of three 
years, (2 Kings xvii. 1-6.) Pre¬ 
vious to its fall, it was given up 
to every species of sensuality, 
oppression and idolatry. It re¬ 
covered its prosperity, however, 
and reached the height of its glory 
in the time of Herod the Great, 
who enlarged and adorned it. The 
ruins attest its former magnifi- 
ronco, though it is now but an 
57 . 


SAM 

insignificant village. A modern 
traveller says,—“The situation is 
extremely beautiful, and strong by 
nature : more so thaD Jerusalem. 
It stands on a fine large insulated 
hill, compassed all round by- a 
broad deep valley; and when for¬ 
tified, must have been, according 
to the ancient mode of warfare, 
impregnable. The valley is sur¬ 
rounded by four hills, which are 
cultivated in terraces to the top, 
and sown with grain, and planted 
with fig trees and olive trees; as 
is also the valley. The hill of 
Samaria itself rises in terraces to 
a height equal to any of those in 
its vicinity. The present village 
is small and popr, and the ascent 
to it very steep; but viewed from 
our tents was extremely interest¬ 
ing, from its natural situation, 
and the ruins of an ancient con¬ 
vent, which are very picturesque.” 
An American missionary, who 
visited the ruins in the autumn 
of 1823, says, “it must have been 
a mighty city.” The site of it is 
now overgrown with orchards. 

SAMARITANS. (2 Kings xvii. 
29.) The inhabitans of Samaria; 
but in the New Testament it is 
applied to the people that were 
planted in Samaria, in the place 
of the exiled Israelites, by the 
Assyrian king. (2 Kings xvii. 
24.) This defiled origin, (Ezra 
iv. 1;) the course pursued by the 
Samaritans before the Persian 
kings, (Neh. iv. 1;) connected with 
their construction of the Mosaic 
law, (Deut. xxvii. 11-13,) and 
their separation from the Jews in 
their place of worship, (Luke ix. 
52, 53; John iv. 20, 21,) rendered 
the animosity between them very 
bitter, (Matt. x. 5; John iv. 9;) 
and hence the very name Sa¬ 
maritan was, with the Jew, a 



SAM 

term of reproach and concempt. 
(John viii. 48.) The Samaritans 
expected a Messiah, (John iv. 25,) 
And many of them followed Christ. 
(Acts viii. 1; ix. 31; xv. 3. See 
Shechem. See also Elisama, 
pp. 186-189.) 

SAMOS. (Acts xx. 15.) An 
island in the Egean Sea, or Gre¬ 
cian Archipelago, at which Paul 
touched on his passage from 
Greece to Jerusalem. It is situ¬ 
ated a few miles from the coast 
of Natolia in Asia Minor, and is 
about seventy miles in circum¬ 
ference, containing not more than 
twelve thousand inhabitants. The 
soil is very fertile, producing oil, 
wine, oranges a,nd silk, and is 
rapable of fine cultivation. Mar- 
do is at present found in the is- 
and; and once it contained a 
Vemple of Juno, vrhose remains 
tre yet visible. It was the birth¬ 
place of Pythagoras, and the bu¬ 
rial-place of Lycurgus. 

SAMOTIIRACIA, (Acts xvi. 
11,) or Samoa of Thrace. An is¬ 
land in the Archipelago, seventeen 
miles in circumference, lying off 
Hie province of Romania, and not 
far from Thrace. It was passed 
by Paul in his passage from 
Troas to Philippi. It was once 
called Samos; and the word 
Thracia was annexed to distin¬ 
guish it from the Samos above 
mentioned. The name is appro¬ 
priate; for it was inhabited chiefly 
by emigrants from Samos and 
Thrace. Once celebrated for its 
mysteries, it is now inhabited 
priticipa 1 y by fishermen, and in 
many parts covered with forests. 
Its modern name is SamodraJci. 

SAMSON, (Judg. xiii. 24.) 
Ron of Manoah, and for twenty 
vears a judge of Israel. The 
*i re u instances attending the an- 


SAM 

nunciation of his birth are re¬ 
markable, (Judg. xiii. 3-23, see 
Manoau ;) and he was distin¬ 
guished for his gigantic strength. 
Contrary to the wishes of his pa¬ 
rents, who were observers of the 
law, (Ex. xxxiv. 16; Dent. vii. 3,) 
he married a woman of Timnath, 
a Philistine city. On his way to 
that city, he slew a lion, (Judg. 
xiv. 5-9:) and afterwards found 
in the carcass of the beast a swarm 
of bees; and he ate of the honey 
himself, and took some to his pa¬ 
rents. This gave rise to an 
enigma, which he propounded at 
his marriage feast, promising a 
valuable present to any one who 
would solve it within seven days; 
provided they would make a like 
present to him if they failed. Un¬ 
able to solve the riddle them¬ 
selves, they resorted to Samson’s 
wife, who, by the most urgent en¬ 
treaties, had obtained from him 
a solution of it. By cruel threats 
they extorted from her the secret, 
and told it to him. But he knew 
their treachery; and though he 
kept his word, and made them 
the present, it was at the expense 
of the lives of thirty of their coun¬ 
trymen. He also forsook his 
wife, who had been thus false to 
his interest. 

On returning to Timnath, with 
a view to a reconciliation with 
his wife, h> found she had mar¬ 
ried again, and he was not per¬ 
mitted to see her. lie immedi¬ 
ately caught three hundred foxes, 
and fastening a firebrand to every 
pair of them, let them loose upon 
the fields and vineyards of the 
Philistines, and spread fire and 
desolation over the country. The 
Philistines, to be avenged, set 
fire to the house where Samson’s 
wife lived; and she and her father 
*71 




SAM 

were burnt in it. This wanton 
barbarity drew upon them again 
the vengeance ol Samson, who 
came upon them, and routed them 
with immense slaughter. Judg. 
xv. 1-8.) 

He then took up his abode on 
the rock Etam, in the territory 
of Judah, whither the Philistines 
came to revenge themselves, lay¬ 
ing waste the country on every 
side. Three thousand of the men 
of Judah remonstrated with Sam¬ 
son for thus exciting the resent¬ 
ment of the Philistines ; and he 
consented that they should bind 
him, and deliver him into their 
hands. This they did; but in 
the midst of their exultations, he 
burst his bands, and fell upon his 
enemies, putting a thousand of 
them to death, and the residue to 
flight. (Judg. xv. 9-19.) It was 
on this occasion that he was mi¬ 
raculously supplied with water 
from a fountain opened on the 
spot; not in the jawbone with 
which he had slain the Philistines, 
but in the place where the bone 
was found and used. 

After this, Samson went to 
Gaza, where he attached himself 
to Delilah, a mercenary woman, by 
whom, after a variety of arts and 
stratagems, the secret of his great 
strength was discovered to lie in 
the preservation of his hair, for 
he was a Nazarite. (Judg. xvi. 
17.) The. Philistines came upon 
him while he was asleep; removed 
his hair; bound him with fetters 
of brass; put out his eyes; car¬ 
ried him to Gaza, and threw him 
into prison. Having thus se¬ 
cured their formidable foe, the 
Philistine nobles assembled for a 
feast of joy, and to add to their 
merriment, they proposed to have 
Samsou brought. So a lad led 
572 


SAM 

fiim in, and sat him down be 
tween the two main pillars of the 
house, where the nobles and a 
multitude of people, both men 
and women, were assembled; be- 
sides three thousand persons upor 
the roofs of the cloisters around, 
beholding the cruel sport. Samsox 
requested the lad that had charge 
of him, to let him rest himself 
against the pillars on either side 
of him. This being granted, he 
prayed for strength, and, laying 
hold of the pillars, he bowed with 
all his might, carrying the pillars 
and the whole structure with Lim, 
and burying himself and the vast 
multitude within and around the 
courts in one common destruction. 
Samson is ranked with the com 
pany of the faithful. (Heb. xi 
32, 33. See Dwellings. See 
also Story op Samson.) 

SAMUEL, (1 Sam. i. 20,) the 
son of Elkanah and Hannah, was 
a celebrated Hebrew prophet, and 
the last of their judges. While 
he was a child, he officiated in 
some form in the temple, and was 
favoured with remarkable reve¬ 
lations of the divine will respect¬ 
ing the family of Eli the high- 
priest, under whose care and 
training his mother had placed 
him. (1 Sam. iii. 4-14. See Eli.) 

After the death of Eli, Samuel 
was acknowledged as a prophet, 
and soon commenced a work of 
ref rmation. Idolatry was ban¬ 
ished ; the worship of the truo 
God was restored, and Samuel 
was publicly recognised as a 
judge in Israel. Residing on 
his patrimonial estate in Ramali, 
he made annual circuits through 
the ecuntry to administer justice, 
until his infirmities were too many 
to permit it, and then he deputed 
his sons to execute this duty. 



SAN 

1 \oy proved themselves unworthy 
oi rfiiw trust ; and so general was 
tl»j) dhsaaefaotion of the people, 
that they determined on a change 
of government. To this end they 
applied to Samuel, who, under the 
divine direction, anointed Saul 
to be their king; and Samuel re¬ 
signed his authority to him. (1 
Sam. xii.) After Saul was re¬ 
jected for his disobedience in the 
matter of Agag, Samuel was in¬ 
structed to anoint David as king, 
after which he returned to Ra- 
inah, where he died. (1 Sam. 
xxv. 1. See Saul.) 

First and second books of, 
the tenth and eleventh in order 
of the books of the Old Testament, 
are called also the first and se¬ 
cond books of Kings. They bear 
Samuel’s name, because that pro¬ 
phet wrote twenty-four chapters 
of the first book. Nathan and 
Gad are supposed to have com¬ 
pleted them. (1 Chron. xxix. 29.) 
They constitute an important part 
of the annals of the Jewish na¬ 
tion. The first book embraces a 
period of eighty years, from 
the birth of Samuel to the death 
of Saul; and relates to Eli and 
Samuel, the last two of the judges, 
and Saul and David, the first two 
of their kings. The second book 
embraces a period of about forty 
years ; and contains the national 
records during the long reign of 
David, as well as the events of 
his personal history. 

SANCTIFY (Ex. xiii. 2) is to 
prepare or set apart persons or 
things to a holy use. The term 
sanctification, when applied to 
men, denotes that effect of God’s 
Spirit upon the soul, by which it 
is made meet for the inheritance 
of the saints in light. It com¬ 
prehends all the graces of know- 


SAN 

edge, faith, love, repentance, 
humility, Ac., and the exercise 
of them towards God and man. 
(2 Thess. ii. 13; 1 Pet. i. 2.) I 
is a process by which the soul is 
cleansed from the pollution anl 
delivered from tho power of sin, 
and, at tho samo time, endued 
with those spiritual graces above 
named, without which there could 
be no taste or fitness for the joys 
or employments of tho heavenly 
world. (Heb. xii. 14.) Sancti¬ 
fication is the fruit of union to 
Christ by faith; and it is in the 
knowledge and belief of the truth 
as it is in Jesus that the soul be¬ 
comes the subject of the sancti¬ 
fying influences of the Spirit. 
(John xvii. 17.) From this in¬ 
ward sanctification proceeds every 
good word and work. (Tit. ii. 
11-14.) When Christ speaks of 
sanctifying himself, (John xvii. 
19,) it is in allusion to the law 
which required the sacrifice to be 
set apart to a holy use. He se¬ 
parates or dedicates himself as a 
sacrifice to God for them. 

SANCTUARY. (Ps. xx. 2.) A 
holy or sanctified place. By this 
name that part of the temple of 
Jerusalem was called which was 
the most secret and most retired, 
in which was the ark of the cove¬ 
nant; and where none but the 
high-priest might enter, and he 
only once a year, on the day of 
solemn expiation. (Lev. iv. 6.) It 
is also applied to the furniture of 
thin holy place, (Num. x. 21 ;) 
the apartment where the golden 
candlestick, table of shew-bread, 
altar of incense, Ac. stood. (2 
Chron. xxvi. 18;) and to the wnole 
tabernacle or temple. (Josh. xxiv. 
26; 2 Chron. xx. 8.) It is called 
the sanctuary of strength, because 
it was a strong place, and easily 
573 



SAN 

fortified, and it belonged to God, 
the strength of Israel, (Dan. xi. 
31 ;) a worldly sanctuary , as it 
was of a carnal and earthly typi¬ 
cal nature. (Heb. ix. 1.) It is 
also applied to any place appoint¬ 
ed for the public worship of God, 
(x's. lxxiii. 17;) to heaven, where 
God and his holy angels and 
saints for ever dwell, (Ps. cii. 19;) 
and in allusion to the Jewish 
sanctuary, whose brazen altar 
protected petty criminals, a place 
of refuge and shelter is called a 
sanctuary. (Isa. viii. 14; Ezek. 
xi. 16.) 

SANBALLAT, (Neb. ii. 10,) 
the governor of the Samaritans, 
was a native of Horon, or Ho- 
ronanor, and is hence called the 
Horonite. He was very inimical 
to the Jews; and endeavoured, 
by every means of force and fraud, 
to hinder Nehemiah in the work 
of rebuilding the temple. (Neh. 
vi. 1-9.) 

SANDALS. (See Clothing.) 

SAPPHIRA. (See Ananias.) 

SAPPHIRE. (Ex. xxviii. 18.) 
A precious stone of the same spe¬ 
cies with the amethyst, obtained 
chiefly from the East Indies, and 
surpassed in beauty, lustre and 
hardness ojily by the diamond. 
Its colour is various, from a deep 
azure like the sky, (whence, per¬ 
haps, the allusion, Ex. xxiv. 10; 
Ezek. i. 26; x. 1,) to the lightest 
tint, and even to pure white. The 
sapphire w»s the second stone in 
the high priest's breastplate. 

SARAH, or SARAI. (Gen. xi. 
31.) The sister-in-law and wife 
of Abraham. In addition to the 
notice ot her in the article Abra¬ 
ham, it may be proper to say that 
she was the subject of special pro¬ 
mises, as well as Abraham. (Gen. 
xvii 16.) Her conduct in Egypt, 


SAR 

(Gen. xii. 15,) and towards Ilagar, 
(Gen. xvi. 6; xxi. 10,) and also 
when Isaac was promised, (Gen. 
xviii. 15,) evinced great weak, 
ness; but her exemplary faith is 
commended by the apostles. (Heb. 
xi. 11; 1 Pet. iii. 6.) She lived 
to one hundred and twenty-seven 
years of age, or upwards of thirty- 
six years after the birth of Isaac; 
and was buried in a field of Macli- 
pelah, which Abraham bought 
for the purpose. (See Notablb 
Women of Scripture, Art. Sa¬ 
rah.) 

SARDINE. (See Sardius.) 

SARDIS. (Rev. i. 11.) A city 
of ancient Lydia, and the site of 
one of the seven churches of Asia. 
Its modern name is Sart, and it 
lies about thirty miles southeast 
of Thyatira. It is, however, but 
a miserable village, inhabited 
chiefly by shepherds, though it is 
one of the stopping-places of the 
Persian caravans. The original 
city was plundered by Cyrus, and 
afterwards desolated by an earth¬ 
quake, the ruins of it being still 
visible a little distance to the 
south of the present town. 

Some American missionaries 
visited Sardis in the autumn of 
1820. They speak of “ the ruins 
of this once splendid city, with 
nothing now tc be seen but a few 
mud huts, inhabited by ignorant, 
stupid, filthy Turks, and the only 
men who bear the Christian name, 
at work all day in their mill. 
Every thing seems as if God had 
cursed the place, and left it to the 
dominion of Satan.” A modern 
traveller says, “ I sat beneath the 
sky of Asia, to gaze upon the ru¬ 
ins of Sardis, from the banks of 
the golden-sanded Pactolus. Be¬ 
side me were the cliffs of that 
Acropolis, which, centuries before. 



SAR 

the hardy Median scaled while 
leading on the conquering Per¬ 
sians, whose tents had covered 
lhe very spot on which I was re¬ 
clining. Before me were the ves¬ 
tiges of what had been the palace 
of the gorgeous Croesus: within 
its walls were once congregated 
the wisest of mankind, Thales, 
Clecbulus and Solon. Far in the 
distance were the gigantic tumuli 
of the Lydian monarchs; and 
around them spread those very 
plains once trodden by the count¬ 
less hosts of Xerxes, when hur¬ 
rying on to find a sepulchre at 
Marathon. But all, all had passed 
away! There were before me 
the fanes of a dead religion, the 
tombs of forgotten monarchs, and 
the palm-tree that waved in the 
banquet-hall of kings.” 

SARDIUS, (Ex.xxviii. 17,) or 
SARDINE, (Rev. iv. 3,) com¬ 
monly called cornelian, is a pre¬ 
cious stone susceptible of a beau¬ 
tiful polish, highly valued for 
seals and ornaments. The finest 
specimens are from Judea. (See 
Sardonyx.) 

SARDONYX. Rev. xxi. 20.) 
A precious stone, combining the 
appearances of the sardius and 
onyx,(whence its name.) Both the 
above are species of the chalcedo¬ 
ny, and are found in greatest per¬ 
fection in Judea, though speci¬ 
mens of both are found on Lake 
Superior; near Portage River, in 
Missouri, and at Deerfield in Mas¬ 
sachusetts. 

SAREPTA (Luke iv. 26,) or 
ZAREPHATH.' (1 Kings xvii. 
9 .) A Gentile town, lying on the 
shores of the Mediterranean, be¬ 
tween Tyre and Sidon, and be¬ 
longing to the latter. Its modern 
name is Zarpha, or Zarphant. 
Though thsre wore many widows | 


SAU 

in Israel, distressed with the pre 
vailing famine, Elijah was not sent 
to them, but to a Zidonian widow 
in Sarepta. Two of our American 
missionaries passed through the 
place in the summer of 1S23. 

SARGON. (See Esarhaddcn.) 

SARON. (Soe Sharon.) 

SATAN. (1 Chron. xxi. 1.) A 
Hebrew word signifying an ene¬ 
my; and in Scripture it is ;om- 
rnonly applied to the devil, who 
is the enemy of God, and the 
great tempter and destroyer of 
the souls of men. Its use in Matt, 
xvi. 23, denotes the influence un¬ 
der which Peter acted. (See 
Devil.) 

SATYR. (Isa. xiii. 21; xxxiv. 
14.) A fabled creature of Greek 
mythology, compounded of a man 
and a goat, and supposed to be 
the deity of forests and rural 
places. The expression satyrs shall 
dance there, Ac. denotes that the 
place shall become as a rude, 
wild, uncultivated waste. 

SAUL, (1 Sam. ix. 2,) the first 
king of Israel, was the son of 
Kish, of the tribe ef Benjamin. 
His personal appearance was so 
remarkably fine and noble, as to 
be particularly mentioned by the 
sacred historian. 

It happened that some asses of 
his father’s had strayed away, 
and he took one of the servants 
and went in search of them. In 
tho course of their wanderings, 
they came, on tho third day, to a 
place where Samuel the seer (or 
prophet) resided ; and the servant 
proposed that they should apply 
to him for information. This 
they did. Samuel, having been 
divinely admonished of the ap¬ 
proach of Saul, and instructed 
what to do, invited him to his 
house, and treated him with 
575 



SAU 

marked distinction. The next j 
day Samuel made known to him 
privately that he was to have the 
~ule over Israel; and while they 
were in the way, he took a vial 
of oil, and, pouring it on his head, 
anointed him for the regal office. 
To convince Saul that this thing 
was of the Lord, Samuel told him 
particularly what should befall 
him on his way home; and they 
were such events as Samuel could 
not have known but by revelation 
from God. (1 Sam. x. 2-6.) In 
a few days after this, Samuel 
went to Mizpeh, and summoned 
the people of Israel to meet him 
there. When they were assembled, 
he announced to them the ap¬ 
pointment of Saul to be their 
king. 

Very early in his reign, Saul 
acquired considerable popularity 
by a splendid victory over the 
Philistine army, at the siege of 
Jabesh-gilead; and immediately 
afterwards the people met at Gil- 
gal, and celebrated his accession 
to the throne with sacrifices and 
festivities. After a series of mili¬ 
tary successes, Saul was commis¬ 
sioned by divine authority to exe¬ 
cute the vengeance long before 
denounced upon the Amalekites 
for their conduct towards the 
children of Israel; but he diso¬ 
beyed the explicit directions he 
had received, and for this sin was 
ultimately deprived of his crown. 
From this period onward he is ex¬ 
hibited as the slave of jealousy, 
duplicity and malice. His con¬ 
duct towards David was detest¬ 
able in the extreme, and shows 
him to have lost every manly and 
generous feeling. A little before 
his death, the Philistines mus¬ 
tered an army so formidable as to 
intimidate the king of Israel; 
576 


SAU 

and, in the midst of his perplexity, 
he found himself abandoned of 
God, whose direction he sough 4 
in vain. In this emergency, he 
took two of his servants, and went 
by night to Endor, a distance of 
about ten miles from his camp, 
to consult a sorceress, desiring 
her to cause the spirit of Samuel 
to appear, that he might ask of 
him the counsel which he so 
much needed. Though the sor¬ 
ceress had no power over spirits, 
God was pleased to make use of 
the opportunity thus afforded tc 
rebuke the wicked king, and to 
make known to him the fearful 
retribution that was at hand. 
Samuel was permitted to return 
to the earth, and to hold conver 
sation with Saul, as man with 
man. After hearing his com¬ 
plaint against God, Samuel charg¬ 
ed him with his disobedience to 
the divine command in the mat¬ 
ter of Amalek; assured him that 
all his efforts to obtain aid else¬ 
where were vain, if God had be¬ 
come his enemy; and admonished 
him that defeat and ruin were at 
hand, and that he and his sons 
should be the next day inhabit¬ 
ants of the world of spirits. This 
intelligence, thus supernaturally 
communicated, overwhelmed the 
wicked king; and the very next 
day the Israelites were routed 
with dreadful slaughter. Among 
the killed were Saul’s threw sons. 
Saul, finding himself wounded 
and likely to fall into the hands 
of the enemy, threw himself upon 
the point of his own sword! When 
the Philistines found the body of 
Saul, they severed the head from 
it, and fastened the body on the 
city wall; from which it was af¬ 
terwards taken, in the night, by 
some of his friends from a dis 




SAV 

lance, and carried to .Tabesh- 
gileaa, and buried. (1 Sam. 
xxviii.-xxxi.) 

Saul of Tarsus. (See Paul.) 

SAVIOUR. (See Christ.) 

SCAPE-GOAT. (See Goat.) 

SCARLET. (2 Sam. i. 24.) A 
brilliant d^e, valued, like the 
purple and crimson, for rich ap¬ 
parel | Ex. xxviii. 15) and tapes¬ 
try. (Ex xxv. 4.) Hence it 
was an emblem of luxury and 
licentiousness. (Rev. xvii. 3, 4.) 
It was also an emblem of honour 
and prosperity. (Prov. xxxi. 21.) 
Sometimes the scarlet and purple 
are confounded. (Dan. v. 7, 29. 
Comp. Matt, xxvii. 28; Mark xv. 
17 ; John xix. 2.) The depth and 
strength of this colour gives force 
to the figure, Isa. i. 18. (See 
Purple.) 

SCEPTRE. (Esth. viii. 4.) A 
wooden staff or wand, five or six 
feet long, usually overlaid with 
gold or ornamented with golden 
rings, with an ornamented point. 
It was borne in the hands of 
kings and others in authority, as 
a token of power. (Gen. xlix. 10 ; 
Num. xxiv. 17.) It probably had 
its origin in the shepherd’s staff, 
as the patriarchal chiefs were 
shepherds as well as princes. 
When this sceptre was held out 
to be touched by an individul ap¬ 
proaching the throne, it was a 
sign of the royal acceptance and 
favour. 

SCEVA. (Acts xix. 14.) A 
Jew residing at Ephesus. He is 
called chief of the priests, which 
probably means that he was of 
the sacerdotal order, holding an 
office of distinction, perhaps in 
the national council. He had 
seven sons, who, with other Jew¬ 
ish vagabonds, practised exor¬ 
cism ; and it was their custom, 
49 2 


sen 

after they had seen the miraclo* 
wrought by Paul, to adjure the 
evil spirits by Jesus whom Paul 
preached. Sceva’s sons attempted 
to do so, and the possessed' man 
fell upon them with prodigious 
power, stripped and wounded 
them, and obliged them in that 
state to flee from the house. The 
failure of the imposture was over¬ 
ruled to the furtherance of tho 
truth ; for many conversions took 
place, and those who had prac¬ 
tised the foolish arts of magic 
and sorcery brought together 
their books on those subjects, 
and burned them ; thus showing 
their detestation of such practices, 
and their determination to re¬ 
nounce them. 

SCHISM (1 Cor. xii. 25) means 
a rupture or separation; but it is 
supposed to denote in this pas¬ 
sage any such alienation of feel¬ 
ing among Christians as violates 
the spiritual union which ought 
to exist among them, though 
there be no doctrinal error or se¬ 
parate communions. 

SCHOOL, (Acts xix. 9,) 
SCHOLAR, (1 Chron. xxv. 8,) 
SCHOOLMASTER. (Gal. iii. 
24.) Schools existed among tho 
Jews from a very early period. 
They were established under the 
supervision of the. prophets, to 
train young men to become ex¬ 
pounders of the law, and so fit 
them for the priestly and pro¬ 
phetical offices. (1 Sam. xix. 18- 
24; 2 Kings ii. 3, 5, 7, 12, 15.) 
The children were taught to read 
in common schools; and in higher 
seminaries were instructed by 
doctors in the law and traditions. 
It is supposed that Gamaliel was 
at the head of such an institu¬ 
tion, and much distinguished, 
(Acts xxii. 3;) and it is said that 
A 577 



SCO 

the tutor’s chair was raised so 
much above the floor on which 
the pupils sat, that his feet were 
even with their heads. It is 
much more probable, however, 
that this is a figurative expres¬ 
sion, denoting his (Gamaliel’s) 
eminent qualifications as a teach¬ 
er. In these institutions public 
discussions were often held. 
(Luke ii. 46; Acts xix. 8-10.) 

The schoolmaster among the 
ancients, as at the present day, 
was a person to whom they com¬ 
mitted the care of their children, 
to lead them, to observe them, 
and to instruct them in their first 
rudiments. Thus the office nearly 
answered to that of a governor or 
tutor, (Gal. iv. 2, 3,) who con¬ 
stantly attends his pupil, teaches 
him, and forms his manners. It 
is said, Gal. iii. 24, 25, the law 
was our schoolmaster to bring us 
to Christ. It pointed out Christ 
in the Scriptures, especially in the 
figures and the prophecies of the 
Old Testament; but since we are 
supposed to be advanced to supe¬ 
rior learning, and are committed 
to the tuition of the faith which 
we have embraced, we have no 
longer need of a schoolmaster; 
as such are of no further use to 
young persons when advanced to 
years of maturity. 

SCORNER. (Prov. xiii. 1.) 
One who is disposed to laugh at 
persons and things of importance; 
who mocks at sin, and the judg¬ 
ments of God on account of it; 
scoffs at religion and the profes¬ 
sors and teachers of it; and de¬ 
rides and hates wholesome reproof 
and advice. (Ps. i. 1; Prov. ix. 8.) 

SCORPION. (Luke xi. 12.) 
A venomous insect allied to the 
spider, but resembling the lobster 
so much, that the latter is called 
678 


SCO 


the sea-scorpion by the Arabs 
Its shape and general appearance 
are seen in the cut. Its usual 



The Scorpion. 


length is one or two inches, but 
in tropical climates it is some¬ 
times found six or eight inches 
(and some say even a foot) in 
length; and its sting is attended 
with excruciating pain, (Rev. ix. 
3-6,) terminating often in violent 
convulsions and death. The ma¬ 
lignity of their venom is accord¬ 
ing to the size and complexion 
of the different species. The in¬ 
sect conceals itself in crevices 
and under stones, and when coil¬ 
ed up, (especially the white or 
yellow species,) resembles an egg; 
whence the allusion, Luke xi. 12. 

An instrument resembling a 
whip, but so formed with knots 
or small stones as that each 
blow should inflict a sharp sting¬ 
ing pain, is probably alluded to 
in 1 Kings xii. 11. (See 
Scourge.) 

Mount Akrabbim (Josh xv. 3; 
Judg. i. 36) is, literally, the mount 
of scorpions , and derives its Dam- 









SCO 


SCR 


fYom the multitude of scorpions 
which infest it. 

SCOURGE. (John ii. 15.) The 
scourge was usually formed of 
throe lashes or thongs made of 
leather or small cords; thirteen 
strokes of which were equal to 
thirty-nine lashes; and not more 
than forty could be given by law. 
(Deut. xxv. 1-3; 2 Cor. xi. 24.) 
The sufferer was tied by his arms 
to a low pillar, his back laid bare, 
and his body bent forward, and 
the blows applied so severely that 
life was often terminated. Some¬ 
times sharp iron points or sharp 
cornered pieces of metal were 
fastened to the end of the thongs, 
to render the suffering still more 
extreme. Among the Romans the 
number of blows was unlimited. 
Hence our blessed Redeemer suf¬ 
fered in this form all that his mur¬ 
derers thought he could bear. So 
degrading was this punishment in 
its nature and effects, that no citi¬ 


zen of the Roman empire could be 
subjected to it. (Acts xxii. 25,26.) 
Many were known to die under 
the cruel infliction. Sometimes it 
tcok place on the way to execu¬ 
tion, and sometimes it was itself 
the only punishment. The holy 
body of the innocent Redeemer 
was torn and larcerated by this 
cruel and shameful outrage; and 
with those stripes we are healed. 
(Isa. liii. 5.) The punishment 
with rods or twigs seems to have 
been a separate infliction. (2 Cor. 
xi. 25.) 

SCRIBE. (2 Sam. viii. 17.) 
This name was first given to the 
king’s secretary or messenger, 
(2 Sam. xx. 25,) and to such 
as excelled in. the use of the 
pen, (Judg. v. 14; Jer. lii. 
25;) but, in time, it came to 
simply mean a learned man. (1 
Cor. i. 20.) 

It was the peculiar oflice of the 
priests and Levites not only to 



Doctors of the Lao.. 


67y 











































SCR 

study the book of the law with 
great diligence, (Ezra. vii. 6-10; 
Matt. li. 4; xii. 35; xv. 1, 2; 
xvii. 10; xxiii. 2,) and to read 
and explain it to the congrega¬ 
tion, but to transcribe it, and 
multiply copies among the nation 
at large. The scribes by profes¬ 
sion were usually priests or Le- 
vites, and carried with them, 
as Oriental scribes do at this day, 
the implements of their art—an 
ink-horn thrust into the girdle; 
attached to this, a knife to sharp¬ 
en the reed or pen; a pumice-stone 
to smoothe the paper or skin; 
and a sponge to correct mistakes. 
(Ezek. ix. 2.) The scribes and 
doctors of the law are terms often 
applied to the same class of peo¬ 
ple. (Comp. Matt. xxii. 35 ; Mark 
xii. 28; Luke v. 17, 21.) 

SCRIP. (1 Sam. xvii. 40.) A 
sort of knapsack of various sizes, 
made of skin or coarse cloth, 
hung round the neck, and used 
to carry provisions for a journey. 
(Matt. x. 10.) 

SCRIPTURE, SCRIPTURES. 
(2 Tim. iii. 15, 16.) These terms 
are applied to the inspired writ¬ 
ings contained in the Old and 
New Testaments. They are also 
called The Bible, or The Book, 
in distinction from all other books, 
from the Greek word biblos, sig¬ 
nifying book. The word scripture 
is also applied to a single pas¬ 
sage, (Mark xv. 28,) and some¬ 
times figuratively to the Holy 
Ghost. (Gal. iii. 8.) 

These books are divided into 
the Old and New Testaments, (2 
Cor. iii. 14,) because they contain 
the history of God’s revelations 
to mankind, and his dealings with 
them under two dispensations. 
Hence they are sometimes called 
‘he old and ne\i Covenants. (See 
>80 


SCR 

Testament.) The former, or Old 
Testament, was written mostly in 
Hebrew, and was the Bible of 
the ancient Jewish church. It 
was divided into three parts—the 
Law, the Prophets, and the Psalms, 
(Luke xxiv. 44.) The latter, or 
New Testament, was written 
mostly, if not wholly, in Greek, 
and fully unfolds the history and 
doctrines of our divine Redeemer, 
and the way of salvation through 
him. They are united in one 
book, and called The Scriptures, 
because they form a connected 
history, and are necessary to illus¬ 
trate, to explain, and confirm each 
other. 

Versions of the Bible. The 
Old Testament was translated 
from Hebrew into Greek about 
three hundred years before Christ. 
This translation is called . the 
Septuagint, from a Latin word 
signifying seventy, either because 
a company of seventy or seventy- 
two elders were employed in the 
work, or because it was approved 
by the Jewish council or Sanhe¬ 
drim, which consisted of seventy 
or seventy-two persons. 

Soon after the apostolic writ¬ 
ings were published, the Bible 
was translated into Latin, for the 
use of Christians using that lan¬ 
guage. This is called the Vul¬ 
gate, because the Latin language 
was the vulgar or common tongue 
of the Romans. The first edition 
of this, and the first entire Bible 
in print in any language, bearing 
any date, name of printer, or 
place of publication, was the La¬ 
tin Vulgate, published at Mentz 
in Germany. It is commonly 
called the Mazarin Bible, a copy 
having been found about the 
middle of the last century in Car¬ 
dinal Mazarin’s library at Paris 



SCh 

It is remarkable that its existence 
was unknown before ; for it can 
hardly be called a book of very 
great scarcity, nearly twenty 
copies being in different libraries, 
half of them in those of private 
persons in England. No date 
appears in this Bible, and some 
have referred its publication to 
1452, or even to 1450. In a copy 
belonging to the royal library at 
Paris, an entry is made, import¬ 
ing that it was completed in bind¬ 
ing and illuminating at Mentz, 
on the feast of the Assumption, 
(Aug. 15,) 1456. As the binding 
and illuminating of the above- 
mentioned copy is likely to have 
followed the publication at no 
great distance of time, we may 
not err in placing its appearance 
in the year 1455, which will se¬ 
cure its hitherto unimpeached 
priority in the records of biblio¬ 
graphy. It is a very striking 
circumstance, that the high- 
minded inventors of this great 
art tried at the very outset so 
bold a flight as the printing of 
an entire Bible, and executed it 
with astonishing success. It was 
far within the first twenty-five 
years of the first invention of the 
art in its rudest form, that this 
stupendous labour was under¬ 
taken. The Mazarin Bible is 
printed, some copies on vellum, 
some on paper of choice quality, 
with strong, black and tolerably 
handsome characters, but with a 
want of uniformity which has 
led, perhaps unreasonably, to 
doubt whether they were cast in 
a matrix. We may see, in ima¬ 
gination, this venerable and 
splendid volume leading up the 
crowded myriads of its followers, 
and imploring, as it were, a bless¬ 
ing on the lew art, by dedicating 
49* 


SCR 

its first-fruits to the sendee o! 
heaven. This Bible is sometimes 
called Guttenberg’s Latin Bible, 
as it was printed by the joint 
labour of Guttenberg, Faustus, 
and Sehoffer j and it is called th« 
forty -i do line Bible, because each 
full column contained forty-twa 
lines. The first complete impres¬ 
sions of this Bible bearing a 
date on tho title-page, were print¬ 
ed in 1462, and carried by Faus¬ 
tus to Paris for sale. The monks 
were so astonished at this surpris¬ 
ing multiplication of copies, that 
they ascribed it to demoniacal in¬ 
fluence. 

English versions and editions , 
The Bible, entire and in parts, 
was translated into Saxon by 
several different hands, between 
a.d. 706 and 995. For several 
centuries after this, the Scrip¬ 
tures appear to have been buried 
in oblivion. 

In the reign of Edward I. of 
England, (1250,) the price of a 
fairly written Bible was thirty 
pounds, or one hundred and 
forty-four dollars. At the same 
time the hire of a labourer was 
three half-pence, or three cents a 
day. So that it would take the 
labour of fifteen years and a 
quarter, exclusive of Sundays, to 
purchase a single copy. A copy 
of the New Testament, in clear 
good type, and well and strongly 
bound, can be had in this coun¬ 
try now at seven cents, and the 
whole Scriptures for thirty-one 
cents. 

The first English translation 
of the Bible known to be extant, 
is supposed to bear date as early 
as 1290. Three MS. copies of if 
are in existence now. The next 
translation of tho whole Bible 
into English was by Wickliffa, 
581 



SCE 

ftoout 13S0. Manuscr.pt copies 
of this work are also in existence 
in many public libraries; but 
only the New Testament was ever 
printed. In the year 1429, a 
copy of Wickliffe’s New Testa¬ 
ment in manuscript brought near¬ 
ly two hundred dollars. 

The first printed English Bible 
was translated by William Tyn- 
dale. His translation of the New 
Testament was published at Ant¬ 
werp in 1526. In 1529 this edi¬ 
tion was bought up and burnt; 
which afforded him the means of 
going on. In 1530 he published 
the Pentateuch, and the next 
year Jonah. These, with Nehe- 
miah, made Tyndale’s Bible. In 
1535 it was published by Cover- 
dale, one of Tyndale’s assistants; 
and Tyndale himself was stran¬ 
gled and burnt in 1536. In the 
reign of Henry VIII. the pos¬ 
session of a copy of Tyndale’s 
translation of the New Testament 
was sufficient to convict the in¬ 
dividual of heresy, and subject 
him to the flames. Still, the de¬ 
sire to possess it was so strong 
that some gave a load of hay for 
a few chapters of James or Paul’s 
epistles in English. “It was 
wonderful,” says a writer, * co 
see with what joy this book of 
Cod was received, not only among 
the learned sort, and those who 
were noted for lovers of the Re¬ 
formation, but generally all Eng¬ 
land over, among all the vulgar 
and common people; and with 
what greediness God’s word was 
read, and what report to places 
where the reading of it was. 
Everybody that could, bought 
the book, or busily read it, or got 
others to read it to them, if they 
could not themselves; and divers 
more elderly people learned to 
682 


BCE 

read on purpose, and even little 
boys flocked among the rest to 
hear portions of the Holy Scrip¬ 
tures read.” In 1537, a revised 
edition of Tyndale’s Bible was 
published on the continent ; and 
two years afterwards it was also 
published in England. In 1540 
a copy of this Bible was required 
by law to be placed in every 
parish church; but in two years 
more the papist power succeeded 
in suppressing it. It was socn 
restored again, and before 1570, 
was quite common. 

In 1603, Dr. John Reynolds of 
Oxford proposed a new transla¬ 
tion, and the king (James I.) fa¬ 
voured the suggestion, and ap¬ 
pointed fifty-four learned men to 
do tjie service. Only forty-seven 
engaged in the labour. They di¬ 
vided themselves into six com¬ 
panies, and assigned a portion to 
each. Each individual of each 
company was directed to take the 
same portion, and having trans¬ 
lated or amended it by himself as 
he thought good, all were to meet 
together and report what they had 
done, and decide what should 
stand. When a book was finish¬ 
ed by one company, it was to be 
sent to the rest to be considered 
and examined. If a book thus 
sent was disapproved in any part, 
it was to be returned to the com¬ 
pany, with the objection and pro¬ 
posed alterations noted, and the 
reasons assigned. If the force of 
the objections was not perceived, 
the matter was to bo adjusted at 
the general meeting of all the 
translators. In cases of special 
obscurity, letters were to be di¬ 
rected, by authority, to any learn¬ 
ed men in the land, for their 
judgment upon the passages. 
Letters were directed by the 



SCR 

btshops to such of their clergy 
as had the reputation of being 
skilful in the languages, to send 
their observations to the transla¬ 
tors. In addition to this provi¬ 
sion, the vice-chancellors of the 
universities of Cambridge and 
Oxford chose each, at the com¬ 
mand of the king, several of the 
most eminent divines, as general 
assistants and overseers of the 
translation. 

Great praise has been justly 
awarded to James for the excellent 
selection he made for the discharge 
of a trust so momentous. It was 
universally allowed that the per¬ 
sons chosen were, for the most 
part, recommended equally by 
their skill in the Oriental lan¬ 
guages, and by a character for 
judicious discrimination. Among 
these, Dr. Reynolds held the first 
rank ; and, indeed, he appears to 
have been so eminently and vari¬ 
ously gifted, that he would have 
found few equals in any age. His 
memory was almost miraculous, 
not only for its Comprehensive¬ 
ness, but for the astonishing mi¬ 
nuteness of its power, which en¬ 
abled him to refer not only to 
pages and paragraphs, but even 
to the lines of the books he had 
occasion to quote. He was pro¬ 
foundly skilled in the learning 
and languages of the East; and 
from his knowledge of the dialects 
spoken in Judea in the days of 
our Saviour, was admirably quali¬ 
fied to furnish correct and natu¬ 
ral versions of expressions other¬ 
wise obscure. To these great 
endowments he added sincere and 
ardent piety, and the most exem¬ 
plary humility 

The regulations under which 
the work was to be prosecuted 
were verj strictly observed; the 


SCR 

Bible then used in the church 
being the standard, and not to 
be altered, even in a letter, unless 
the sense of the original could be 
more accurately conveyed. 

For three years the translators 
were closely engaged, but of the 
incidents of their labour little can 
be gathered from contemporane¬ 
ous history, and little was pro¬ 
bably known beyond the circle 
of the translators. A passing 
remark of Selden furnishes nearly 
all that can now be known of 
what may bo termed the private 
history of our English Bible: 
“When they met together, one 
read the translation, the rest 
holding in their hands some Bi¬ 
ble, either of Greek or Hebrew, 
or French, Italian, or Spanish. 
If they found any fault, they 
spoke; and if not, he read on.” 
Throe copies of the translation 
being prepared, they were com¬ 
mitted to six persons, selected 
from the translators, who were 
to review the whole, and select 
one copy for the press. This 
service occupied them daily for 
nine months. The copy thus re¬ 
vised was again examined entirely 
by two of the most eminent of 
the translators, viz. the bishop of 
Winchester and Dr. Smith, the 
latter of whom wrote the learn¬ 
ed and devout preface which is 
found in many of our common 
Bibles. 

In 1611, the Bible was at length 
published, after having been 
long impatiently expected by the 
people, whose interest in the un¬ 
dertaking can hardly bo conceiv¬ 
ed. And with all proper allow¬ 
ance for the limited extent of 
general, and especially biblical 
science in that day, it will proba¬ 
bly never cease to be regarded 




SCR 

»s a very honourable monument 
of the labour, learning and faith¬ 
fulness of the translators. 

The title-page of the Old Tes¬ 
tament was engraved on copper, 
and that of the New Testament on 
wood. The first edition was print¬ 
ed in black letter, folio size; but 
a quarto edition, in Roman type, 
was published as early as 1612. 

This is the common English 
translation of the present day. It 
is called King James’s version; 
and it may be proper to state that 
among other testimonials from 
learned divines of different com¬ 
munions, of its general correct¬ 
ness, are those of Selden, Lowth, 
Horsley, Walton, Middleton, Ged- 
des, Doddridge, Beattie, Scott, 
Clarke and a host of others. 

Bibles in the United States. 
The first Bible printed on the 
continent of America was in na¬ 
tive Indian—the New Testament 
in 1661, and the Old in 1663, 
both by Rev. John Eliot. They 
were published at Cambridge, 
Mass. The second was in Gor¬ 
man, a quarto edition, published at 
Germantown, near Philadelphia, 
by Christopher Sower, in 1676. 

The first American edition of 
the Bible in English was printed 
by Kneeland and GrCen, at Bos¬ 
ton, in 1752, in small quarto, 700 
or 800 copies. It was published 
by Henchman, a bookseller, but to 
avoid a prosecution by those who 
had a patent from the king, they 
reprinted the whole title-page of 
the English copy, including the 
London imprint. The next edi¬ 
tion was by Robert Aitken, of 
Philadelphia, in 1781-2. He sent 
a memorial to Congress praying 
for their patronage. His memo¬ 
rial was referred to a committee, 
who obtained the opinion of the 
584 


SCR 

chaplains of Congress as to its 
general typographical accuracy, 
and thereupon a resolution was 
passed (Sept. 12, 1782) recom 
mending this edition of the Bible 
to the people of the United States. 

The Bible is regarded by all 
Protestant Christians as the only 
infallible rule of faith and prac 
tice. Having been originally com 
posed by holy men of God, wha 
spake as they were moved by the 
Holy Ghost, (2 Pet. i. 21,) and 
bearing in its own history and 
character conclusive testimony 
that it is so given by inspira¬ 
tion of God, and is not only 
profitable for doctrine, for re¬ 
proof, for correction, for instruc¬ 
tion in righteousness, but able 
also to make men wise unto 
salvation, through faith that is 
in Christ Jesus, (2 Tim. iii. 15, 
16 ;) the distribution of it all over 
the world, in the various tongues 
spoken by the inhabitants, be¬ 
comes an imperative duty. The 
Christian church generally regard 
it as a true and just translation 
from the languages in which these 
sacred books were at first written, 
aud of course receive them as 
having like authority with the 
originals. 

As to the evidences of the truth 
of the Bible, the inquirer is re¬ 
ferred to The Mine Explored, 
The Way of Life, ch. i. Tow¬ 
ers of Zion, Alexander’s Evi¬ 
dences, The Bible is True, 
The Infidel Class, and Family 
Conversations. It has been 
well said of the sacred writings, 
that the divine authority, majesty, 
wisdom, hcliness and goodness 
discovered t herein; the depth, sub. 
limity, purity and benevolence of 
their matter; their scope, to render 
all to the glory of God and crush 





SCR 

the corrupt inclinations of man; 
the transcendant loftiness of their 
style, even when suited to the 
capacity of the weak; the ob¬ 
vious candour of the writers, in 
relating the weaknesses and 
faults of themselves and their 
nation; their amazing harmony, 
though of very different stations 
and ages, and publishing things 
contrary to the natural inclina¬ 
tions of men ; the attestation of 
tlnj^e writings by vast numbers 
of important public and incon¬ 
testable miracles; the joyful suf¬ 
ferings of myriads for their stead¬ 
fast adherence thereto; the mar¬ 
vellous preservation of them, and 
the signal strokes of divine ven¬ 
geance on such as attempted to 
destroy them; their amazing suc¬ 
cess, prevailing over the lusts of 
men, and the furious opposition 
of worldly power, to the civilizing 
of nations, and to the convincing, 
converting and comforting of the 
hearts of millions who were once 
enemies to God and to all right¬ 
eousness; the exact fulfilment of 
the numerous, the particular and 
circumstantial predictions thereof, 
—are infallible proofs that they 
only are the word of God, able to 
make us wise unto salvation. 

Much interest has been felt in 
the efforts in modern times to 
translate and circulate the Scrip¬ 
tures in the various languages of 
the earth. The number of these 
languages is estimated at 3000, 
only 80 of which are supposed to 
bo strictly original languages, the 
rest being dialects. Of these, 1200 
are spoken in America, 278 in 
Africa, 545 in Europe, and 1000 
in Asia and its islands. The 
•Scriptures are aiready translated 
into nearly 200. Among these are 
the English, which is sj oken by 


SCR 

near.y 50,000,000, and partially 
spoken by 150,000,000 ; Chinese, 
which is spoken by 360,000,000; 
Burmese, which is spoken by 15 
or 20,000,000 ; and various others. 
So that probably more than one- 
half of the inhabitants of the 
world might now read the Bible 
in their own language if they 
could be furnished with it; and 
it is ready to be sent. 

Tho idea of the formation ot 
the British and Foreign Bible 
Society, which was organized in 
1804, was first suggested by Rev. 
Thomas Charles, of Bala. He 
was labouring in connection with 
the Welsh Methodists, and being 
on a visit to London in 1802, and 
feeling very greatly the need of 
Bibles to supply Sunday-schools, 
proposed an association for the 
purpose. Such an association 
Avas formed under the name of 
the British and Foreign Bible 
Society. It was called the Bible 
Society, because its object was to 
distribute the simple Bible with¬ 
out note or comment; British , 
because its first attention was di¬ 
rected to the supply of Great 
Britain; and Foreign, because 
it proposed, as far as its means 
would allow, to send the Bible in 
all languages to all parts of the 
world. And there are now (1855) 
more than 5000 kindred institu¬ 
tions, of which more than 3000 
are in Great Britain and Ireland, 
Tho society has printed the Scrip¬ 
tures in 125 languages and dia¬ 
lects, in 76 of which they had 
never before been published. It 
is now engaged in 63 other trans-. 
laticns. Since its establishment 
it has circulated nearly 30,000,000 
of Bibles and Testaments, and 
has expended nearly $25,000,000. 
And yet upwards of 400,000,000 
t>85 




SCR ' 

of immortal beings are without 
the knowledge of ev r en the exist¬ 
ence of this blessed volume. 

The first Bible society in Ame¬ 
rica is said to have been esta¬ 
blished in 1804, by a few Baptists 
in New York. A Bible was stolen 
from a pew in a church, and this 
started the inquiry whether a 
person might not desire to pos¬ 
sess the volume for the sake of 
reading it, who would not wait 
to get it honestly and, at any 
rate, whether there might not be 
a great destitution of the sacred 
volume. A society was formed, 
to purchase and loan Bibles for 
a month at a time. Many of the 
public institutions were supplied 
on this plan. The Philadelphia 
Bible Society was instituted May 
8, 1808, and for many years was 
the only source of supply for gra¬ 
tuitous distribution. It had aux¬ 
iliaries in several States, and acted 
as the centre of Bible distribution 
in this country, till the American 
Bible Society was formed in 1816, 
which has issued (1855) upwards 
of ten millions of Bibles and 
Testaments, or parts of them, in 
many different languages. The 
aggregate of all these operations 
will give us in round numbers 
50,000,000 of copies of the Scrip¬ 
tures in almost all the languages 
of the earth, and the expenditure 
of upwards of $30,000,000. 



IN 

THE 

OLx# 

No. of Chapters. 


Date. 

Genesis.,. 



1491 

Exodus. 

...40 . 


1491 

Leviticus. 

...27. 


1490 

Jf umbers.. 



. 1451 

Deuteronomy... 




Joshua.-... 

...24. 


. 1427 

Judges. 




Ruth. 



. 1312 





2 Samuel. 




1 Kings. 

.. .22.. .i.-xi.... 


. 1002 


vii . Ac . 


. 83 7 


586 


SCR 

Canon jf Scripture. The Scrip- 
t ires. or sacred writings, were 
published in separate books, and 
at different periods, through a 
space of fifteen hundred years. 
They were collected in a volume 
for convenience. In determining 
their genuineness, each part or 
Book must be examined by itself. 
In other words, what writings 
properly constitute the sacred 
Scriptures? The word canon 
literally signifies a rule, and was 
early used by the Christian fa¬ 
thers to denote the Scriptures, 
because they form a perfect rule 
or standard of faith and duty, 
which Christians regard as au¬ 
thoritative ; or perhaps because 
they were registered in the eccle¬ 
siastical canons as genuine. It is 
generally admitted that the canon 
of the Old Testament was settled 
soon after the return of the Jews 
from Babylon, or about five hun¬ 
dred years before Christ. 

The following are the canoni¬ 
cal books of the Bible, arranged 
in the order in which they are 
published, with the number of 
chapters in each, and the chrono¬ 
logical order according to many 
crities. It is not pretended, how¬ 
ever, that this arrangement is 
chronologically accurate, nor in¬ 
deed is it always adopted un¬ 
der the distinct articles in this 
volume. 


TESTAMENT. 


No. of Chapter*. 

Date. 

2 Kings. 



1 Chronicles. 

..29 . 


2 Chronicles.. 

..36. ..i.-ix.... 

. 1004 


x. Ac... 

. 623 

Ezra.. 

..10. 


Nehemiab. 



Esther. 

...10. 


Job. 

..42 . 

• Uncertain. 

Psalms.. 

.150.. 


Proverbs.... 

. 31. 

. 1000 

Ecclesiastes. 

. 12. 

.. .. 975 

Song of Solomoi. 

. 8. . .. 

. . 1013 





































SCR 


No. 

of Chapters. 

Date. 

Tautwit.. 

...66. 

...B,C. 69? 

Jc-eiriah. 

...52. 


Lamentati.ns.. 



E/.ekiei..... 

. .48. 

. . 574 

Daniel.......... 



Hosea.... 



Joel. 



Amos. 


. 787 

Obadiah. 

. 1 . 



SCR 


No. of Chapter*. Data, 

Jonah..4.B C. 861 

Micali. 7. 7.W 

Nahum.3. 71 } 

Habakkuk.3. 628 

Zephaniah.3. 630 

Haggai. 2. 520 

Zechariah.14....:.. V20 

Malaclii. 4. 30? 


IN THE NEI? TESTAMENT. 


No. 

Matthew.. 

Mark.... 

jiike. 

Jobu. 

Chapters. 
...28. 

Date. 
....A. D. 38 

. 97 

No. of Chapters. 

1 Timothy.6. 

2 Timothy.4. 

Titus . 5 . 

Date. 
...AD. 64 

. 65 

Acts. 




...13... 

fi3 

Romans. 

....16. 

. 58 



P,1 

1 Corinthians... 

....16. 


1 Peter. 


. 64 

1 Corinthians... 

....13. 


2 Peter. 



Galatians. 

.... 6. 

. 52 

1 John. 

.... 5. 


Ephesians. 

.... 6. 

. 61 

2 John. 

. 1. 

. 69 

Philippians. 


. 62 

3 John. 

. 1. 


Colossians. 




. 1. 

. 70 

1 Thessalonians. 


.52 

Revelation.... 



2 Thessalonians. 


.52 1 





Divisions of the Bible. The 
dividing of the Old Testament in¬ 
to chapters, as they still stand in 
our translation, is attributed to 
Cardinal Hugo, who lived about 
the middle of the thirteenth cen¬ 
tury, and who did it for conveni¬ 
ence of reference in a Latin con¬ 
cordance he was preparing. To 
refer more easily to a particular 
sentence, he placed the first seven 
letters of the alphabet along the 
margin of each page. Rabbi Na¬ 
than, a Jew, for the same con¬ 
venience of reference to his He¬ 
brew concordance, adopted, in 
1438, Hugo’s chapters, and mark¬ 
ed every fifth verse with a figure. 
In 1661, Athias, a Jew of Amster¬ 
dam, in his edition of the Hebrew 
Old Testament, divided the sec¬ 
tions of Hugo into verses, as we 
now have them. Robert Stephens, 
a French printer, had previously 
(1551) divided the Nf v Testa¬ 
ment into verses as they now 
stand in the various versions. 

This division into virses, though 
very convenient, is i.ot to govern 


the sense; and there are several 
instances in which the sense is 
injured, if not destroyed, by an 
improper division. Very often the 
chapter breaks off in the midst 
of a narrative, and if the reader 
stops because the chapter ends, 
he loses the connection. (Matt, 
x. 42; xii. 1 ; Luke xix. 41-48 ; 
xx. 1-8; Acts xxi.; xxii.; xxiii; 
Gal. i. 23 ; ii. 1.) Sometimes the 
break is altogether in the wrong 
place, and separates two sen¬ 
tences which must be taken to¬ 
gether in order to be understood. 

(1 Cor. xii. 31; xiii. 1; 2 Cor. vi. 

18; vii. 1; Eph. iv. 31, 32 ; v. 1, 2; 
Phil. iii. 21; iv. 1.) Again, the - 
verses often divide a sentence in¬ 
to two different paragraphs, when 
there ought scarcely to be a com¬ 
ma between them. (Luke iii. 21, 

22; 2 Cor. vi. 6, 7, &c .; 1 Pet. i. 

3, 4, <fcc.) And sometimes a frag¬ 
ment of a subject is separated 
from its proper place, and put 
where it is without any connec¬ 
tion. (Col. iii. 25; iv. 1.) The 
pucstuation of the Bible was pro- 
587 




































































SIR 

bably introduced as lately as the 
ninth century. 

Contents of the Bible. The 
number of books in the Old Tes¬ 
tament is 39, and in the New 27 
—total, 66 books. 

Tbe Old Testament has 929 chapters. 

New “ “ 260 

Total 1189 

Old Testament, 23,214 verses. 

New “ 7,959 “ 

Total 31,173 

Old Testament, 592,439 words. 

New “ 181,253 *< 

Total 773,692 

Old Testament, 2,728,110 letters. 

New “ 838,380 “ 

Total 3,566,480 

The word Jehovah, or Lord, 
occurs in the Old Testament 6855 
times. 

The middle chapter of the Bible, 
and the shortest, is Ps. cxvii.; the 
middle verse is Ps. cxviii. 8 ; the 
middle book of the Old Testament 
is Proverbs; the middle chapter, 
Job xxix.; middle verse, 2 Chron. 
xx. 17; least verse, 1 Chron. i. 
25. Middle book of the New 
Testament is 2 Thess.; middle 
verse, Acts xvii. 17; least verse, 
John xi. 35; Ezra vii. 21, has all 
the letters of the alphabet. 

To read the Bible through in a 
year, we have only to read three 
chapters every week-day, and five 
every Lord’s-dav ; and if we read 
two chapters in the Old, and one 
in the New every week-day, and 
six in the Old and four in the 
New every Sabbath, we shall read 
the Old Testamen* once, and the 
New twice in the year. 

1'he Apocrypha, which is some¬ 
times bound up with tl e Bible, is 
a collection of books whidi were 
declared to be sanctioned by di¬ 
vine authority as lately as 1550, 
588 


SCR 

at a council held at Treat, undei 
the influence ofpope Pius IV. The 
evidence by which their authority 
is supported is so different from 
that on which the received books 
rest, that they are generally re¬ 
jected as spurious, whatever may 
.be the intrinsic value of their con¬ 
tents. 

Jewish traditionary Scriptures. 
About the year a.d. 180, Jehuda, 
a Jewish Rabbi, wrote out the 
received traditions of the fathers. 
This was nearly 1700 years after 
the giving of the Law; and it 
should be remarked that no force 
or authority is given to these tra¬ 
ditions in the intervening period, 
during which Joshua, Samuel, 
Ezra and the prophets lived. 
This work of Jehuda is called tho 
Jfishna; the commentary upon it 
is called the Gemara; and these 
together constitute the Talmud, 
w T hich is more highly reverenced 
by the Jews than even the Old 
Testament. That traditions are 
not to be received as of divine au¬ 
thority, is sufficiently clear from 
our Saviour’s language in Mark 
vii. 1-13. For a complete and 
most instructive analysis of the 
sacred volume, and the method 
of reading and teaching it, see 
The Mine Explored. 

SCROLL. (Isa. xxxiv. 4.) Un¬ 
der article Book, a general ac¬ 
count has been given of the form 
of ancient writings. The Scroll 
is not unfrequently used for pub¬ 
lic documents, and the figurative 
use of the term in the passage 
cited gives us a striking idea of 
the suddenness and rapidity with 
which the heavens an<* the host 
of them will disappear and pass 
out of view, as the writing on a 
scroll disappears when the ends 
of it fly together. See cut , p. 589. 






scu 



SCURVY. (Lev. xxi. 20, and 
xxii. 22.) The disease known by 
this name, in modern times, is 
usually caused by long confine¬ 
ment in cold and damp climates, 
without fresh provisions. In the 
progress of it, the skin becomes 
dry and scaly, and livid spots ap¬ 
pear. Probably, this appearance 
of the skin is all that is denoted 
by the use of the word scurvy in 
the passages cited. 

SCYTHIANS. (Col. iii. 11.) 
A name used indefinitely by an¬ 
cient writers, sometimes to denote 
all the nomadic tribes that roam¬ 
ed over the countries north of the 
Black and Caspian seas, and some¬ 
times to a particular people re¬ 
markable for their rude and bar¬ 
barous condition. 

SEA. (Isa. xi. 15.) This term 
is applied by the sacred writers 
to lakes, rivers, and any large 
collection of water, as well as to 
geas properly so called. (Isa. 
xxi. 1; Jer. li. 36.) In the pas¬ 
sage from Isaiah first above cited, 
it is used for the Nile at that point 
which is called the Delta. The sea 
50 


SEA 

and the west denoted the satna 
thing to the Hebrews, on account 
of their position in regard to the 
Mediterranean. (See Salt Sea.) 

Great Sea, (Num. xxxiv. 6,) 
or Sea of the Philistines, (Ex. 
xxiii. 31,) is the Mediterranean 
or Western Sea, a large body of 
water between the continents of 
Europe, Asia and Africa, (whence 
its name, which signifies Mid¬ 
land.) On its northern shore are 
several gulfs or seas, as the Ad¬ 
riatic, the Ionian, the Egean, <tc. 
Its length from east to west is 
about two thousand miles; and 
its breadth varies from four to 
eight hundred miles. About mid¬ 
way, on its eastern shore, was 
the land of Canaan. 

Sea of the plain, or Salt 
Sea, called also the East Sea, and 
Sea of Sodom. (See Salt Sea.) 

Sea of Merom. (See Merom.) 

Sea, brazen. (See Laver.) 

SEAL. (1 Kings xxi. 8.) This 
was usually employed to authen¬ 
ticate public or private papers. 
(Jer. xxxii. 10.) If a door or box 
was to be sealed, it was first 
fastened with some ligament, 
upon which clay or wax wa8 
spread, and then impressed with 
a seal or signet. Frequently a 
ring with some inscription on it 
was used as a seal, by the delivery 
or transfer of which the highest 
offices of the kingdom were be- 
» ri .owed. (Gen. xli. 42; Esth. iii. 
10.) In sealing the sepulchre, 
(Matt, xxvii. 66,) it is probable 
that the fastening of the stone 
which secured the entrance was 
covered with clay, or wax, and so 
impressed with a public or private 
seal, that any violation of it could 
be discovered at once. (See 
Rings, Letters.) 

Modern travellers describe the 
589 













SEA 

Beal? used in the East, at the 
present day, as made of cornelian, 
or agate, with the name or title 
of the writer, or some verse of 
the Koran, or other motto, en¬ 
graved upon it. (2 Tim. ii. 19.) 
It is fastened into a ring, and 
worn on the hand. (Sol. Song 
viii. 6.) When used, it is either 
applied to the wax, or is covered 
with some substance, which, be¬ 
ing stamped on the paper, leaves 
the desired impression. 

The word seal is used figura¬ 
tively in the Bible, to denote an act, 
or token, or process of confirma¬ 
tion. (Rom. iv. 11; Eph. iv. 30.) 

SEARED. (1 Tim. iv. 2.) To 
sear flesh is to cauterize or burn 
it, and thus deprive it of the 
power of sensation. As used in 
the passage cited, it denotes the 
effect of habitual sin, by which 
the conscience becomes so har¬ 
dened and stupefied, as to be in¬ 
sensible to the most enormous 
guilt and the most fearful threat¬ 
ening? of punishment. 

SEASONS. (Gen. i. 14.) The 
year is very conveniently divided 
by Hebrew writers into six seasons, 
which are all mentioned in the 
promise made to Noah: seed¬ 
time, harvest, cold, heat, summer, 
winter. (Gen. viii. 22.) There 
is the same division am? jg the 
Arabs at this day. 

The first season, or harvest, is 
from the middle of April until 
near the middle of June. During 
this period the sky is clear, the 
xir warm, and even hot in the 
valleys and on the coast, very 
much like the beginning of sum¬ 
mer with us. As it proceeds, the 
heat in the plains is severe. 

The second seascn, or the heat, 
is from the middle of June to the 
middle of August. The Arabs 
590 


SEA 

call this the vernal summer Thd 
heat now increases, and the nightt 
are so warm that the people sleep 
in the open air upon the roofs of 
their houses. 

The third season, or summer t 
(season of fruits,) is from the 
middle of August to the middle of 
November. The intensity of tho 
heat is greater, almost intolerable. 
Towards the end of summer the 
nights begin to be cool. 

During these three periods, up 
to the beginning or middle of Sep¬ 
tember, there are no showers, 
rain being as scarce in summer 
as snow. (1 Sam. xii. 17.) Hence 
the proverb, Prov. xxvi. 1. From 
the end of April until Septem¬ 
ber not a cloud is to be seen 
upon the face of the heavens. 
During all this time the earth is 
moistened by the dew, which is, 
therefore, a frequent emblem of 
divine grace and goodness. Some¬ 
times a cloud appears in the morn¬ 
ing; but it disappears with the 
dew as soon as the sun exerts its 
power. (IIos. vi. 4.) The dry 
grass of the fields sometimes takes 
fire, and produces desolating con¬ 
flagration ; and the parched earth 
is cleft and broken into chasms. 
This is more particularly the case 
when the east wind blows. (Gen. 
xli. 6; IIos. xiii. 15.) Between 
the middle of September and the 
middle of October there are two 
or three days of rain, which suf¬ 
fices to refresh all nature, so that 
the whole land is clad in verdure. 
This prepares the earth for 

The fourth season, or seed-time , 
which includes from early in 
October until early in Decem¬ 
ber. This begins with the for¬ 
mer or early rain, which is so 
needful for the sower. In the early 
part of this period it is still auiU 




SEA 

hot, so that all journeys are made 
by night, as the temperature is 
then agreeable, and the sky is 
clear. As the year advances, 
however, there are alternations 
of heat and cold, as with us in 
autumn. The weather becomes 
unsettled, and there are fogs and 
clouds, even when there is no 
rain. In the mountains, snow 
sometimes falls towards the mid¬ 
dle of December. The streams 
are still small, and many of their 
channels altogether dry. In the 
latter part of November the trees 
lose their foliage, and fires are ma de 
towards the last days of seed-time. 

The fifth season, or winter, in¬ 
cludes from the middle of De¬ 
cember until the middle of Fe¬ 
bruary. Snow falls, but seldom 
lies upon the ground a day, ex- 
ceptin the mountains. (Ps. cxlvii. 
17.) In shady places the ice will 
occasionally bear a man’s weight, 
but thaws as soon as the sun 
rises upon it. The roads are very 
bad. (Matt. xxiv. 20.) The se¬ 
vere cold lasts about forty days, 
from the 12th of December to the 
20th (tf January. The north 
wind is now exceedingly penetrat¬ 
ing. (Gen. xxxi. 40.) Yet, in 
the level country, when the sun 
shines, it is quite warm. Jose¬ 
phus says that in his day it was 
as warm at Cesarea, on the coast, 
in winter, as at other places in 
summer. In this season hail and 
thunder storms are common ; the 
brooks rise, and all the streams 
fill their channels. Towards the 
end of January the fields become 
green, and there is every appear¬ 
ance of approaching spring. In 
the early part of February the 
trees are in leaf; and before the 
middle of the month some fruit- 
j-ees aro in blossom, first the al- 


SEA 

mond, then the apricot, peach 
and plum. Other trees blossom 
in March. 

The sixth and last season, of 
the cold, includes from the mid. 
die of February until the middle 
of April. It is still cold, but less 
so, and the spring may be said to 
have arrived. The heats of noon 
are greater and greater, especially 
in the fiat country. The rains 
continue, but in smaller and 
smaller quantities. Thunder and 
hail are more frequent. Towards 
the close of this poriod the rains 
cease, and the last fails in the 
early part of April, and is called 
the latter rain, which seems to 
give strength to the filling grain. 

The crops of grain are as much 
advanced in February as with us 
in May and June. The wheat 
and barley have at this time 
nearly attained their height. 

The grain has fully ripened in 
the southern part of Palestine by 
the middle of April, and in the 
northern and mountainous parts 
three weeks later; and sometimes 
when the sowing has been in 
January, the grain does not come 
to maturity before July or August. 

Upon the sixteenth day after 
the first naw moon in April, there 
was a solemn presentation made 
to the Lord of the first sheaf of 
ripe barley. The grain, however, 
as we may readily suppose, was 
mature, sometimes earlier and 
sometimes later. It was common 
to reckon four months from seed¬ 
time to harv est. The cutting and 
securing the grain was carried on 
for about seven weeks, that is, 
from the Passover until Pentecost, 
which last is therefore called the 
feast of weeks. This was a sea¬ 
son of very great enjoyment and 
festivity, when the harvest had 
691 




SEA 

beer plentiful. Tne reapers, tnat 
is to say, the children, slaves and 
other domestics, indulged in mirth, 
joined in songs suitable to the 
occasion, and in congratulationc 
to the master of the harvest. (Ps. 
cxxvi.; Isa. ix. 3.) The grain 
was then gathered and bound into 
sheaves, as with us. (See Bib¬ 
lical Antiquities, vol. i. ch. i. 
g 3, and Evening Recreations, 
vol. i. pp. 78-82.) 

SEATS. (Matt. xxi. 12.) The 
nations of the East seat them¬ 
selves upon the mats or carpets 
with which their floors are co¬ 
vered. In the houses of the rich 
there are spread pillows or cu¬ 
shions, stuffed with cotton ; or in 
some cases, a broad, but very low, 
sofa or divan, with arms, stuffed 
cushions, and costly ornaments. 
Upon these divans, as well as upon 
the floor or ground, they sit with 
the legs bent under, and crossed, 
in a half-kneeling posture. 


The ancient Hebrews used the 
posture which has just been de- 
jcribod. After the captivity, 
however, the rich and noble 
adopted the Persian method of 
592 


SEA 

lying down at table upon couches, 
(Amos vi. 4,) which was likewise 
practised by the Greeks and Ro¬ 
mans. In the passage of Amos, 
it is said of the luxurious sinners 
who lived nearly eight hundred 
years before Christ, they lie upon 
beds of ivory, and stretch them¬ 
selves upon their couches. These 
beds of ivory were probably di¬ 
vans, such as those above men¬ 
tioned, but richly decorated with 
ivory. They used at table very 
low and broad divans, and the 
guests stretched themselves at full 
length. Each divan held three 
persons. The back was supported 
by a cushion, and the face so 
turned towards the table, that the 
head was held up with the left 
hand upon another cushion. The 
right hand was thus free to reach 
the food. The second person lay 
with the back part of his head 
towards the breast of the former ; 
and the third, in like manner, 
with the back part of 
his head towards the 
second. Thus they 
lay, so to speak, in the 
bosoms of their neigh¬ 
bours. (Lukexvi. 23; 
John xiii. 23.) This 
was the ordinary pos¬ 
ture at meals, and the 
feet of the guests were 
distant from the table. 
Hence we can readily 
form an idea of the 
scene in Luke vii. 38. 

In the eating room 
there were commonly 
three such divans: the 
middle place of the 
middle divan was accounted most 
honourable. This was the seat 
which the Pharisees so much af¬ 
fected at feasts. (1 Sam. ix. 22 : 
Matt, xxiii. 6; Luke xiv. 8, 9.i 










SEA 


SEC 



Sitting posture. 


At the present day, the corner of 
the bed-divan is the seat of digni¬ 
ty, and so it was in ancient times 
among the Hebrews, at least upon 
ordinary occasions. (Amos iii. 12.) 
This manner of reclining at meals, 
it is believed, was not imitated by 
the women, though some doubt 
upon this point is suggested by 
Esth. vii. 8. It is to be remem¬ 
bered in this connection, that the 
Hebrew women, like those of 
Greece, ate in a separate apart¬ 
ment. (Esth. i. 9.) 

Moses’s seat (Matt, xxiii. 2) 
is a figurative expression, denoting 
the assumption of the same author¬ 
ity or office as belonged to Moses. 

50* 2' 


SEBA. (Isa. xliii. 3.) A pen 
insular district of African Ethio- 
pia, deriving its name from the 
eldest son of Cush, (Gen. x. 7,) 
who is supposed to have been the 
progenitor of the Ethiopians. It 
is called Seba by the Hebrews, 
and by the Romans, Meroe. Its 
wealth is alluded to by the sacred 
writers, (Ps. lxxii. 10 ;) and this 
circumstance, as well as the re¬ 
markable stature of the people, 
(Isa. xlv. 14,) is confirmed by 
profane history. (See Sheba.) 

SEBAT, or SHEBAT. (Sec 
Month.) 

SECT, (Acts v. 17,) or party 
not necessarily implying any fun- 
N 593 




















































SEE 

damental error of doctrine or prac¬ 
tice. Christianity was originally 
considered as a new sect of Juda¬ 
ism ; hence Tertullus, accusing 
Paul before Felix, says that he 
was chief of the seditious sect of 
the Nazarenes, (Acts xxiv. 5;) 
and the Jews of Rome said to the 
apostle, when he arrived in that 
city, that as to this sect, it was 
everywhere spoken against. (Acts 
xxviii. 22.) The word heresy in 
Acts xxiv. 14, is the same in the 
oiiginal with the word sect in 
Acts xxiv. 5 ; so that the apostle 
replies directly to the argument 
of Tertullus, and admits that, 
after the manner of a sect, pro¬ 
ducing division and schism, as my 
persecutors say, so worship I the 
God of my fathers. In countries 
having an established church, or 
a State religion, the word sect is 
applied to those communities or 
bodies of Christians who separate 
themselves from the Establish¬ 
ment. In the United States the 
word cannot of course be used 
in this sense with any propriety, 
there being no national religion. 
Each separate communion enjoys 
'its own rights and privileges as 
fully as any other, and while there 
are no sects, properly speaking, 
there are a great number of de¬ 
nominations , as Roman Catholic, 
Presbyterian, Episcopal, Baptist, 
Methodist, &o. <fcc. 

SEED, singled. (Lev. xix. 
19.) Travellers tell us that wo¬ 
men are employed in Aleppo and 
elsewhere in cleansing the min¬ 
gled seed from all admixture, to 
prepare it for sowing. 

SEED-TIME. (See Seasons.) 

SEIR, mount. 1. (Gen. xiv. 
6.) A most rugged and desolate 
cha'.n of mountains, stretching 
from the southern shore of the 
594 


SEN 

Dead Sea to the eastern gulf of the 
Red Sea. Mount Hor was one of 
its summits; and the Hivites are 
mentioned among its inhabitants, 
and one of this people'was named 
Seir. (See Edom, Hor.) 

2. (Josh. xv. 10.) Another 
mount Seir was situated near 
Kirjath-jearim. 

SELA, or SELAH. (See Jok- 

THEEL.) 

SELAH. (Hab. iii. 3, 9, 13.) 
This word, which occurs no less 
than seventy-four times in the 
Hebrew text of the Psalms, is 
generally construed to be a note 
of admiration, demanding a so¬ 
lemn pause. It is usually placed 
at some remarkable passage, and 
seems designed to excite and 
quicken the attention and obser¬ 
vation. If, as is very probable, 
the tunes were expressly com¬ 
posed for the words, such pauses 
and changes of voice would be 
observed as were most adapted to 
give them proper empha,sis; and 
the most impressive and import¬ 
ant passages would naturally be 
repeated. 

SELEUCIA. (Acts xiii. 4.) 
A city of Syria, on the shores 
of the Mediterranean, west of 
Antioch, and near the mouth of 
the Orontes. 

SENATE. (Acts y. 21.) An 
assembly of aged and experienced 
men, not members of the general 
council, but called in on a particu¬ 
lar emergency. They may have 
been the same class with those 
called elders of Israel, (Acts iv. 
8,) and elders of the Jews. (Act? 
xxv. 15.) Such persons are called 
senators, Ps. cv. 22. 

SENNACHERIB (2 Kings 
xviii. 13) was king of Assyria 
when Hezekiah reigned in Judah. 
He was the son and successor of 



SEP 

Shalmaneser; and having invad¬ 
ed and laid waste much of the 
kingdom of Judah, was contem¬ 
plating an attack on the capital. 
Hezekiah, in this extremity, pro¬ 
posed to capitulate on certain 
terms; but Sennacherib treated 
his embassy with the utmost inso¬ 
lence. Hezekiah made supplica¬ 
tion to God for deliverance, and 
his prayer was answered, (2 Kings 
xix. 20;) for the Assyrian army 
was miraculously cut off. Sen¬ 
nacherib hastily retreated to Ni¬ 
neveh, and was finally assassi¬ 
nated by his own sons while he 
was engaged in idolatrous wor¬ 
ship. (2 Kings xix. 37.) 

SEPHARVAIM. (2 Kings xvii. 
24.) A province of Mesopotamia, 
whence colonies emigrated to 
Canaan after the Israelites were 
carried beyond the Euphrates by 
Shalmaneser. The Sepharvaim 
of the Bible is supposed to be the 
same with the Sipbara of profane 
history. 

SEPULCHRE. (See Burial.) 

SERAPHIM. (Isa. vi. 2, 6.) 
This is the name given by the 
prophet to the spirits which wait¬ 
ed by the throne of the Lord, as 
they appeared in his sublime and 
wonderful vision. The number 
of them is not stated; but the 
description, their appearance, 
their song of praise, the effect 
produced upon and within the 
temple by the voice of one of 
them, the office which another 
executed towards the prophet 
himself, and, indeed, the whole 
scene, justifies the opinion that 
they were from the .most exalted 
order of the angelic host. (Heb. 
i. 7.) ‘ 

SERGEANTS. (Acts xvi. 35, 
38.) This was a class of public 
officers under the Roman g)vern- 


SER 

ment. They were appointed t4 
carry the fasces, or bundle of rods, 
before the supreme magistrates, 
and to inflict the punishment of 
scourging and beheading upon 
criminals. 

SERGIUS PA ULUS (Acta 
xiii. 7) was proconsul or deputy- 
governor of the island of Cyprus, 
a province of the Roman empire. 
He was a man of intelligence and 
candour, (for this the word pru¬ 
dent imports,) and sought to hear 
the gospel from the apostles who 
were at the island—probably 
from curiosity, or from a laudable 
desire to obtain information of the 
new religion from its advocates 
and professors. An impostor of 
considerable influence, named 
Elymas, finding his own occupa¬ 
tion in danger, attempted to con¬ 
trovert the doctrines of the apos¬ 
tles, and to divert or prejudice 
the mind of the governor. For 
his sin in this respect, he was se¬ 
verely rebuked and punished by 
the immediate interposition of 
Providence, (see Barjesus;) and 
such was the effect of the whole 
scene upon the mind of the go¬ 
vernor, that he embraced tho 
faith of the gospel. 

SERPENT. (Gen.iii.l.) An 
animal distinguished for its sub- 
1 tlety, (Matt. z. 16,) as well as for 
the instinctive dread which it in¬ 
spires in man and in most ani¬ 
mals. Three hundred species are 
known, the largest of which are 
indeed terrific in their power and 
venom. About one-sixth of all 
the species known are venomous. 

The devil is called the serpent, 
and the old serpent, (Rev. xii. 9, 
14, 15,) probably in allusion to 
his subtlety and malice, and also 
to the fact that in tempting our 
first parents to disobey God. he 
595 




SER 

employed a serpent, or assumed 
the form of one. (2 Cor. xi. 3.) 

The serpent is used by the sa¬ 
cred writers as an emblem of 
wickedness, (Matt, xxiii. 33,) 
cruelty, (Ps. lviii. 4; Prov. xxiii. 
32; Eccl. x. 11,) and treachery. 
(Gen. xlix. 17.) 

Serpent, brazen, (Num. xxi. 
9,) was erected by Moses in the 
camp of Israel, at the express 
command of Jehovah. As a 
punishment for their murmuring 
and rebellion, God sent into the 
midst of the camp a venomous 
serpent, called fiery probably from 
the elfect of its bite. Modern tra¬ 
vellers who have passed through 
the valley where this judgment 
was suffered by the Israelites, as¬ 
sure us from the Arabs and from 
their own observation, that a vast 
number of serpents infest it. The 
destruction of life was fearful, and 
the people entreated Moses to in¬ 
tercede for their deliverance. To 
test the sincerity of their penh 
tence, Moses was commanded to 
make a serpent of brass, resem¬ 
bling the serpents which were 
among them, and put it upon a 
pole, that it might be seen from 
all parts of the camp; and then 
whoever was bitten should be 
healed by simply looking at the 
brazen figure : and it was accord¬ 
ingly done, and all the promised 
effects followed. This passage of 
history is alluded to by our Sa¬ 
viour in the most interesting and 
instructive manner. (John iii. 
14, 15.) 

In Egypt and other Eastern 
countries, the serpent was the 
common symbol of power. Hence 
it was embroidered on the robes 
of kings. It was also an object 
of religious worship; and is often 
seen on ancient medals and relics, 

m 


SER 

as symbolical of power. Rites 
were instituted and temples built 
to its honour; and priests were ap¬ 
pointed to conduct the ceren onies. 
These miserable idolaters appear¬ 
ed before the altars of their con 
temptible deity in gorgeous vest¬ 
ments, their heads adorned with 
serpents, or with the figures of 
serpents embroidered on their 
tiaras, when the creatures them¬ 
selves were not to be had; and 
in their frantic exclamations cried 
out, in evident allusion to the tri¬ 
umph which the old serpent ob¬ 
tained over our first mother, Eira, 
Eva. So completely was Satan 
permitted to insult our fallen race, 
that the serpent, his chosen agent 
in accomplishing our ruin, was 
actually raised to the first place 
among the deities of the heathen 
world, and reverenced by the 
most solemn acts of worship. The 
figure of the serpent adorned the 
portals of the proudest temples in 
the East. Serpent-worship in its 
origin was probably deprecatory; 
suggested by traditionary fears, 
which regarded the serpent as 
the personification of all evil. 
They worshipped his image to 
avert the evil he might do them. 

SERVANT. (Gen. ix. 26.) 
The Hebrews had several kinds 
of servants : (1.) Bondmen and 
bondwomen, procured from the 
heathen. (Lev. xxv. 44-46.) The 
Gibeonites wero cursed with a 
perpetual bondage to a particular 
service, (Josh. ix. 23,) as a pun¬ 
ishment for the deception which 
they practised on Joshua and the 
elders of Israel. It seems rea¬ 
sonable to suppose that every 
proselyted and circumcised ser¬ 
vant obtained his liberty on the 
same conditions as a Hebrew 
servant. The Mosaic law pro- 



SER 

vided that servants and prisoners, 
of all descriptions, should go out 
free at the jubilee; and the pun¬ 
ishment of one who should steal a 
fellow-being, to sell him for a 
slave, was death. (Ex. xxi. 16. 
See art. Feasts, f Jubilee.) 

(2.) The second class of ser¬ 
vants among the Hebrew were 
bondmen and bondmaidens of 
their brethren. The term of ser¬ 
vice for these could, in no event, 
be longer than six years; unless 
in the case of the servant who 
expressed an utter unwillingness 
to leave his master. (See Ex. 
xxi. 5, 6.) 

(3.) The third class of Hebrew 
servants were hirelings, whose 
ordinary time of service seems to 
have been three years, as is in¬ 
ferred from its being said that the 
bondman of six years was worth 
a double hired servant. (Deut. 
xv. 18.) But this seems to be a 
slender foundation for such an 
opinion. It might, indeed, have 
been customary to hire for three 
years; but of this there is no in¬ 
timation besides in the whole Bi¬ 
ble. Hired servants, therefore, 
were probably employed, as was 
customary in the times of Christ, 
by the day, by the month, by the 
year, or for any term of years 
that might be agreed upon. 

It can scarcely be denied that 
thero were persons held in in¬ 
voluntary servitude by the He¬ 
brews, from the earliest times. 
The government of the master 
was strictly patriarchal, and se¬ 
cured the safety and comfort of 
his numerous retinue. Great care 
was taken to secure for them civil 
and religious privileges. (Ex. 
xx. 10 ; Ex. xxi. 20, 26, 27 ; Deut. 
xii. 18; xvi. 11.) Involuntary 
servitude originated, probably, in 


KKR. 

one or more of the following 
ways: 

1. By being taken captive in 
roar, which is by many supposed 
to have been the earliest kind 
of servitude. (Deut. xx. 14; 
xxi. 10.) 

2. By becoming insolvent debt¬ 
ors. (2 Kings iv. 1; Isa. 1. 1 ; 
Matt, xviii. 25.) 

3. By the crime of theft, when 
the offender’s property did not 
amount to the lawful equivalent. 
(Ex. xxii. 3; Neh. v. 4, 5.) 

4. By man-stealing, as when 
free men, by deceit or violence, 
were made slaves. In Ex. xxi. 
16, death is fixed as the punish¬ 
ment of this crime; but the pe¬ 
nalty is more fully expounded in 
Deut. xxiv. 7, and restricted to 
the case where the thief, by of¬ 
fering the slave for sale, or keep¬ 
ing him confined, evinces his de¬ 
termination not to liberate him. 

5. By being descended from a 
married slave. Such slaves were 
called home-born, born in the 
house, son of the bondwoman, or 
son of the house. Abraham had 
no less than three hundred and 
eighteen. (Gen. xiv. 14; xv. 
3; xvii. 23; xxi. 10.) 

6. By sale, as when a free man, 
who could not get a livelihood, 
sold himself as a slave. A He¬ 
brew might thus sell himself, not 
only to a rich man of his own na¬ 
tion, but also to a foreigner resid¬ 
ing in Palestine, though not for a 
longer term than six years, as 
already intimated. The condi¬ 
tion of such a one was plainly 
distinguished from that of other 
slaves. (Lev. xxv 39.) Even 
captives in war seem to have 
been sold, and those who had a 
right to the booty received only 
the price. (Nurn. xxxi. 12,26-28.1 

5 W 



SER 

In the East, during a meal, 
the servants stand with profound 
silence and respectful demeanour 
before the master of the house, 
receiving his tokens and obeying 
his orders. By Eastern custom 
the commands of the master are 
communicated chiefly by signs, 
and these are regarded with 
singular earnestness and atten¬ 
tion by domestics. This illus¬ 
trates the words of the Psalmist. 
(Ps. cxxiii. 2.) Hence also the 
expressiveness of the phrase to 
stand, before the Lord, that is to 
serve him. 

SERVITOR. (2 Kings iv. 43.) 
A servant. 

SETH, (Gen. v. 3,) son of 
Adam and Eve, was born when 
Adam was one hundred and thirty 
years old, and lived nine hundred 
and twelve years. Tradition 
ascribes to Seth the invention of 

I plfprc 

SEVEN. (Gen. xii. 2.) As 
from the beginning this was one 
number of days in the week, so 
it has ever in Scripture a sort of 
emphasis attached to it, and is 
very often and generally used as 
a round number, or, as some 
would say, a 'perfect number. 
Clean beasts were taken into the 
ark by sevens. (Gen. vii. 2.) The 
years of plenty and famine in 
Egypt were marked by sevens. 
(Gen. xli. 2, 3.) With the Jews, 
not only was there a seventh day 
sabbath, but every seventh year 
was a sabbath, and every seven 
times seventh year was a jubilee. 
Their great feasts of unleavened 
bread and of tabernacles were 
observed for seven days; the num¬ 
ber of animals in many of their 
sacrifices was limited to seven. 
The golden candlestick had seven 
branches. Seven priests with 
598 


SHA 

srven trumppts went aronna tbs 
walls of Jericho seven days; and 
seven times on the seventh day. 
In the Apocalypse we find seven 
churches addressed, seven candle¬ 
sticks, seven spirits, seven stars, 
seven seals, seven trumpets, seven 
thunders,seven vials, seven plagues, 
and seven angels to pour them 
out. 

Seven is often put for any round 
or whole number; just as we use 
ten, or a dozen; so in 1 Sam. ii. 
5; Job v. 19 ; Prov. xxvi. 16, 25; 
Isa. iv. 1; Jer. xv. 9 ; Matt. xii. 
45. In like manner seven times , 
or seven-fold, means often, abun¬ 
dantly, completely. (Gen. iv. 15, 
24; Lev. xxvi. 24; Ps. xii. 6* 
lxxix. 12 ; Matt, xviii. 21.) Ana 
seventy times seven is still a higher 
superlative. (Matt, xviii. 21, 22.) 

SHAARAIM. 1. (1 Chron. iv. 
31.) A city of Simeon, and pro¬ 
bably the same with Sharaim, 
which at first belonged to Judah. 
(Josh. xv. 36.) 

2. (1 Chron. viii. 8.) A de¬ 
scendant of Benjamin, and the 
ancestor of a numerous and pow¬ 
erful people. (1 Chron. viii. 

8—28 ) 

SHADOW. (Heb. x. 1.) Sha¬ 
dows or types signify those events 
or institutions by which some 
other future event or institution 
is represented to us. The thing 
thus represented to us is called 
the antetype. For example—the 
slaying of the paschal lamb for 
the sins of the Jewish worship¬ 
pers was a broad and striking re¬ 
presentation of the sacrifice of the 
Lamb of God for the sins of the 
world. In determining what is 
typical, there is no safe rule but 
the declaration of the inspired 
writers themselves. When they 
authorize a typical construction, 







SHA 

it may be safely applied, but not 
otherwise. (See Types.) 

SIIADRACH. (See Abed- 

NEGO.) 

SHALLUM. (2 Kings xv. 10.) 
The murderer of Zacbariah king 
of Judah, and the usurper of his 
crown. At the end of the first 
month of his reign, he was him¬ 
self murdered by Menahem. 

SHALMAN. (See Shalman¬ 
eser.) 

SHALMANESER, (2 Kings 
xvii. 3,) king of Assyria, was pro¬ 
bably the son of Tiglath-pileser. 
He commenced his reign b.c. 724, 
and reigned fourteen years. He 
found the countries of Israel and 
Judah entirely open to invasion. 
He had compelled Hoshea king 
of Israel to pay him an annual 
tribute ; but at last, being weary 
of this exaction, iloshea com¬ 
bined secretly with the king of 
Egypt to resist it. Shalmaneser 
brought an army against him, 
ravaged Samaria, besieged Ho¬ 
shea in his capital, and notwith¬ 
standing his long resistance of 
three years, (2 Kings xvii.; xviii. 
9-12,) he took the city, put Ho¬ 
shea into bonds, and carried away 
the people beyond the Euphrates. 
He thus ruined the city and king¬ 
dom of Samaria, which had sub¬ 
sisted two hundred and fifty-four 
years, (2 Kings xviii. 9, 10,) from 
b.c. 970 to 717. He was suc¬ 
ceeded by his son Sennacherib. 
Some suppose that Shalman (Hos. 
x. 14) is the same with Shalman¬ 
eser. 

SHAMBLES. (1 Cor. x. 25.) 
A meat market. 

SHARON. (1 Chron. xxvii. 
29.) An exceedingly beautiful 
and fertile plain stretching along 
the Mediterranean shore, south 
»f mount Carmel, from Cesarea to 


SHE 

Joppa. Its fertility and beauty 
are often alluded to by the sacred 
writers. (1 Chron. v. 16; xxvii. 
29; Sol. Song ii. 1; Isa. xxxiii. 

9; xxxv. 2.) 

In the spring of 1834, an Ame¬ 
rican traveller passed over this 
plain. The view of it from a 
high tower in Ramla he thus de¬ 
scribes : 

u The whole valley of Sharon, 
from the mountains of Jerusalem 
to the sea, and from the foot of 
Carmel to the hills of Gaza, is 
spread before you like a painted 
map, and is extremely beautiful, 
especially at evening, when the 
last rays of the setting sun gild 
the distant mountain tops, the 
weary husbandman returns from 
his labour, and the bleating flocks 
come frisking and joyful to their 
fold. At such a time I saw it, 
and lingered long in pensive me¬ 
ditation until the stars looked out 
from the sky, and the cool breezes 
of evening began to shed soft 
dews on the feverish land. What 
a paradise was here when Solomon 
reigned in Jerusalem, and sang 
of the rose# of Sharon! And 
what a heaven upon earth will be 
here again, when He that is 
greater than Solomon shall sit on 
the throne of David his father; 
for in his days shall the righteous 
flourish, and abundance of peace 
so long as the moon endureth!” 

SHAVE. (Num. vi. 9.) The 
custom of shaving the head as a 
token of deep affliction is very 
ancient. (Job i. 20.) It seems, 
however, to have been generally 
significant of repentance and hu¬ 
miliation for sin, or of bondage 
and reproach. (Jer. xlviii. 37.) 

SHEAR. (See Sheep.) 

SHEBA, (1 Kings x.l,) or the 
Saba of profane history. A prc«- 
599 




snE 

vince in the northern part of Ara¬ 
bia, between the Red Sea and the 
Indian Ocean. It was probably 
settled by Sheba, a descendant 
of Shem, and the inhabitants are 
called Sabeans. (Job i. 15.) The 
queen of Sheba may well be sup¬ 
posed to have some traditional 
knowledge of true religion ; and, 
in the commercial intercourse of 
her country with that of the He¬ 
brews, might have heard much 
cf the wisdom and piety of Solo¬ 
mon, the wisest man and one of 
the greatest kings that ever lived 
on the earth. To see and con¬ 
verse with him, she undertook a 
journey from what was then re¬ 
garded as the uttermost parts of 
the earth. (Matt. xii. 42.) Of 
this journey the present Ethio¬ 
pians or Abyssinians, who are 
Christians of the Greek church, 
have very ancient traditions. 
Among the princely presents she 
made to Solomon, were gold, 
ivory and spices; and the Sa¬ 
beans were celebrated, on account 
of their important commerce in 
these very products, among the 
Greeks also. (Ps. lxxii. 10, 15; 
Isa. lx. 6 ; Jer. vi. 20; Ezek.xxvii. 
22 ; Joel iii. 8.) 

SHECHEM. 1. a place, (Gen. 
xxxiii. 18,) or SYCHEM, (Acts 
vii. 16,) or SYCHAR, (John iv. 
5,) was one of the most ancient 
cities of Canaan. The change to 
Sychar (a Syriac word signifying 
drunkenness and falsehood) was 
made by the Jews to stigmatize 
the vices of the place, which were 
drunkenness, lying and idolatry. 
Its more modern name is Nea- 
polis, and it is at present known 
as Nablouse or Naplouse. It is 
situatod from thirty-five to forty 
miles northerly from Jerusalem, 
and was made the capital of the 
600 


SHE 

kingdom of Israel in the reign of 

Jeroboam. 

Shechem is associated with 
some of the most interesting 
events of patriarchal times, (Gen 
xlix. 29-32; 1. 13 ; Josh. xxiv. 1, 
32 ; Judg. ix. 46-49 ;) and also fot 
one of the most interesting of oui 
Lord’s discourses, (John iv. 4—42,) 
the result of which was the con¬ 
version of several of the Samari¬ 
tans to the true faith. (John iv. 
39, 41.) 

Shechem is situated between 
mount Ebal on the north, and 
Gerizim on the south. The mo¬ 
dern town has two long streets 
running parallel with the valley. 
Nothing can be finer, travellers 
assure us, than the view of the 
city from the heights around it. 
As it is approached from the hills, 
it appears luxuriantly embosom¬ 
ed in the most delightful and fra¬ 
grant bowers, half concealed by 
rich gardens and by stately trees, 
collected into groves, all around 
the bold and beautiful valley in 
which it stands. It contains six 
mosques, a church of the Greek 
Christians, public baths, and a 
variety of manufactories of soap, 
clothes, &c. The population is 
estimated at eight or ten thou¬ 
sand, generally Mohammedans. 
A dozen or fifteen Jews are found 
there ; fifty to one hundred Greek 
Christians, and, perhaps, forty Sa¬ 
maritans. These last have a syna¬ 
gogue, where they have service 
every Saturday. They have also 
a school, where their language is 
taught. They defend their wor¬ 
ship on Gerizim by Deut. xxv'ii. 
4, where, for the word Ebal, they 
put Gerizim, alleging that the 
Jews fraudulently inserted Ebal 
in their Scriptures, out of contempt 
and prejudice towards their naUoa. 



SHE 

The Samaritans, notwithstand¬ 
ing their enmity against the Jews, 
joined them in their revolt against 
the Romans, and in the issue, 
eleven thousand of them were 
put to the sword by the Romans 
on mount Gerizim, where they 
had posted themselves, trusting, 
like the Jews, to the protection 
of their temple. Under the em¬ 
peror Justinian, another revolt 
took place, in the course of which 
one hundred thousand of them 
wore slain, or sold as slaves, con¬ 
verting their once fertile province 
into a wilderness. A remnant, 
however, rallied on mount Geri¬ 
zim, and are still found there. 

In 1811, it was estimated that 
not more than two hundred Sa¬ 
maritans were known at the then 
present day; and that these re¬ 
side partly at Shechem and partly 
at Joppa. It is said they have 
synagogues in Damascus, Cairo, 
Ac.; but it is not on authentic 
evidence. In their manners, rites, 
and religious ceremonies, they 
adhere strictly to the Mosaic Law. 
Instead of the temple at Jerusa¬ 
lem, they worship on mount Ge¬ 
rizim, where in more prosperous 
times they celebrated their festi¬ 
vals, and offered sacrifices. The 
worship of one God, circumc : sion, 
the purifications and feasts, (ex¬ 
cept the Purim and the feast of 
the dedication,) they have in com¬ 
mon with the Jews. They believe 
in the existence of angels, in a 
resurrection and future retribu¬ 
tion, and expect the coming of a 
Messiah, in whom they look only 
fo> - a prophet. Their priests are 
of the tribe of Levi, and are 
treated as superiors. On account 
of their poverty, their only sacri¬ 
fice is a lamb on the feast of Pen¬ 
tecost. In the synagogue, the 
61 


SHE 

Samaritan dialect is usod; hot 
they generally speak Arabic, and 
they are distinguished by a whitfl 
turban. They support themselves 
by mechanical labour, and by 
money dealings. They avoid any 
connections with other 3ects, and 
marry only among their own na¬ 
tion. Each man is allowed two. 
wives on his first marriage; but 
on .he death of one of them, ho 
cannot marry again. In case 
both of them die, he is suffered 
to have one wife. (See Ebal, 
Samaritans.) 

The Samaritans at Shechem were 
visited by an American mission¬ 
ary in the autumn of 1823, who 
says: 

“ We went to visit the Samari¬ 
tans, having first sent to the ko- 
hen, or priest, to know if a visit 
would be agreeable. He received 
us in a neat apartment, and wo 
immediately entered into conver¬ 
sation. Ten or twelve other mem¬ 
bers of the sect soon came in. 
Our conversation was in Arabic. 
They represent the number of 
their houses to be twenty oi 
thirty. They all speak Arabic, but 
their books and public prayers 
are in Samaritan. They call 
their language Hebrew, and that 
which we call Hebrew they call 
Jewish; for they say their lan¬ 
guage is the true Hebrew in which 
the law was given. The differ¬ 
ence consists in the use of a dif¬ 
ferent alphabet and different pro¬ 
nunciation. They go three timel 
a year to mount Gerizim to wor¬ 
ship; but do not offer sacrificot 
there now, as they did formerly 
lest they should be molested by 
the Turks. But they offer their 
sacrifices, in a more private way, 
in the city. On the former occa¬ 
sions they meet before sunrise, 
601 



SHF 

and continue reading the law un¬ 
til noon. We understand them 
to say, that they have uo daily 
eacritice. We visited their syna¬ 
gogue. It is a small, dark, but 
neat room, with an altar, but 
without seats. We were obliged, 
before entering, to pull off not 
only our overshoes, but also our 
Blippers, which are not prohibited 
even in mosques. They expect 
a Messiah, who is to be a prophet 
and king, but a mere man, to live 
one hundred and twenty years, as 
Moses did, and to reign at Na- 
plouse over all the world. Those 
who do not receive him are to be 
destroyed with the sword. The 
promise concerning the woman’s 
seed does not, they believe, refer 
to the Messiah; but that concern¬ 
ing a ‘prophet like unto Moses’ 
does refer to him, as does also 
that concerning Shiloh. (Gen. 
xlix. 10.) They admit the sense 
of this passage as given in our 
translation, and try to show that 
there is still a sceptre somewhere 
in the hands of Judah. The Mes¬ 
siah will come when Israel repents. 
They say the story of the separa¬ 
tion between Israel and Judah, 
under Jeroboam and Rehoboam, 
is a lie of the Jews. The city of 
Luz or Bethel, they say, was on 
mount Gerizim. (Gen. xxviii. 
19.) Jebus, they say, was also 
on this mount, and that Judg. 
xix. 10, as it stands in our copies, 
is not true. We had requested to 
gee their ancient copy of the law. 
The kohen objected, but after 
much persuading, and indirectly 
presenting the motive which gene¬ 
rally prevails in this '“ountry, i.e. 
the offer of money, he at last con¬ 
sented to show it to us this morn¬ 
ing. In order to do it, he said he 
must first bathe, and then put on 
602 


SHE 

a particular dress for the occasion. 
On our arrival at the synagogue, 
we waited a short time, and he 
appeared, entered the synagogue, 
approached the altar, kneeled and 
put his face to the floor, then 
opened the little closet which con¬ 
tained the holy book, kneeled and 
put his face to the floor again, 
then brought out the brass case 
which contained the roll, and 
opened it so as to show us the 
manuscript, but we were not 
allowed to touch it. It is in the 
Samaritan character, and the ko¬ 
hen says it was written by Abi- 
shua, the grandson of Aaron, 
thirteen years after the death of 
Moses, and three thousand two 
hundred and sixty years ago. (1 
Chron. vi. 4.) Another brass case 
stood near this, containing an ex¬ 
act copy of the original manu¬ 
script, said to have been made 
eight hundred years ago. On a 
shelf, in the synagogue, were a 
considerable number of copies of 
the Samaritan Pentateuch. The 
Bible of the Samaritans contains 
only the five books of Moses. 
They have, however, Joshua and 
Judges, but in separate books. 
They say that since Joshua there 
has been no prophet. He was 
the disciple of Moses, and inferior 
to him. David was king in Jeru¬ 
salem, but not a prophet. We in¬ 
quired whether the Samaritans 
held it lawful to read the books 
of Christians. They said there 
was no law against it, and we left 
with them one Testament in Ara¬ 
bic, and another in Hebrew.” 
(See Evening Recreations, voi. 
ii. pp. 27-30.) 

2. A person. (See Dinah.) 

SHEEP, (Gen. iv. 2,) SHEEP- 
HERD, (Gen. xlvi. 32,) SHEP- 
MASTER, (2 Kings iii. •!,) 



SHE 



rifEEPCOTE, (1 Sara. xxiv. 3,1 
SIIEEPFOLD, Ac. (John a 1.) 
A" these terms are intimately 
bienaed in the saered writings, 
they are treated of under one 
head. Sheep often constituted the 
chief wealth of a man in patri¬ 
archal times; and hence with the 
Jews the care of sheep was among 


the earliest and most respeotable 
employments, (Gen. iv. 2; Ex. 
iii. 1; 1 Sam. xvi. 11,) though it 
was odious to the Egyptians. 
(Gen. xlvi. 34.) The passage 1 
Sam. xvii. 20, is the only instance 
in which the hired servant is dis¬ 
tinguished from the master, or 
one of his family, as a shepherd 
603 
























SHE 

D >«g had charge of the whole 
pastoral establishment of Saul. 
(1 Sam. xxi. 7.) The office of 
chief herdman was abolished, 
and tne duties divided. (1 Cbron. 
xxvii. 29.) The office of chief 
shepherd (Heb. xiii. 20, and 1 
Pet. v. 4) is often mentioned by 
heathen writers. It was an office 
of great trust and responsibility, 
as well as of distinguished ho¬ 
nour. (2 Kings iii. 4.) Chardin 
saw a clan of Turcoman shep¬ 
herds, whose flocks consisted of 
four hundred thousand beasts of 
carriage, such as camels, horses, 
oxen, cows and asses, and three 
millions of sheep and goats. Dr. 
Shaw confirms his statement. 

The shepherd or sheep-master 
was constantly with his flocks by 
night and by day, to number, 
gather, feed, conduct and guard 
them, (Gen. xxxi. 39; Luke ii. 
8;) and was often attended with 
a dog. (Job. xxx. 1.) His care 
of the sheep was constant and 
tender, and his power over them 
very great. (Isa. xl. 11; John x. 
1-16.) Rev. John Hartley, a 
missionary in Greece, tells us 
that he was once passing by a 
flock of sheep, and, having heard 
it said that they would obey the 
shepherd’s voice, he asked him 
to call one of his sheep, which 
instantly left its pasturage, and 
approached the hand of the shep¬ 
herd with a prompt obedience 
which he never saw in any other 
animal. It is also universally 
true in that country that a 
stranger they will not foil* w. 
They flee from him; for they 
know not the voice of a stranger. 

It is said that the shepherds 
®f Judea gave each lamb a dis¬ 
tinct name, and that they instant¬ 
ly obeyed the voice of the shep- 
604 


SHE 

herd, coming and going daily a 
his call. An ancient Jewish 
writer, born and bred in Egypt, 
states that the sheep, in the sea¬ 
son of shearing, would run to the 
shepherd at his call, and, stoop¬ 
ing a little, put themselves into 
his hands to be shorn, and stand 
quietly until he had done. 

The docility, timidity and lia¬ 
bility to wander, (all which are 
among the characteristics of this 
animal,) are often figuratively em¬ 
ployed by the sacred writers, as 
2 Chron. xviii. 16; Ps. cxix. 176; 
Isa. xi. 6; liii. 6, 7; Mic. v. 8; 
Matt. ix. 36. 

In the Old Testament, the word 
shepherd is used figuratively for 
Jehovah, (Ps. lxxx. 1; JeV. xxxi. 
10,) and for kings, (Ezek. xxxiv. 
10;) but in the New Testament 
it denotes Christ, (John x. 11, 
<fec.; Heb. xiii. 20; 1 Pet. v. 4,) 
and also those teachers who pre¬ 
sided in the synagogues. This 
use of the word.gave rise to the 
application of the word shepherd 
or pastor, in modern times, to 
ministers of the gospel; and those 
under their spiritual care are 
called the fold or flock. 

It was the business of the shep¬ 
herd to count the sheep daily, 
perhaps oftener, and he was ac¬ 
countable for any that were miss¬ 
ing. (Gen. xxxi. 38, 39; Ex. xxiL 
12, 13; Lev. xxvii. 32; Jer, 
xxxiii. 13. See Rod.) 

The ram, on the call of the 
shepherd, came forth, and pre¬ 
ceded the flock in their march as 
leader or principal. (Jer. 1. 8.) 
Hence the expressions in Ps. lxxx. 
1; Jer. xxv. 34, 35. 

Sometimes a lamb was taken 
into the tent, and brought up like 
a dog. (2 Sam. xii. 3.) It is 
common in Armenia tu see sb^p- 



SHE 

herds carrying in their bosoms 
the lambs of the flocks they were 
tending. They were too leeble 
uv roam with their dams; and 
nothing evinces more tenderness 
and care than gently leading such 
as are with young, or such as have 
young lambs to which they give 
suck. (Isa. xl. 11.) Two of our 
American missionaries tell us, 
that while travelling in Armenia 
they passed several shepherds, 
probably from the neighbouring 
villages, carrying in their bosoms 
the lambs of the flocks they tend¬ 
ed. The same scene had already 
frequently interested them, by 
presenting the source of the beau¬ 
tiful imagery of the prophet. It 
is exhibited only at one season 
of the year; when lambs are 
frequently brought forth during 
the day at a distance from the 
fold. The new-comers, being too 
weak to follow the flock in its 
rovings after grass, are carried in 
the bosom of the shepherd, and 
not unfrequently they multiply 
so as to fill his arms before night. 
They are then taken to the fold, 
and guarded there until sufficient¬ 
ly strong to ramble with their 
dams. One of these enclosures, 
when the sheep return anxiously 
bleating in the evening from their 
day’s pasture, and scores of hun¬ 
gry young ones are conducted by 
shepherd’s boyseach toitsown mo¬ 
ther, presents an amusing scene. 

The time of shearing was a 
■eason of great festivity. (1 Sam. 
xxv. 8, 11; 2 Sam. xiii. 23.) The 
flock was collected in an uncover¬ 
ed enclosure called a sheepfold or 
slieepeote. (Num. xxxii. If ; 2 
Sam. vii. 8; Jer. xxiii. 3; Zeph. 
li. 6; John x. 16.) Here their 
legs were tied together; and the 
eheanng-house (2 Kings x. 12, 14) 
51 * 


SHE 

fiterally means the tie-houses 
They were never housed at any 
season of the year. 

A watch-house was often erect 
ed in the vicinity of the flocks, 
from which the approach of dan¬ 
ger could be easily descried. 
This is called the tower of the 
flock. (Mic. iv. 8.) The wool 
of the sheep was probably made 
into cloth (Lev. xiii. 47; Deut. 
xxii. 11) by women. (Prov. xxxi. 
13.) It formed part of the tri¬ 
bute paid by the Moabites to Is¬ 
rael, (2 Kings iii. 4,) and was a 
common article of merchandise. 
(Ezek. xxvii. 18.) 

SHEETS, (Judg. xiv. 12, 13,) 
or shirts, as it is in the margin; 
or spoils, or apparel, as in verse - 
19 and margin; or fine linen, as 
it is rendered in Prov. xxxi. 24, 
and Isa. iii. 23; all which are 
from the same Hebrew word. 
The word which corresponds with 
this in Greek is translated linen 
cloth in Matt, xxvii. 59 ; fine linen, 
(Mark xv. 46,) and linen, (Luke 
xxiii. 53.) The word doubtless 
means a bed-covering, as well as 
a garment, (see Clothes,) and 
corresponds with the hyke of the 
Arabs. These hykes, or blankets, 
as we should call them, are of dif¬ 
ferent sizes, and of different quali¬ 
ties and fineness. The usual size 
of them is six yards long, and 
five or six feet broad, serving the 
Ivabyle or Arab as a complete 
dress in the day; and, as they 
sleep in their raiment, as the Is¬ 
raelites did of old, (Deut. xxiv. 
13,) it served likewise for his bed 
and covering by night. The 
plaid of the Highlander of Scot¬ 
land is the very same. 

SHEKEL. (See xMeasures.) 

SHEM. (Gen. vi. 10.) Second 
son of Noah, from whom de- 
60* 



SHE 

eoended the Jews, and through 
tnem tne Messiah. He had five 
sons, who peopled the finest pro- 
rinces of the East. The languages 
of these nations are still called 
the Shemiti8h languages, including 
the Hebrew, Chaldee, Syriac, 
Arabic, Ethiopic, <fcc. 

SHEMINITH. (See Harp.) 

SHENIR. (See Hermon.) 

SHEPHERD. (See Sheep.) 

SHESHACH. (See Babylon.) 

SIIEW-BREAD (Ex. xxv. 30) 
was unleavened bread prepared 


SHE 

anew every Sabbath, and present¬ 
ed hot on the golden table, in 
twelve loaves of a square or ob¬ 
long shape, according to the 
number of the tribes of Israel 
Salt and incense were presented 
at the same time. It is supposed 
that the loaves were placed either 
in two piles or in two rows, with 
siv loaves in each, and it was called 
skew-bread, or bread of the face, 
or the bread of setting before, be¬ 
cause it stood continually before 
the Lord. 



The old loaves were removed | and, as a general rule, wore to be 
every Sabbath, (Lev. xxiv. 8,) | eaten by the priests alone, and by 
fi06 



















































SHI 

ttiem only in the court of '.he 
sanctuary. (1 Sam. xxi. 1-6; 
Matt. xii. 3, <fec.) 

SHIBBOLETH. (Judg. xii. 6.) 
Tn the course of a war between 
the Ephraimites and the Gilead¬ 
ites, the former were routed, and 
fled towards the Jordan. The 
Gileadites had taken care to post 
a party at the fords, and when an 
Ephraimite who had escaped came 
to the river side, and desired to 
pass over, they asked him if he 
were not an Ephraimite. If he 
said, No, they bade him pro¬ 
nounce shibboleth, (signifying a 
stream ;) and if he pronounced it 
eibboleth, according to the dialect 
of the Ephraimites, they killed 
him. Thus fell forty-two thou¬ 
sand Ephraimites in a single day. 
(Comp. Matt. xxvi. 73.) • 

SHIELD. (See Armour.) 

SHIGGAION. (Ps. vii. title.) 
The plural of this word occurs in 
Halo. iii. 1. We fipd various con¬ 
jectures as to the import of it, but 
they are all very unsatisfactory, 
nor is the knowledge of it im¬ 
portant. It probably means a 
song or ode of praise 

SHIHOR. (See Egypt, ri¬ 
ver OF.) 

SHILOAH. (See Siloam.) 

SHILOH, 1. (Josh, xviii. 1,) 
where Samuel began to prophesy, 
(1 Sam. iii. 21,) and where Abijah 
lived, (1 Kings xiv. 2,) was a 
city of Ephraim, between Leba¬ 
non and Bethel, ten miles south 
of Shechem, and twenty-five north 
of Jerusalem. Here Joshua 
erected the tabernacle, and di¬ 
vided the land of promise, by lo^ 
among the tribes. The tabernacle 
remained at Shiloh upwards of 
three hundred years, and was 
then removed thence uuring the 
administiatioc of Eli, and taken 


SHI 

by the Philistines. Its ruint.us 
condition was proverbial in alter 
times. (Jer. vii. 13-15; xxvi. 
6-9.) 

2. (Gen. xlix. 10.) A title of 
Messiah the king; but whether it 
signifies one who is sent, or one 
whose right it is to reign, or the 
peace-maker, or him in whom the 
kingdom of Judah should have 
an end, is not agreed. All these 
interpretations have been given 
to it by different, writers, and all 
of them are significant and ap¬ 
propriate. That the Messiah is 
intended is evident from the li¬ 
teral fulfilment of the prophecy. 
Within a single generation after 
the death of Christ, the temple 
and the city of Jerusalem were 
destroyed, their whole civil and 
ecclesiastical government sub¬ 
verted, and the people themselves 
scattered abroad over the earth, 
a poor, weak, despised and op¬ 
pressed remnant of a great nation. 
Thus the sceptre departed from 
Judah, where it had remained 
until the Messiah came, and has 
never been restored. 

SHIMEI. (2 Sam. xvi. 5.) A 
relative of Saul, who met David 
as he was leaving Jerusalem, in 
the time of Absalom’s revolt, and 
treated him and his retinue with 
the grossest indignity. (2 Sam. 
xvi. 6-13.) For this offence 
Shimei afterwards sought David’s 
forgiveness, who not only spared 
his life then, but covenanted with 
him never to put him to death. 
(2 Sam. xix. 23.) On his death- 
bed, however, he charged Solo- 
1 mon to remember Shimei as a 
guilty man, who, having received 
such a charge, forbade him to 
leave Jerusalem on pain of death. 
This prohibition he violated, by 
going to Gath in search of two 
607 




SHI 

fugitive servants, and suffered the 
threatened penalty. 

SHINAR. (Gen. x. 10.) An 
extensive and fertile plain, lying 
between Mesopotamia on the 
west and Persia on the east, and 
watered by the Euphrates. It 
was upon this plain that Noah’s 
posterity attempted to build the 
tower of Babel, and the site of the 
great city of Babylon was also 
here. (Dan. i. 1, 2.) The ter¬ 
ritory is now within the pashalic 
of Bagdad, but its ancient bounds 
are not known. 

SHIPS. (Gen. xlix. 13.) Some 
of the ancient ships were very 
large. An account of one is 



given by Athenaeus, which was 
nearly five hundred feet in length, 
and sixty in breath. Upwards 
cf four thousand rowers, and at 
least three thousand other per¬ 
sons, were employed in the na¬ 
vigation of it. The art of navi¬ 
gation was, however, but little 
understood. The Phenicians were 
principally concerned in it, (Ezek. 
ryvii. xxviii.,) and had ports of 
60* 


SHI 

their own in almost every coun 
try, (Isa. xxiii.,) the most famous 
of which were Carthage and Tar- 
shish in Spain. The ships from 
Tarshish undertook distant voy¬ 
ages, and hence any vessels that 
were capable of such voyages 
were called ships of Tarshish. 
(Isa. xxiii. 1.) 

The galley is a low, flat-built 
vessel, navigated with oars and 
sails, and used particularly in the 
Mediterranean. The expression 
in Isa. xxxiii. 21, denotes that 
Jerusalem would be a glorious 
city, though destitute of the com¬ 
mercial advantages enjoyed by 
most other cities. 

SIIISHAK. (1 Kings xiv. 25.) 
A king of Egypt, and supposed 
to be the Sesostris of profane 
history. In the reign of Reho- 
boam, he invaded Judea with an 
immense army, took possession 
of Jerusalem, pillaged the temple, 
and bore off the treasures of the 
king. (1 Kings xiv. 26; 2 Chron. 
xii. 9.) 

The Scripture account of this 
invasion is confirmed in the most 
satisfactory manner, by recent 
discoveries in Egypt. Upon a 
ruined colonnade at Thebes is a 
representation of Shishak drag¬ 
ging at the feet of the Egyptian 
gods more than thirty vanquished 
nations, among which is written, 
at full length, in the Oriental lan¬ 
guage, The kingdom of the Jews , 
or of Judah. 

Other inscriptions give a par¬ 
ticular list of the fenced cities 
mentioned in 2 Chron. xii. 4, as 
having been taken in this expe¬ 
dition ; and exhibit, also, various 
effigies commemorative of the 
victory over the Jews; and even 
the name of the conquered Reho- 
boarn is still preserved in Egyp- 














SHI 

sculpture, after the lapse of 
2700 years. 

SHITTIM. l Joel iii. 18.) This 
term, as used in this passage, 
probably denoted some valley 
well known as abounding in 
shittim-wood; or it may be po¬ 
etically used to denote any barren 
or uncultivated place. 

Shittim wood, (Ex. xxv. 5,) 
from the Shittah tree, (Isa. xli. 
19,) is a tough and very durable 
wood, much used in the structure 
and furniture of the tabernacle. 
It is generally supposed to be a 
species of the acacia, which 
abounds in all deserts from north¬ 
ern Arabia to Ethiopia, and from 
which is obtained our gum-arabic, 
ft is a beautiful tree, with spread¬ 
ing branches and fragrant flowers, 
and hence is figuratively employ¬ 
ed by the prophet, in the above- 
cited passage, to represent the 
happy influence of a general dif¬ 
fusion of divine knowledge. 

SHOCOH, (1 Sam. xvii. 1,) or 
S0C01I,( Josh. xv. 35,) or SHOCO. 
(2 Chron. xi. 7.) There were pro¬ 
bably two places to which one or 
more of these names was applied. 
Both of them were in Judah, and 
in one of them, near Azekah, Da¬ 
vid gave battle to Goliath. 

SHOES. (Acts vii. 33.) In ad¬ 
dition to what is said under the 
article Clothes, it may be re¬ 
marked that to take off the shoes 
in token of reverence was an 
early custom, (Josh. v. 15;) and 
as no mention is made of them 
in the articles of the high-priest’s 
official dress, it is inferred that 
they officiated with the feet un¬ 
covered. To remove the shoe 
was also a token of humiliation 
and subjectior, (2 Sam. xv. 30; 
Isa. xx. 2-4, Ezek. xxiv. 17.) 
Hence T,ne expression, Ps. lx. 8; 

2 


SHU 

cviii. 9, imports the subjugation 
of the country over which the 
shoe is cast. The plucking off 
one’s shoe and giving it to another 
was a significant token of a sur¬ 
rendered right of privilege. (Deuu 
xxv. 9; Ruth iv. 7.) 

The phrase (Deut. xxxiii. 25) 
thy shoes shall be iron and brass , 
is prophetical of the abundance 
of precious metals with which the 
soil of Asher’s inheritance should 
be supplied. 

Shoe latchet. (See Clothes.) 

SHOSHANNlM, (Ps. xlv; 
lxix. title,) or SHOSHANNlM 
EDUTII, (Ps. lxxx. title,) pro¬ 
bably signifies a particular musi¬ 
cal instrument. Some have re¬ 
garded it as the title of a bridal 
song; and if it only occurred in 
Ps. xlv., we might admit this in¬ 
terpretation; but surely nothing 
can be farther from a song of de¬ 
light and festivity than the other 
two psalms which have a corre¬ 
sponding title. 

SHOULDER. (Gen.xlix. 15.) 
To bare the shoulder is signifi¬ 
cant of servitude, and to with¬ 
draw it denotes rebellion. (Neh. 
ix. 29.) To bear upon the shoul¬ 
der is to sustain. (Isa. ix. 6; 
xxii. 22.) 

SHRINE. (See Diana.) 

SHUHITE. (See Bildad.) 

SHULAMITE. (Sol. Song vi. 
13.) A poetical figurative title 
of the church personified. 

SIIUNAMMITE. (See Shtj- 

NEM.) 

SHUNEM. (Josh. xix. 18.) A 
town in the territory of Issachar, 
and a little south of Nain. It is 
associated with several important 
incidents of Jewish history, (1 
Sam. xxviii. 4; 1 Kings i. 3; 2 
Kings viii. 1-16,) and especially 
as the place where Elisha tarried 
0 609 




SHU 

on his journeys between Gilgal 
and Carmel, and where he per¬ 
formed a miracle under circum¬ 
stances of unusual interest. (2 
Kings iv. 8-37.) The inhabitants 
were called Shunammites. 

SHUR. (Ex. xv. 22.) The 
name of a wilderness (and per¬ 
haps a town also) lying north-east 
of the gulf of Suez, into which 
the children of Israel entered af¬ 
ter the passage of the Red Sea. 
It is now called Djofar. 

SHUSHAN. (Neh. i. 1.) An 
ancient, extensive and magnifi¬ 
cent city, (called by the Greeks 
Susa, or the city of lilies ,} situated 
on the river Ulai, (now Kerrah.) 
It was in the province of Elam, 
in Persia, now known as Khusis- 
tan, and formerly as Susiana. 
Shushan was the capital, and the 
residence of the kings, (Esth. i. 5 ; 
Dan. viii. 2,). and is said to have 
been fifteen miles in circumfe¬ 
rence. It is now a heap of ruins, 
about thirty miles west of Shous- 
ter, the present capital of the pro¬ 
vince of Khusistan, occupying a 
space of from six to twelve miles 
in extent, and consisting of hil¬ 
locks of earth and rubbish, co¬ 
vered with broken pieces of brick 
and coloured tile. The largest is 
a mile in circumference, and 
nearly one hundred feet in height. 
They are formed . of clay and 
pieces of tile, with irregular lay¬ 
ers of brick and mortar, five or 
six feet in thickness, to serve, as 
it should seem, as a kind of prop 
to the mass. Large blocks of 
marble, covered with hierogly¬ 
phics, are not unfrequently here 
discovered by the Arabs, when 
digging in search of hidden trea¬ 
sure ; and at the foot of the most 
elevated of the ruins, stands the 
tomb of Daniel, a small and ap- 
610 


BID 

parently a modern building, erect¬ 
ed on the spot where the relics 
of that prophet are said to rest. 

Intelligent modern travellers 
are of the opinion that these are 
no other than the ruins of the 
ancient Shushan. One of the 
most intelligent of them (Sit 
John Malcolm) observes of the 
tomb of Daniel, that "It serves 
to shelter some dervishes who 
watch the supposed relics of the 
prophet, and are supported by 
the alms of pilgrims; that these 
dervishes are the only inhabitants 
of the place; and that every spe¬ 
cies of wild beast roams at large 
over the spot on which some of 
the proudest palaces ever raised 
by human art, once stood.” (See 
Elam.) 

Shtjshax-eduth. (Ps. lx. title.; 
The same with Shoshannim. (Seo 
Shoshannim.) 

SHUTTLE. (Job vii. 6.) A 
well-known instrument, used by 
weavers for throwing the thread 
of the woof across the warp. As 
it moves with great swiftness from 
one side to the other, so as scarce¬ 
ly to be seen in its passage, it is 
used figuratively to denote the 
rapid flight of time. 

SIBBOLETH. (See Shibbo¬ 
leth.) 

SIBMAH, (Isa. xvi. 8, 9,) or 
SHIBMAH. (Num. xxxii. 38.) 
A city of Reuben, near by Ilesh- 
bon, celebrated for the luxuriant 
growth of the vine. (Jer. xlviii. 
32.) It fell into the hands of the 
Moabites after the captivity of 
Reuben, Gad and Manasseh by 
Tiglath-pileser; and hence the 
prophets Isaiah and Jereraian 
weep for Moab, because the 
spoiler had broken the vines of 
Sibmah. 

Probably the expression in the 




SIC 

passage from Jeremiah refers 
either to the universal reputa¬ 
tion of the vines of Sibmah, or it 
is poetically used to denote the 
luxuriance of their growth. The 
sea of Jazer was perhaps fifteen 
or twenty miles from Sibmah. 

SICHEM. (See Shechem.) 

SICKLE. (Deut. xvi. 9.) We 
have preserved in Egyptian monu¬ 
ments the form of the ancient 
sickle, and it bears a very close 
resemblance to that implement 
in modern times. 

SIDDIM, vale of, (Gen. xiv. 
8,) now covered by the waters of 
the Dead Sea, is supposed to have 
been the site of Sodom and Go¬ 
morrah. 

SIDON, (Matt. xi. 21,) or ZI- 
DON. (Judg. i. 31.) A city of 
Phenicia, deriving its name pro¬ 
bably from Sidon, the eldest son 
of Canaan. (Gen. x. 15; xlix. 
13.) It was situated at the north¬ 
west angle of the land of Canaan, 
about 20 or 30 miles north of 
Tyre. It was assigned to Asher, 
(Judg. xviii. 28,) but the abori¬ 
gines were never wholly expelled, 
(Judg. i. 31.) and proved an an¬ 
noyance to the Israelites. (Judg. 
x. 12.) Its position on the shore 
of the Mediterranean, the fame 
of its timber and skilful work¬ 
men, and its excellence in many 
ingenious and useful arts^nade 
its commercial advantages pecu¬ 
liar ; and they are noticed in pro¬ 
fane history. Their prosperous 
and luxurious habits led them in¬ 
to a careless and secure mode of 
life, which is alluded to, Judg. 
xviii. 7. It is called Great Zidon. 
(Josh. xi. 8; xix. 28.) This city 
is the subject of some very re¬ 
markable prophecies. (Isa. xxiii. 
4-18: Jer. xxv. 17-38; Ezek. 
xxviii. 21-24.' I* was subdued 


SID 

successively by the Babyloniano, 
Egyptians, and Romans, the lat¬ 
ter of whom deprived it of its 
freedom. 

Two of our American mis¬ 
sionaries passed through Sidon 
in the summer of 1823, and esti¬ 
mated the population, as others 
have estimated it, at eight or 
ten thousand; but another Ameri¬ 
can missionary took up his re¬ 
sidence there in June, 1824, for 
the purpose of studying the 
Armenian language with a bi¬ 
shop of the Armenian church who 
lives there, and of course had 
far better opportunities to know 
the statistics of the place. He 
tells us there are six Moham¬ 
medan mosques, a Jewish syna¬ 
gogue, a Maronite, Latin and 
Greek church. The number of 
inhabitants may be estimated at 
three thous.and, of whom one-half 
may be Mussulmans. From Tyre 
and Sidon it was that part of 
that great multitude was made 
up, who, on one occasion, came 
to Jesus, having heard what great 
things he did. (Mark. iii. 8.) And 
on these coasts it was that the 
woman of Canaan manifested a 
faith which received the appro¬ 
bation of the Saviour, and which 
will fie told for a memorial of 
her wherever the gospel shall be 
preached. (Mark vii. 24 — 30.) 
“ For several days,” says he, 
“ I have been much affected with 
the consideration, that probably 
no such individual can now be 
found here; that there is pro¬ 
bably no one who knows any 
thing of the spirit of adoption, 
or of communion with God in 
prayer; and I have endeavoured 
to intercede for them, as if the 
way to the throne of grace was 
known to no other, and every 
411 



SIE 

thing was depending upon the 
prayers which I made. May all 
who love to read of this Syrophe- 
nician by nation , lift up their 
hearts in prayer, that the Lord 
Jesus may again pass this way, 
and again manifest his glory on 
these coasts, in giving sight to 
the blind, health to the sick, and 
life to the dead.” 

The apostle Paul visited Sidon 
on his voyage to Rome. (Acts 
xxvii. 3.) At present the name 
of the place is Saide. It is a 
trading town of some importance. 
The harbour is rendered compa¬ 
ratively useless, however, by sand¬ 
bars, and the town itself is badly 
built, and very dirty. The in¬ 
habitants are called Sidonians. 
(Deut. iii. 9.) 

SIEGE. (Deut. xx. 19.) The 
surrounding of a city or castle 
with an army, in order to starve 
«r force the inhabitants to sur¬ 
render. The sieges of Samaria, 
Nineveh, Babylon, Jerusalem and 
Tyre are most noted. The judg¬ 
ments of God, reducing men to 
great hardships, are figuratively 
called sieges. (Isa. xxix. 3.) 

SIEVE. (Isa. xxx. 28.) The 
bolter, or sieve, which is so neces¬ 
sary an article in our day, in the 
preparation of meal for bread, 
<fec. was in ancient times made 
of rushes, or papyrus. Ancient 
writers say that only the Gauls 
had sieves of horse-hair. What 
was left in the bolter was put into 
tho mill a second time Sieves 
of various degrees of fineness 
were no doubt used, for the same 
authors tell us of four different 
qualities of meal. 

SIGNET. (See Seal.) 

SIGNS (John iv. 48) and win¬ 
ders (as they are usually con¬ 
nected) sometimes dencte these 
612 


SI L 

proofs or demonstrations of powo? 
and authority which were fur¬ 
nished by miracles, and by other 
tokens of the divine presence, aa 
in Acts ii. 22. And at other times 
those unusual appearances which 
betoken the approach of a great 
event, as in Luke xxi. 11, 25.) 

SIHON. (Num. xxi. 21-31.) A 
king of the Amorites, who lost his 
dominions in consequence of his 
refusal to permit the Hebrews to 
pass through them on their way 
from Egypt to Canaan. Sihon 
himself was slain in battle, his 
army was routed, Heshbon, his 
capital, was taken, and his country 
distributed among the Israelites. 
(Ps. cxxxv. 10-12 ,• cxxxvi. 18, 
19.) 

SIHOR (See Egypt, riveb 
of.) 

SILAS, (Acts xv. 40,) contract¬ 
ed from SYLVAN US, (2 Cor. i. 
19,) is called one of the chief of 
the brethren, (Acts xv. 22,) and a 
faithful brother. (1 Pet. v. 12.) 
He is supposed to have been a 
native of Antioch, and a member 
of the Christian church there. 
(Acts xv. 37-41.) He was the 
associate of Paul in several of his 
missionary tours, and his fellow- 
prisoner at Philippi. (Acts xv. 
40; xvi. 25, 29 ; xvii. 4, 10, 15.) 
He is called a prophet, (Acts xv. 
32;) but what was the precise na¬ 
ture of this office, in the days of 
the apostles, is not clear. 

SILK. (Prov. xxxi. 22.) Per¬ 
haps the. ancient Hebrews knew 
nothing of silk; and the word may 
signify cotton, or fine fiax. (Isa. 
xix. 9.) 

In Ezek. xvi. 10, 13, an article 
called picked silk, is doubtless 
intended; and Pliny says that 
silk was brought from Eastern 
Asia to Greece, in robes which 




SIL 

were only half silk, and was then 
uniavelled or picked out, and 
made up again into garments of 
entire silk. (Rev. xviii. 12.) 

SILOAH, (Neh. iii. 15,) or SI- 
LOAM, (John ix. 7, 11,) or SHI- 
LOAH. (Isa. viii. 6.) A rivulet 
on the south-east of Jerusalem, at 
the foot of Zion and Moriah; sup¬ 
posed by some to bo the same 
with En-rogel and Gihon. There 
6eem to have been two pools, the 
upper, (Isa. vii. 3,) or king's pool, 
(Neh. ii. 14,) and the lower pool. 
(Isa. xxii. 9. See Conduit.) A 
modern traveller says, “We pass¬ 
ed the Jewish burying-ground, 
south-east of the city of Jerusa¬ 
lem, and came to the pool of Si- 
loam, whose icaters go softly: they 
have a current, but it is almost 
imperceptible. I alighted to de¬ 
scend more than twenty steps, 
and taste the waters of this foun¬ 
tain, at which in ancient times 
the Jews were wont to celebrate 
a festival, singing the twelfth 
chapter of Isaiah. On the other 
side of the projecting hill, (Ophel,) 
after passing under ground two or 
three hundred feet, these waters 
reappear; and here they are 
drawn off to irrigate a lovely spot, 
consisting of gardens and small 
fields. These gardens are in 
summer often frequented by the 
Turks. Over against the pool, 
cn the slope of a lofty mountain, 
Is a village they call Siloa.” 

Two American travellers visit- 
»d the pool of Siloam in the 
spring of 1823, who thus describe 
it: 

“ Near the south-east corner of 
the city, at the foot of Zion and 
Moriah, is the pool of Siloah, 
whose waters flow with gentle 
murmur from under the holy 
mountain of Zion, or rather from 
52 


SIL 

under Ophel, having Zion on the 
west, and Moriah on the norm. 
The very fountain issues from a 
rock twenty or thirty feet below 
the surface of the ground, to which 
we descended by two flights of 
steps. Hero it flows out without 
a single murmur, and appears clear 
as crystal. From this place it 
winds its way several rods un¬ 
der the mountain, then makes 
its appearance with gentle gur¬ 
gling, and, forming a beautiful 
rill, takes its way down into the 
valley towards the south-east. (Se« 
Selumiel, ch. vi.) 

Tower in Siloam (Luke xiii. 
4) was probably a high wall or 
tower, contiguous to the pool of 
Siloam, by the sudden fall of 
which eighteen lives were lost. 
This being a notorious event, as 
the like incident in New York or 
Philadelphia would be now in our 
country, it was alluded to by our 
Saviour to illustrate the fact that 
such events are not always to be 
regarded as special judgments for 
an unusual degree of guilt. 

SILVER. (Gen. xiii. 2.) A 
well-known precious metal, ob¬ 
tained chiefly from South Ame¬ 
rica. Many suppose that the 
Tarshish of the Old Testament 
was in Spain, and hence that wo 
obtain a portion of our silver from 
the same mines which furnished 
it in the days of Solomon. (1 
Kings x. 22.) 

That silver was known at a 
very early period is evident. 
(Gen. xliv. 2; Ex. xi. 2; xxv. 3; 
Job xxviii. 1.) And the reason 
probably is, that, like gold, it is 
often found iD a state of purity 
in the earth, and therefore easily 
discovered. It was used in the 
construction cf the temple, (Ex 
xxvi. 19, 32, and for its furniture 
613 



STM 

(1 Chron. xxviii. 14-17;) and also 
for musical instruments, (Num. x. 
2,) and for adorning idols. (Isa. 
xl. 19.1 And that it was abun¬ 
dant in that day appears from 1 
Kings x. 27. 

Silver constituted the chief me¬ 
dium of trade, though it was not 
eoined, but used by weight. (Gen. 
xxiii. 16.) The puces of silver 
(thirty of which were given as 
the price of innocent blood, Matt, 
xxvi. 15; xxvii.. 3) were proba¬ 
bly shekels of silver, worth fifty 
cents each. 

The silverling (Isa. vii. 23) is 
supposed to have been of like 
value. 

SIMEON. 1. (Gen. xxix. 33.) 
Son of Jacob and Leah. Accord¬ 
ing to the prediction of Jacob, 
(Gen. xlix, 5-7,) and as a pun¬ 
ishment for his offence in the 
matter of the Shechemites, (Gen. 
xxxiv.—see Dinah,) his posterity 
dwindled, (comp. Num. i. 22; 
xxvi. 14, 15,) and their inherit¬ 
ance was only a dismembered 
portion of the territory of Judah. 
(Josh, xix, 1.) 

Tribe op, occupied nineteen 
cities, within the bounds of Ju¬ 
dah, principally south of Dan, on 
the coast. (Josh. xix. 2-7.) In 
Hezekiah’s time they possessed 
parts of mount Seir. (1 Chron. 
iv. 42.) 

2. (Luke ii. 25.) A man of 
singular piety, residing at Jeru¬ 
salem. He had been favoured 
with a divine intimation that he 
should live to see the incarnate 
Redeemer, the Lord’s Christ. 
And being led by the Spirit into 
the temple at the particular time 
when the infant Jesus was brought 
thither by his parents, according 
to the requirement of ihe law, 
(Ex. xiii. 12; xxii. 29,) he took 
614 


SIN 

him up in his arms and uttered 
the most devout thanksgivings to 
God, accompanied with a remark¬ 
able prediction respecting the va¬ 
rious effects of his advent. 

3. (Acts xiii. 1.) A man of this 
name was among the prophets and 
teachers of the Christian church 
at Antioch. Some have supposed 
(though without warrant) that he 
is the same with Simon the Cy- 
renian. (Matt, xxvii. 32.) 

4. (Acts xv. 14.) Simeon is a 
Hebrew name, and in this passage 
is the same with Simon. 

SIMON. (Acts viii. 9.) A na¬ 
tive of Samaria, and a famous 
sorcerer, who professed to be a 
convert to the Christian faith, 
and was baptized as such by 
Philip; but was severely rebuked 
by Peter as a hypocrite, because, 
under the influence of mercenary 
motives, he desired apostolic gifts. 
Hence the buying and selling of 
ecclesiastical rights, benefits, or 
privileges, is called simony , a 
high offence against the purity 
and integrity of the Christian 
faith, and one of which the seller 
and buyer are equally guilty. 

6. Simon Peter. (See Peter.) 

7. Simon the Canaanite, 
(Matt. x. 4,) or Simon Zelotes, 
(or the zealous,) one of the twolve 
disciples, was perhaps a native 
of Cana; though some suppose 
the word Canaanite, like Zelotes, 
denotes his characteristic zeal. 
Several other persons of this name 
are mentioned, as the Pharisee, 
(Luke vii. 36,) the leper, (Matt, 
xxvi. 6,) the father of Judas 
Iscariot, (John vi. 71,) and the 
tanner at Joppa, with whom Petor 
lodged. (Acts ix. 43.) 

SIN (Gen. iv. 7) is the trans¬ 
gression of the law of God. (1 
John iii. 4.) Any departure in 



SIN 

thought, word, or deed, from the 
rule of conduct which requires 
us to love the Lord our God with 
all the heart and soul and mind 
and strength, and our neighbours 
as ourselves, is sin. (1 John v. 17.) 
The word is sometimes used for 
a sin-offering, as in Hos.- iv. 8; 
Rom. viii. 3 ; 2 Cor. v. 21. In the 
text first cited, reference is had 
to the eating of that which was 
brought as a sin-offering, either 
from greediness or in violation of 
the law. The disobedience of our 
first parents to the positive com¬ 
mand of God introduced sin with 
all its dreadful consequences into 
our world. 

The sin not unto death, and the 
sin unto death, (1 John v. 16,) 
have been variously interpreted. 
As there are offences under hu¬ 
man governments which are ca¬ 
pital, involving the certain penal¬ 
ty of death without the hope of 
pardon, so under the divine go¬ 
vernment there are sins of such 
malignancy and aggravation, 
evincing an impious and unalter¬ 
able determination to reject the 
offered mercy of God, that we 
have little, if any ground, for the 
prayer of faith, or even for the 
hope that the offender may be 
forgiven. It seems difficult to 
suppose a case, however, in the 
existing slate of God’s govern¬ 
ment, in which the character of a 
sin can be so determined by any 
human tribunal, as to make him 
who commits it no longer a sub¬ 
ject of prayer. (John iii. 15; 
Acts xvii. 30*; 2 Pet. iii. 9.) Some 
have supposed that exclusive re¬ 
ference is had to a distinction in 
the Jewish law between offences 
capital and not capital; or to the 
civil law of some particular place, 
by which some offences were pun- 


SIN 

ishable with death, without th« 
possibility of pardon. These were 
sins unto death, for no entreaty 
availed to avert the punishment. 
But there were other capital cases 
in which the law authorized a 
commutation of punishment, it 
the circumstances justified it. 
These were sins not unto death; 
for the powerful intercession of 
friends for the offender might 
save him. Whether what is called 
the unpardonable sin (Matt xii. 
31, 32) can be committed except 
by such as were witnesses of the 
mighty works wrought by Christ, 
and by his apostles through the 
power of the Holy Ghost, is con¬ 
sidered doubtful by many. From 
the connection of the above-cited 
passage from Matthew we have a 
very explicit illustration of one 
species of this sin ; and perhaps 
the unpardonable sin is the same 
with the sin unto death. (See 
Sacrifice.) 

Sin (Ezek. xxx. 15, 16) is the 
Pclusium of the Greeks, and is 
called the strength of Egypt, be¬ 
cause of its position as a bulwark. 
The ruins of it aro supposed to 
have been discovered by the 
French army, in the invasion of 
Egypt under Bonaparte. 

Sin, desert of, or wilderness 
of, (Num. xxxiii. 11,) was entered 
by the Israelites immediately af¬ 
ter they passed the Red Sea. 
(Ex. xvi. 1.) It was between 
Elim and Sinai, and was the place 
where manna was supplied. (See 
ZlN.) 

SIN-OFFERINGS. (See Sa¬ 
crifice.) 

SIN-MONEY. (2 Kings xii. 
16.) Money sent oy persons at a 
distance, with which to buy the 
required offerings; and as there 
was usually some surplus, it was 
615 



SIN 

ihe perquisite of the priest, and 
was called sin-money, or sin-offer¬ 
ing money. (Num. xviii. 9.) 

SINAI. (Ex. xvi. 1.) We 
have already given, under the ar¬ 
ticle Horeb, a general view of the 
distrnt of Arabia in which Sinai 
is situated. We subjoin a de- 


SIN 

scription ot the ascent and posi¬ 
tion of this singular spot, asso¬ 
ciated with one of the most sub¬ 
lime and momentous events re¬ 
corded in sacred history; which, 
connected with the former article, 
furnishes a clear view of the 
whole region. (See Map, p. 560.) 



An English missionary who 
visited mount Sinai in the sum¬ 
mer of 1834, says: “We took our 
dinner on a high plain, where 
was much verdure; and we had 
very interesting views on every 
side; the whole country being 
filled with bold granite mountains, 
from which, in a certain revolu¬ 
tion in our earth, the water ap¬ 
pears to have washed all the cul¬ 
tivable earth down into the 
valleys : for you see on the moun¬ 
tains nothing but bare granite; 
except here and there, in a recess, 
some fertile ground, covered with 
shrubs. We first ascended a little; 
then descended very much into a 
deep valley, shut up on every side 
by high mountains. Here the 
temperature was raised to such a 
616 


height at once, that I do not re¬ 
collect ever to have felt so great 
a heat; but we passed this valley 
in less than a quarter of an hour. 
In the middle of this passage, 
through which our camels passed, 
but with great danger, we took 
some repose in a small ravine, 
Tvhero we found a well with very 
good water, and a few small palm- 
trees. We took our dinner here, 
under the shade of a rock; and 
then again ascended, until wo 
had reached, I think, the height 
of one thousand feet above the 
level of the sea. Here we founa 
ourselves in a fine large plain, 
situated between two high ridges 
of mountains on both sides, be¬ 
tween which it runs, southward, 
to the foot of the mountains of 











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SIN 

Horeb. In my humble opinion, 
this must have been the place 
where the Israelites made their 
encampment during their stay at 
mount Sinai; because none of the 
surrounding valleys which we 
observed there were so fit to re¬ 
ceive so large an army for a whole 
year. In front of this plain, to 
the south, was a cluster of moun¬ 
tains, which I think are the 
mountains of Horeb. From the 
circumstance that the Scriptures 
speak of mount Sinai only on one 
occasion,—that of the giving of 
the law,—while, on the contrary, 
the name of Horeb is mentioned 
on different occasions, I infer 
that Horeb is applied by Scrip¬ 
ture to the whole collection of 
mountains which stand here to¬ 
gether, as the common name ; 
and the name of Sinai to one 
mountain only, namely, that on 
the top of which the law was 
given. As we are in so many 
instances led into mistakes by 
tradition, so I think here, also, a 
mistake has taken place. The 
name of Horeb has been applied, 
by tradition, to one mount only, 
namely, that which I should con¬ 
sider to be mount Sinai, because 
it faces the valley where the Is¬ 
raelites lay. If we suppose that 
this was the case, then the whole 
army could witness the important 
transaction, and receive the most 
powerful impression from it; 
whereas the supposed mount Sinai, 
or djebel Mousa , although a little 
higher than the former, is yet so 
far situated behind, that what¬ 
ever passed on the top of it could 
only be seen by that part of the 
army which lay at the itmost 
distance, where, through a space 
left between what is called mount 
Horeb and mount Catherine, they 
52* 


SIN] 

could have seen the top of djebel 
Mousa. 

“The first view I enjoyed of 
mount Sinai *nade the deepest 
impression upon my mind. 1 
felt myself, as it were, transport¬ 
ed among the Isarelites, whom 
the Lord here had separated from 
the rest of the world, and led into 
this solitude, in order to declare 
them his chosen people. I saw, 
as it were, Jehovah in the pillar 
of cloud, on the summit of that 
bold mountain; and when he 
lifted his voice, saying, I atn the 
Lord thy God, the thunder of his 
voice re-echoed from all the sur¬ 
rounding mountains. 

“ The convent of St. Catherine 
lies in a small valley to the east 
of Horeb, where the basis of 
djebel Mousa joins that of the so- 
called mount Horeb. Before we 
arrived at it, we passed the gar¬ 
den belonging to it, surrounded 
with a high wall, in which an 
abundance of European and Asia¬ 
tic plants grow, particularly a 
quantity of fine cypresses. The 
convent, from without, looks like a 
castle,and, from within,like a small 
town. It has no entrance below, 
except one that is shut up with 
stones,and is opened only at the ar¬ 
rival of a new bishop for the con¬ 
vent. On our arrival, some friars, 
standing at a large window above, 
and observing us, let down a rope, 
to which we first fixed our letters of 
recommendation: these were taken 
up and looked at. Another rope 
was then let down for our baggage: 
and, at last,one for ourselves,which 
we had to put round our bodies; 
whereupon we made an aerial pas¬ 
sage, forty feet high, and entered 
the convent through the window, 
at which the superior waited Ui 
give us a friendly welcome. 

61* 



SIN 

“We want up to the mountain 
by steps which have been made 
on purpose for the pilgrims, by 
putting stone upon stone from the 
bottom to the top of the mountain, 
except at a few even places, 
where no stairs are necessary. 
On our way upward, we found 
several fine spots, where foun¬ 
tains of sweet water refreshed us. 
We soon arrived at the chapel de¬ 
dicated to Elias the prophet, 
where is shown the place of his 
taking refuge from Jezebel. Near 
this chapel we saw what is tailed 
Elias’s well, where there is a val¬ 
ley, from which the tops of se¬ 
veral mountains diverge; and 
also the place -where Moses is 
said to have sat with Aaron and 
Hur during the battle witlw the 
Amalekites; the steep and small 
valley which is observed below 
this, being the supposed valley of 
Rephidim.” (See BedouinArabs, 
ch. xiv.; Mine Explored, p. 95, 
and Illustrations of Bible 
Geography. Art. Sinai.) 

SINCERITY (2 Cor. i. 12) 
stands opposed to dissimulation 
or hypocrisy, and implies the 
entire correspondence of the 
heart with the expressions of the 
lips. The original word refers to 
the bright and penetrating light 
of the sun, and denotes such 
things as, on being examined by 
the brightest light, are fojnd 
pure and unadulterated. 

SION. (See Zion.) 

SIRION. (See Hermon.) 

SISERA. (See Barak, De¬ 
borah, Jael.) 

SIVAN. (See Month.) 

SKINS. (See Clothing.) 

SLAVE. (See Servant.) . 

SLIME. (See Pitch.) 

SLING. (See Arms.) 

SMYRNA. (Rev. ii. 8-10.) 

6 18 


SNA 

A celebrated Ionian city, and 
one of the finest of the Levant, 
is situated about fifty miles north 
of Ephesus, and the same distance 
from the coast, on a bay formed 
by the river Melas, on the west¬ 
ern coast of Asia Minor. It was 
extolled by the ancients as the 
crown of ~onia, the jewel of Asia, 
overflowing with wealth, and 
beautiful in works of art. It has 
been overthrown at least six 
times by earthquakes, lost sixty 
thousand inhabitants by the 
plague in 1S14, and was severely 
scourged by the cholera in 1831. 
It is now called by the Turks 
Iemir, and is about four miles in 
circumference. The harbour is 
capacious, and affords the finest 
anchorage for ships of the largest 
class. The city contains a popu¬ 
lation of from 100,000 to 130,000 ; 
among whom are probably from 
20,000 to 30,000 Greeks, 10,000 
Jews, 8000 Armenians, and the 
residue principally Turks. The 
city has twenty mosques, besides 
churches and monasteries ; and 
some of the ruins of its former 
magnificence are still visible. 

The church in this place is one 
of the seven addressed in the 
Apocalypse. And in the efforts 
of the present day to evangelize 
the world, Smyrna is one of the 
most important centres of action. 
Several newspapers are published 
there, one or two of which are deci¬ 
dedly religious in their character; 
and the schools, presses and agen¬ 
cies established by Christian be¬ 
nevolence in this interesting city 
promise well for religion. 

SNAIL. (Lev. xi. 30.) A spe¬ 
cies of worm. In the passage 
above cited, the original word is 
thought to denote some species 
of lizard. And in Ps. lviiL 8, 



SNO 

(the only place besides in which 
it occurs,) reference may be had 
to the common snail, or slug, 



which is found in cellars and 
damp places, and which seems to 
waste itself by covering its path 
with a thick, shining slime. 

SNOW. (2 Sam. xxiii. 20.) Va¬ 
pour congealed in the air and 
often falling in large, broad flakes, 
resembling wool. (Ps. cxlvii. 16.) 
The allusion to snow in the sa¬ 
cred writings, especially to its 
whiteness, are frequent, (Ex. iv. 
6 ; Num. xii. 10; 2 Kings v. 27; 
Ps. li. 7 ; Isa. i. 18.) The compari¬ 
son in Prov. xxv. 13, has refer¬ 
ence to the use of snow brought 
from the mountains to cool the 
drink of the reapers in the heat 
of harvest, as we use ice. Snow¬ 
water is softer and more deter¬ 
gent than common water; hence 
the allusion, Job ix. 30. One 
of our American missionaries 
found snow on mount Lebanon 
upwards of two feet deep, Oct. 4, 
1823; and hence concludes that 
it lies through the year. 

SO. (2 Kings xvii. 4.) An 
Ethiopian king, and supposed to 
be the same with Sabacus or Sa- 
bacon of profane history. He is 


SOL 

called king of Egypt in the above 
passage because he mvadea 
Egypt, and reigned for a term of 
years over that coun¬ 
try, during which time 
he received the propo¬ 
sition of an allianre 
from Hoshea king of 
Israel, which incensed 
Shalmaneser, king of 
] Assyria, to attack the 
/ country. 

SOAP. (See Nitre.) 
SOCHOII. (See Sho- 

COH.) 

SODOM (Gen. xiii. 
13)and GOMORRAH, 
two of the cities of 
the plain which were 
miraculously destroyed because of 
the deep and almost universal cor¬ 
ruption of the inhabitants. (See 
Gomorrah, Salt Sea. See 
also Ev. Recreations, vol. ii. pp. 
46-50.) 

SOLDIERS. (See Armies.) 

SOLOMON, (2 Sam. v. 14,) 
king of Israel, was the son and 
successor of David. His cha¬ 
racter, and the general condition 
of the country during his reign, 
were predicted in remarkable 
terms, (1 Chron. xxit. 9, 10;) and 
especially remarkable, as the pre¬ 
diction is supposed to have ulti¬ 
mate and more comprehensive 
reference to the Messiah and hi* 
reign. Soon after the birth of 
Solomon, the prophet Nathan was 
sent by divine authority to give 
him the name of Jedidiah, signi¬ 
fying beloved of the Lord . 

Towards the close of David’a 
life, a conspiracy was detected 
to place Adonijah on the throne. 
To settle the government in the 
order of the divine appointment, 
David caused Solomon to be in¬ 
vested with the robes of royalty, 
619 




SOL 

and resigned to him voluntarily 
the sceptre of government, gi ring 
him a solemn charge respecting 
the administration of it. The 
early part of his reign was ex¬ 
ceedingly prosperous, and was 
marked by several public acts 
which displayed his wisdom and 
piety. (1 Kings ii. 19, 27, 31; iii. 
1, 9, 16-28.) He was also favour¬ 
ed with a remarkable promise of 
the divine favour. (1 Kings iii. 
12-14.) His court was distin¬ 
guished for its magnificence; his 
dominions and revenue were vast; 
his personal character exalted ; 
his wisdom proverbial; and his 
capital and palace renowned for 
•wealth and splendour. (1 Kings 
iv. and x.) The great event of 
his reign, however, was the erec¬ 
tion of the temple in Jerusalem, 
^hence called Solomon’s temple,.) 
which was designed by David 
his father. (1 Chron. xxii. 1-11.) 
The plan and materials of the 
house and the furniture, as well 
as of the royal palace, are mi¬ 
nutely described, (1 Kings vi. vii.,) 
(see Temple,) as are also the 
services at the dedication of it. 
(1 Kings viii.) After this, Solomon 
received a renewed assurance of 
the divine favour> and of a gra¬ 
cious answer to his prayers and 
supplications; and at the same 
time, one of the most fearful de¬ 
nunciations of wrath in case he 
should forsake God’s law. (1 
Kings ix. 1-10.) In the latter 
part of Solomon’s reign, he was 
led into the practice of idolatry 
and other abominable sins, which 
drew upon him and the country 
heavy judgments. (1 Kings xi.) 
We are told that the Arabs call 
the southern side of the mount 
of Olives the mount of Solomon, 
because his idolatrous altars were 
620 


SOL 

built here. It is called the mount 
of Corruption (2 Kings xxiii. 13,/ 
from the same cause. He reigned 
forty years, and was succeeded 
by his son Rehoboam. (1 Kings 
xi. 42, 43. See Life of Davii< 
ch. xxiv.) 

We are told of the book of the 
acts of Solomon, (1 Kings xi. 41,) 
and elsewhere that his acts were 
written in the book of Nathan, 
the prophecy of Ahijah, and the 
visions of la do against Jeroboam, 
(2 Chron. ix. 29;) but no othel 
knowledge of these books has 
come down to us; and perhaps 
they were chiefly genealogical, 
and were destroyed with other 
Jewish writings in the frequent 
revolutions of the country. 

Pools of. (Eccl. ii. 6.) Wo 
have from an American mission¬ 
ary the following description of 
what are called the pools of So¬ 
lomon, upon the supposition that 
they were erected by him: “ These 
pools are on the road to Hebron, 
about three miles south-west of 
Bethlehem, in a narrow, sloping 
valley. They are three in num¬ 
ber, placed one above another in 
the valley. They are immensely 
largo cisterns, built of stone arid 
mortar, and plastered within. The 
length of the uppermost is one 
hundred and sixty yards, the 
second we estimated at two hun¬ 
dred yards in length, and the third 
is still longer. The width of the 
three is nearly the same, and is per¬ 
haps somewhat less than one hun¬ 
dred yards. They may be thirty 
feet in depth. At the distance 
of thirty or forty rods from th* 
upper pool are the subterranean 
springs, sometimes called the 
Sealed Fountains, from which th« 
pools are supplied. Descending 
through r small hole, like the 



SOL 

*nouth of a well, to the depth of 
ten or twelve feet, you find your¬ 
self in an excavated, vaulted 
room, or rather two rooms con¬ 
nected by a door, at one side of 
which the water flows out of the 
rock in a copious and pure stream, 
and descends by an underground 
conduit to the pools. From the 
pools it is conveyed by an aque¬ 
duct running around on the sides 
of the hills to Jerusalem. The tra¬ 
dition is that these pools were built 
by Solomon, which is perhaps not 
improbable. They certainly are 
ancient. It is somewhat remark¬ 
able that no history extant in¬ 
forms us of their origin, or makes 
any distinct mention of them. If 
we consider them the work of the 
Jewish monarch, and that this 
valley was once adorned with 
gardens, groves and palaces, it 
must have been a delightful re¬ 
treat. A short distance below the 
pools, in the valley, there are still 
some beautiful gardens, watered 
from the aqueduct.” 

Proverbs of. (See Pro¬ 
verbs.) 

Solomon’s porch. (See Tem¬ 
ple.) 

Song of Solomon. This is the 
twenty-second in the order of the 
books of the Old Testament. A 
Greek translation of it is extant, 
which is ascribed, without contra¬ 
diction, to the authors of the Sep- 
tuagint, who lived about two cen¬ 
turies before Christ. The ancient 
Jews, without exception, regard¬ 
ed it as a sacred book ; Josephus 
inserts it in his catalogue of 
sacred books; and it is cited as 
of divine authority, from the 
earliest period of the Christian 
church. That it is in the highest 
degree figurative, must bo allow¬ 
ed ; but whether it is to bo regard- 


SON 

ed as a poem, or a series of poems, 
or as a nuptial dialogue, or as a 
drama, is not determined. Ths 
prevailing opinion is, that the 
book consists of twelve distinct 
poems or idyls, such as are com¬ 
mon among Arabian poets, and 
that it should be divided thus: 


Idyl 1 Chap. 1. 1-8. 

2 . 1. 9—ii. 7. 

3 . ii. 8-17. 

4 . iii. 1-5. 

5 . iii. 6-iv. 7. 

6 . iv. 8-v. 1. 

7 . v. 2-vi. 10. 

8 . yi. 11-13. 

9 .vii. 1-9. 

10 .vii. 10-viii. 4. 

11 .viii. 5-7. 

12 .viii. 8-14. 


The allusions with which this 
book abounds are made to scenes 
and customs of which our know¬ 
ledge is very imperfect; and 
hence much perplexity must at¬ 
tend any attempt to analyze the 
truths it teaches; and much care 
and judgment are necessary so to 
use this part of divine truth as 
not to abuse it. 

SON OF MAN. (Matt. viii. 
20.) This title is given to our 
Saviour eighty times in the New 
Testament, and in thirty instances 
he applies it to himself. It is also 
applied to him by Daniel, (vii. 
13.) The Jews perfectly under¬ 
stood it to denote the Messiah. 
It probably denotes his peculiar 
and intimate relation to mankind 
in his incarnate state, as the 
phrase Non of God denotes his 
peculiar relation to the Divine 
Being. 

The term Son of man is applied 
to Ezekiel not less than eighty- 
nine times, and may be accounted 
for on the ground that this pro¬ 
phet was, in many respects, an 
eminent type of Christ. 

Son of God. (Dan. iii. 25.) 
This is one of the titles of our 
621 















soo 

Divine Redeemer, and is applied 
to none else, except in a connec¬ 
tion which shows the sense. It 
is applied to angels, (Job xxxviii. 
7,) and to Adam, (Luke iii. 38,) 
as created immediately by God’s 
hand, and to believers, (Rom. viii. 
14, 15; 2 Cor. vi. 18,) as adopted 
into God’s spiritual family; but 
when applied to Christ, it is in a 
peculiar and exalted sense, which 
cannot be mistaken. 

Sons op God. (Gen. vi. 2.) 
The original word, translated God 
in this passage, is sometimes ren¬ 
dered 'princes, or distinguished 
persons; and the reading might 
properly be, “sons of the patri¬ 
archs,” or eminent men mentioned 
in the preceding chapter. (See 
Adoption.) 

SOOTHSAYER (Dan. ii. 27) 
was one who pretended to fore¬ 
tell future events. The original 
word is supposed to denote that 
they dissected the entrails of 
animals, for the purpose of dis¬ 
cerning what would come to pass. 
The Philistines appear to have 
been notorious for their practice 
of this magic imposition. (Isa. 
ii. 6.) This was a common mode 
of divining among the Romans. 

SOP. (John xiii. 26.) Our 
ordinary table utensils were un¬ 
known among the Hebrews. 
Hence in eating broth or milk, 
it was either taken with the hol¬ 
low of the hand, or the bread was 
dipped into it. This is at present 
the usage in all the Oriental 
countries—even at the table of the 
Persian king. Thus the reapers 
of Boaz dipped their morsel in 
the vinegar, (Ruth ii. 14;) and 
thus our Saviour dipped the sop 
or morsel, and gave it to the 
traitor Judas. 

SORCERY. (Acts viii. 9; xiii. 

622 


son 

6.) One of the arts of tne ma¬ 
gicians, (Ex. vii. 11, hence called 
sorcerers,) by the use of which 
they pretended to predict future 
events, cure diseases, work mira¬ 
cles, Ac. The practice of sorcery, 
or any confidence in it, is threat 
ened with the severest judgments. 
(Mai. iii. 5; Rev. xxi. 8; xxli. 15.) 

SOREK. (Judg. xvi. 4.) A 
brook and vale in the south of 
the territory of Dan, where Deli¬ 
lah dwelt. It probably derived 
its name from its choice grapes , 
and was but a mile or two from 
Eshcol. The brook empties into 
the Mediterranean near Askelon, 

SORROWS OF HELL and 
SORROWS OF DEATH, (Ps. 
xviii. 4, 5,) signifies pangs, or 
pains, as in Acts ii. 24. In both 
passages the word cords may be 
read. Death is personified in 
many systems of pagan worship. 
There is a Hindoo deity Yama, or 
the catcher of the souls of men , 
whose image is represented as 
holding a cord or snare, which 
he throws over his victim, and 
thus secures him. 

SOSIPATER, (Rom. xvi. 21,) 
or SOPATER. (Acts xx. 4.) A 
native of Berea, and a kinsman 
of Paul. 

SOSTHENES. (Acts xviii. 17.) 
A ruler of the Jewish synagogue 
at Corinth. He was seized and 
beaten by a party of Greeks in 
that city, who were excited thus 
to acts of violence by what they 
thought the unjustifiable and ma¬ 
licious persecution of Paul. It is 
thought that he afterwards be¬ 
came a convert to the Christian 
faith. (1 Cor. i. 1, 2.) 

SOUL. (Gen. ii. 7.) The Scrip¬ 
tures evidently distinguish be¬ 
tween the spirit and soul. (1 
Thess. v. 23; Heb. iv. 12., Tbe 



SPA 

word which we call soul is used 
to denote mere animal life, the 
seat of sensations, appetites and 
passions. (Gen. i. 20.) Here the 
word translated life is the same 
with that which is elsewhere 
translated soul. Hence it may 
bo inferred, that as we have our 
bodies and animal life in common 
with brutes, it must be the spirit 
which was created in the like¬ 
ness or image of God, and which 
raises man above the brutes that 
perish, and makes him a rational 
and accountable being. We can¬ 
not comprehend the exact connec¬ 
tion and relation of these various 
parts of our being ; but that they 
exist is the declaration of Scrip¬ 
ture, fully supported by observa¬ 
tion and experience. 

SPAIN. (Rom xv. 24.) For¬ 
merly this term included the 
whole Spanish peninsula, em¬ 
bracing Portugal. In Paul’s 
time it was subject to Rome, 
and the resort of many Jews. It 
is uncertain whether that apostle’s 
intention to visit Spain was ever 
executed. (See Life of Paul, 
chap, xxi.) 

SPAN. (See Measures.) 

SPARROW (Ps. lxxxix. 3) is 
well known to be one of the 
smallest and least valuable of all 
birds. Hence the force of the 
allusion, Matt. x. 29; Luke xii. 
6. The original word is generic, 
and means a bird generally, as in 
Ps. cii. 7. The probable allusion 
in Ps. lxxxiv. 3, may be better 
understood by placing the former 
uart of the third verse in a pa¬ 
renthesis, and then connecting 
the latter part with the second 
verse, thus, My soul longeth, yea, 
even fainteth, for the courts of the 
Lord: my heart and my flesh crieth 
»ut for the living God, ( Tea, the 


SPI 

sparrotv hath found a house, and 
the swallow a nest for herself, 
where she may lay her young,) 
even thine altars, 0 Lord of hosts, 
my King, and my God. Then the 
desire of the psalmist to go up t« 
the courts of the Lord’s house ig 
beautifully compared with the in¬ 
stinctive desire of the bird for its 
nest—its home. 

SPEAR. (See Armour.) 

SPICES. (Gen.xliii.il.) This 
term, as used by the sacred wri¬ 
ters, is much more comprehensive 
than the modern use of it. With 
them it includes not only fra¬ 
grant gums, as myrrh, and also 
roots and barks, as cassia, cinna¬ 
mon, cane, Ac., but the odours 
of flowers and various perfumes. 
(Sol. Song iv. 14^ 15.) Spices 
were imported into Judea chiefly 
from southern Arabia. Sweet 
spices (Mark xvi. 1) are merely 
aromatic substances used in em¬ 
balming. The word spices fully 
expressed the meaning of the 
original word without the ad¬ 
jective. 

SPIDER. (Job viii. 14.) A 
well-known insect of very singu¬ 
lar structure and habits. Its 
method of weaving its web—the 
thinness and frailty of which are 
strikingly emblematical of a false 
hope, and of the schemes of wick¬ 
ed men, (Isa. lix. 5,)—and the 
remarkable construction of itg 
foot so as to resemble a part of 
the human hand, will be found 
fully illustrated with engravings, 
Ac. in Bible Natural History, 
art. Spider. 

The expression in Prov. xxx. 
28, is supposed by some to refer 
to some other and larger animal; 
but the striking correspondence 
between the construction of the 
spider’s foot and the terms used 
623 



SPI 

to express its method of working, 
go far to establish the correct¬ 
ness of the present rendering. 

SPIKENARD. (John xii. 3-5.) 
A plant of the grass kind, of strong 
aromatic taste and smell, and 
found chiefly in India. The oint¬ 
ment made of the genuine Indian 
nard was very precious, (Mark 

xiv. 3,) a single pound costing, 
\a our Saviour’s day, what, in the 
modern value of money, would be 
upwards of forty dollars. Pro¬ 
fane history tells us that the 
crude vegetable was worth one 
hundred denarii (or nearly forty- 
five dollars) a pound, at Rome, 
in the time of Christ. Like other 
unguents and perfumes, it was 
carried in a box closely sealed, 
so as to be air-tight. Opening 
this seal is called breaking the 
box. 

SPIRIT. (Gen. vi. 3.) This 
term is often employed figura¬ 
tively by the sacred writers, and 
its import may be generally de¬ 
termined by its connection. 

The Holy Spirit is the title of 
that divine Being — the Com¬ 
forter, the Holy Ghost, plainly 
distinguished from the Father 
and the Son, (John xiv. 26; xvi. 
7, 8,) by whose influence the 
truth is received, understood, be¬ 
lieved and obeyed. He quickens 
those who are dea-d in trespasses 
and sins, purifies and sanctifies 
them, and thus prepares them to 
glorify God and enjoy him for¬ 
ever. (John xv. 1-6; Rom. v. 
5 ; viii. 16. See Discerning of 
spirits.) 

SPIRITUAL BODY. (1 Cor. 

xv. 44.) We are probably to un¬ 
derstand by this that the body 
which will be raised will be di¬ 
vested of all sensual and animal 
appetites; and while it will retain 

«24 


STA 

a bo Liy shape or form, it will be 
perfectly fitted for pure spiritual 
exercises and enjoyments, in per¬ 
fect unison with the redeemed 
and completely sanctified soul. 

SPOIL. (Ex. iii. 22.) The 
original word in this passage 
means to recover property taken 
away by violence. (1 Sam. xxx. 
22 .) 

SPONGE. (Matt, xxvii. 48.) 
A submarine substance, composed 
of fibres interwoven in a surpris¬ 
ing manner, and surrounded by 
thin membranes, which arrange 
themselves in a cellular form. It 
imbibes a great quantity of fluid, 
and parts with it upon a strong 
pressure. Drink could be easily 
conveyed in this form where cups 
could not be used. It is inhabit¬ 
ed by animals, like the coral, who 
use the openings of the sponge to 
suck in and throw out water. 

SPRINKLING, blood of. 
(Heb. xii. 24.) The Jewish high- 
priest, on the great day of atone¬ 
ment, carried blood into the inner 
sanctuary, and sprinkled it upon 
the mercy-seat. It was by this 
sprinkling of blood that an atone¬ 
ment was made for the holy place, 
because of the uncleanness of the 
children of Israel. (Lev. xvi. 16.) 
The blood of sprinkling was typi¬ 
cal of the atoning blood of Christ. 
When this has been applied tc 
the soul of the believer, he may 
approach the presence of a holy 
God, in the name of the great 
Advocate and Redeemer, confi¬ 
dent of a gracious reception. The 
blood of Abel, alluded to in the 
above passage from Hebrews, 
called only for vengeance, (Gen. 
iv. 10,11;) but the blood of Christ 
speaks of pardon, peace and eter¬ 
nal life. 

STACTE. (Ex. xxx. 34.) One 



ST A 

of the prescribed ingredients of 
th« sacred incense. It is ilie 
Greek name for the purest myrrh ; 
or that which flows freely from 
the tree without incision. 

STARS. (Deut. iv. 19.) Un¬ 
der the name of stars the Hebrews 
comprehended constellations, pla¬ 
nets and heavenly bodies; in¬ 
deed all luminaries, except the 
sun and moon. The psalmist, to 
exalt the power and omniscience 
of God, (Ps. cxlvii. 4,) describes 
him taking a survey of the stars 
as a king takes a review of his 
army, and knows the name of 
every one of his soldiers. To 
express a very extraordinary in¬ 
crease and multiplication, the sa¬ 
cred writers use the similitude of 
the stars of heaven, or of the sands 
of the sea. (Gen. xv. 5 ; xxii. 
17,* xxvi. 4; Ex. xxxii. 13, <fcc.) 

No part of the visible creation 
exhibits the giory of the Creator 
more illustriously than the starry 
heavens. (Ps. xix. 1.) When we 
seriously contemplate the moon 
and stars, the work of the fingers 
cf God, we cannot but be aston¬ 
ished that he should condescend 
to pay any attention to men. (Ps. 
viii. 3.) 

The star of Bethlehem, which 
appeared to the Magi, to direct 
them to the bii'thplace of the 
Messiah, was not a natural phe¬ 
nomenon, but evidently miracu¬ 
lous ; and when it had answered 
its purpose, it vanished. It is a 
fact, however, that of the fixed 
stars some have entirely disap¬ 
peared ; while others not marked 
in any catalogue have become 
visible where they could not 
have existed before without be- 
v j noticed. 

•Jesus Christ is called the Morn- 
*-*q Star, (Rev. xxii. 16,) as he 
53 2 


STE 

introduced the light of the gospel 
day, and made a fuller manifesta¬ 
tion of the truths of God than the 
prophets, whose predictions are 
now accomplished. 

STEEL. (Ps. xviii. 34.) The 
degree of strength and agility 
w'hich one possessed was often 
shown among the ancient nations 
in the use of the bow. The word 
rendered steel in this passage 
might (according to some critics) 
be more properly rendered copper. 
So of Job xx. 24. (Comp. Jer. xv. 
12; Ezek. xxvii. 19.) 

STEPHANAS (1 Cor. i. 16) 
was one of the earliest converts 
to Christianity in Corinth, (1 Cor. 
xvi. 15,) and received baptism at 
the hands of Paul. 

STEPHEN, (Acts vi. 5,) usually 
known as the first martyr, was 
one of the seven men of honest 
report who were elected, at the 
suggestion of the twelve apostles, 
to relieve them of a particular 
class of their labours. His cha¬ 
racter is given by the sacred his¬ 
torian as a man full of faith and 
of the Holy Ghost; and he was 
endowod, in a remarkable degree, 
with divine power and grace. 
(Acts vi. 8, 10.) His defence 
against the false and malicious 
charges of his opponents, (Acts 
vii. 2-53,) among whom was Saul 
of Tarsus, is a masterly exhibi¬ 
tion of truth; and so direct was 
its appeal to the consciences of 
the populace, that they were ex¬ 
cited to madness, (Acts vii. 54,) 
and fell upon Stephen like wild 
beasts, shouting, and stopping 
their ears; and after they had 
forced him beyond the walls of 
the city, (Lev. xxiv. 14,) they 
stoned him to death, Saul being 
present and conspicuous in this 
barbarous transaction. The last 
P 625 




STE 

oreath of the martyr was spent, 
like that of his divine Master, in 
prayer for the forgiveness of his 
murderers. It is worthy of re¬ 
mark that this prayer of Stephen 
is directed to the Lord Jesus, or 
rather it seems to be a continua¬ 
tion of the prayer respecting him¬ 
self which was addressed imme¬ 
diately to Christ; the word God 
in verse 59 of our translation not 
being in any ancient manuscript 
or version. 

STEWARD. (Gen. xv. 2.) The 
chief overseer of the household. 
(Comp. Gen. xxiv. 2, with passage 
first cited. See Eliezer, Joanna.) 

STOCKS. (Job xiii. 27.) The 
name of a machine or instrument 
by which the feet and arms of 
prisoners are secured. It is said 
that the jailerat Philippi, to whose 
custody Paul and Silas were com¬ 
mitted, with a strict charge to keep 
them safely, not only put them in 
an inner prison or dungeon, but 
made their feet fast in the stocks. 

The upper half being removed, 
each leg is placed, just above the 
ankle, in the groove of the lower 
half, and then the upper part is 
fastened down so as to confine 
them inextricably. The instru¬ 
ment for confining the hands is 
formed on the same principle. 

STOICS (Acts x'rii. 18) were a 
tect of heathen philosophers, 
much like the Pharisees,) who 
ook their rise from one Zeno, a 
Jyprian. It is said, he borrowed 
many of his opinions from the 
Jewish Scriptures; but it is cer¬ 
tain that Socrates and Plato had 
taught some of them before. The 
Greek word for porch is stoa, and 
from the circumstance of his 
teaching his scholars in a famous 
ublic portico or porch at Athens, 
is followers were called Stoics. 

626 


STO 

They generally taught, that it is 
wisdom alone that renders men 
happy; that the ills of life are 
but fancied evils; and that a wise 
man ought not to be moved eitbel 
with joy or grief: and in their 
practice they affected much pa¬ 
tience, austerity and insensi¬ 
bility. The Stoics were known 
for many ages, especially at 
Athens, where some of them 
encountered Paul. 

Of all the ancient sects, the 
Stoics were most strict in their 
regard to moral virtue. They 
believed in the unity of the Di¬ 
vine Being; the creation of the 
world by the Logos or Word, and 
a superintending providence ad¬ 
ministered in conformity with the 
will and purpose of God; but all 
their opinions were mingled with 
the grossest error. 

STON E. (Gen. xxxv. 14.) 
Houses of stone were as common 
among the Hebrews as among 
ourselves. The more elegant 
structures were built of hewn and 
squared stones. Amos says to 
the luxurious Israelites, Ye have 
built houses of hewn stone, but ye 
shall not dwell in them. (Amos 
v. 11.) When Solomon was about 
to raise the temple, he command¬ 
ed, and they brought great stones, 
costly stones, and hewed stones, to 
lay the foundation of the home, 
(1 Kings v. 17.) 

Stones were often used as we 
use knives, (Ex. iv. 25; Josh. v. 
2;) and we are told that stone 
knives were used by the Egyp¬ 
tians in preparing dead bodies 
for the process of embalming. 
The disciples of Christ are called 
stones, or lively (living) stones, 
(1 Pet. ii. 5,) in allusion to their 
connection with Christ, upon 
whom they are built up com- 



STO 

pactly together, as upon the one 
only foundation which God has 
laid, the living stone, (1 Pet. ii. 
4,) or the source of life. A heart 
of atone is a figurative expression, 
importing great hardness and im- 
penitency. A stone is sometimes 
put for an idol. (Ilab. ii. 19.) 
Heaps of stones were raised to 
mark some signal providence of 
God, in the way either of deliver¬ 
ance or punishment. (Josh. iv. 
4-7.) The weights of the Hebrews 
were also called stones. 

White stone, (Rev. ii. 17,) 
here, is supposed by many to be 
an allusion to the practice of some 
ancient nations of passing judg¬ 
ment on an accused person. Those 
in favour of acquitting him cast a 
white ball into an urn, and those 
who adjudged him guilty cast in a 
black ball; and if the number of 
the former exceeded that of the 
latter, the prisoner was discharged. 
Others think reference is made to 
the white stones which were given 
to conquerors in the Olympian 
games, with their names written 
upon them, and the value of the 
prize they won. So the new name 
mentioned in Isa. lxii. 2, may de¬ 
note the adoption of the individual 
into the family of God, by which 
he is admitted to privileges and 
blessings known only to him who 
possesses them. 

Stoning was the most gene¬ 
ral punishment inflicted on noto¬ 
rious criminals, and is usually 
meant where no other description 
of punishment is expressly men¬ 
tioned, as in Lev. xx. 10. Idola¬ 
ters, blasphemers, Sabbath-break¬ 
ers, incestuous persons, and stub¬ 
born or rebellious children, were 
liable to it. The culprit was led 
out of the city, and, as some nave 
lupposed, was bound. The wit- 


STO 

nesses against him were required 
to commence the werk of death 
and probably they divested them 
selves of clothing, that it might' 
be done more effectually. (Act* 
vii. 58.) At the murder of Ste 
phon they committed the custodj 
of their clothes to Saul, who wai 
not improbably, from his talents 
and ardour, a ringleader of the 
mob, and one of the most violent 
of the persecutors; and the mul¬ 
titude followed the example of 
the leaders, until the victim was 
beaten to death. It is said that 
the frequent taking up of stones 
by the Jews to throw at our Sa¬ 
viour, and the stoning of Stephen, 
(Acts vii. 59,) and of Paul, (Acts 
xiv. 19,) were vestiges of a pun¬ 
ishment called the rebels’ beating, 
inflicted by the mob, with fists, 
staves, or stones, on the excite¬ 
ment of the moment. 


STORK. (Jer. viii. 7.) A bird 
of passage, formed much like tho 



crane, but larger. It feeds oi 
insects and frogs, and was reck¬ 
oned among the unclean birds. 
(Lev. xi. 19.) It has long legs, 
with which it seeks food in 
marshes and watery places, and its 
bill is formed so as to retain lt.g 
slippery prey. It builds its nest 
627 






STO 

sometimes in frees, (Ps. civ. 17,) 
and sometimes in high ruined 
towers. Its name, in the Hebrew, 
means mercy, or piety; and its 
English name, taken (indirectly 
at least) from the Greek storge, 
signifies natural affection. This 
accords with our knowledge of 
its character, which is remark¬ 
able for tenderness, especially in 
the young towards tho old birds. 
An eminent naturalist tells us 
of a Dane, who related, from his 
own personal knowledge, facts 
which occurred in the southern 
part of Jutland, that the two pa¬ 
rent birds guard and feed the 
brood alternately, one always re¬ 
maining m the nest while the 
other goes for food; and after 
their young become old enough 
to fly, the parent birds bring them 
back at night, and long preserve 
the nest as their natural and pro¬ 
per home. The old birds teach 
their young with great care how 
to find and distinguish proper 
food. In the autumn they fly to 
a warm climate, and returning in 
the spring, betake themselves and 
families to their several nests. 
The people of the country often 
assemble to see them come, as 
there are certain superstitious ob¬ 
servances connected with their 
return; and it is not uncommon to 
see several of the old birds, which 
are tired and feeble with the long 
flight, supported at times on the 
backs of the young; and the pea¬ 
sants ?peak of it as well-known, 
that rich are carefully laid in 
their old nests, and cherished by 
the young ones whom they reared 
there the spring before. A mo¬ 
dern traveller speaks of the storks 
which build their nests in the 
old ruins of Pergamus, and he 
lays he saw their habits, and that 
628 


STR 

tho male bird would often cares* 
his mate before he left her, and 
then stretch his broad, snow-white 
wings, and fly away to provide 
for his faithful partner at home. 

STRANGER. (Gen. xv. 13.) 
This word has a variety of signi¬ 
fications in the sacred writings 
as, 1. One who is in a foreign 
land, at a distance from the place 
of his nativity. (Gen. xxiii. 4.) 
2. One who is not a Jew. (Ex. 
xx. 10; Isa. xiv. 1.) 3. One not 

of Aaron’s family. (Num. iii. 10 ; 

xvi. 40.) 4. One that is not of 

the royal stock and family. (Matt. 

xvii. 25, 26.) 5. Unknown, dis¬ 

regarded. (Ps. lxix. 8.) 

The Jewish laws had many pro¬ 
visions for the protection and com¬ 
fort of the stranger or foreigner. 
Those who are called strangers 
in 1 Chron. Scxii. 2, were proba¬ 
bly persons taken in war, and so 
by the custom of nations liable to 
any service imposed upon them. 
Hospitality to strangers is a duty 
enjoined by the sacred writers, 
both in precept and example. 
(Judg. xix. 15-20; Job xxxi. 32; 
1 Tim. v. 10 ; Ileb. xiii. 2.) 

STRAW. (Gen. xxiv. 25.) The 
straw wanted by the Jews for 
bricks (Ex. v. 7-18) was to lay 
them on when fresh moulded. 
For want of it their mould fell in 
pieces, and their work was vain. 

STREET. (Gen. xix. 2.) The 
streets of Oriental cities are usu¬ 
ally narrow. Mats are sometimes 
spread across from roof to roof to 
shade the streets from the sun. 
The streets were named as in mo¬ 
dern times, (Ezra x. 9; Acts ix. 
11;) but it is supposed that in 
other passages, (2 Chron. xxxii. 
6; Neh. viii. 1, 3, 16,) the word 
translated streets means squares, 
or open places around the gates. 




SL’3 

Moderi travellers often mention 
it as a common custom in the 
Eastern countries to sit in the 
streets. (1 Sam. iv. 13 ; Job xxix. 
7. See Bake, City.) 

SUBURBS. (See City.) 

SUCCOTH. (Josh. xii. 27; 
Judg. viii. 15.) The place men¬ 
tioned in Num. xxxiii. 5, was 
probably a resting-place for cara¬ 
vans to and from Egypt. In other 
passages, Succoth denotes a city 
or valley on the east of Jordan, 
between it and Jabbok, where 
Abraham pitched his tent on his 
return from Mesopotamia. (Gen. 
xxxiii. 17.) It was allotted to the 
tribe of Gad, and its inhabitants, 
for insolent language to Gideon, 
were severely punished by him. 
(Judg. viii. 15.) It is called the 
valley of Succoth, (Ps. lx. 6,) or 
booths, because of Jacob’s build¬ 
ing booths there for his cattle. 

SUKKIIMS. (2 Chron. xii. 3.) 
The name of a portion of the 
allies of Shishak, king of Egypt, 
in the invasion of Judea. They 
are supposed to have been a tribe 
of Ethiopians from the shores of 
the Red Sea. 

SUMMER. (See Seasons.) 

Summer-house. (See Dwell¬ 
ings.) 

SUPERSCRIPTION. (See 
Cross. ) 

SUPERSTITIOUS. (Acts xvii. 
22.) This term in the original is 
at best ambiguous. Perhaps it 
signifies nothing offensive, but 
simply that the Athenians were 
remarkably addicted to worship. 
They had more gods, more temples, 
more festivals, in short, more reli¬ 
gious observances, than the apos¬ 
tle had seen elsewhere; and he was 
about to tell them what he thought 
were errors in these services. 

SUPPER. (See Meals.) 

63 * 


SWA 

SUPPLICATION. (1 Tim. ii 
1-5.) It is supposed that the 
distinction made in this passage 
between prayers and supplica¬ 
tions is, that the latter rather re¬ 
spected the averting of threatened 
or the removal of inflicted judg¬ 
ments, and the former the bestow¬ 
ing of blessings. 

SURETY. (Heb. vii. 22.) 
Some have supposed that the 
word thus translated means one 
who draws nigh to God, or brings 
others nigh. Thus, as in Heb. vii. 
19, the apostle had spoken of the 
introduction of a better hope, by 
which we draw nigh unto God. S<r 
(ver. 22) he speaks of Jesus as 
him by whom ice draw nigh, thm 
denoting the effect of his media¬ 
tion. The word sponsor, pledge, 
or surety, is of equal significancy. 
The better hope had been men¬ 
tioned. If it were asked what 
security there is that it will be 
realized, it might be answered 
that Jesus is the surety of the 
dispensation which affords or sup¬ 
ports this hope. 

The danger of becoming surety 
for others is strongly represented. 
(Prov. vi. 1; xi. 15; xvii. 18; xx. 
16; xxii. 26.) The striking or 
joining of hands was a token of 
suretyship. (Job xvii. 3.) 

SWALLOW. (Prov. xxvi. 2.) 
A well-known bird of passage, 
whose instinctivo knowledge of 
its time of migration is used by 
the prophet (Jer. viii. 7) to re¬ 
prove the infidelity of the Jews. 
The allusion in Prov. xxvi. 2, 
probably signifies that the curses 
or imprecations of the wicked, 
when uttered against the inno¬ 
cent, pass away like the birds in 
their flight. The short, broken 
twittering of the swallow is al 
luded to, Isa. xxxviii. I4-. 

m 



SWA 


SW1 




The Swallow of the East . 


SWAN. (Deut. xiv. 16.) A 
large and very beautiful water- 
bird, unclean by the ceremonial 
law, (Lev. xi. 18,) though it is 
very doubtful if some other bird 
is not intended in this passage. 

SWEAR. (See Oath.) 

SWEARING, voice of. (Lev. 
v. 1.) The import of this expres¬ 
sion in the Hebrew is, “hear the 
voice of adjuration, execration, 
oath, or curse,” i.e. hears this 
voice when one is adjured or put 
upon his oath as a witness in ccurt. 
The precept unquestionably re¬ 
lates, not to the duty of informing 
against a common swearer, but to 
the case of one who is summoned 
to give evidence before the civil 
magistrate. Judges among the 
Jews had power to adjure not 
only the witnesses, but the per¬ 
sons suspected, as appears from 
the high-priest’s adjuring our Sa¬ 
viour, who thereupon answered, 
though he had before been silent. 
{Matt. xxvi. 63 ) If a person 
630 


heard the voice of swearing, i.e. if 
he were adjured by an oath of 
the Lord to testify what he knew 
in relation to any matter of fact 
in question, and yet, through fear 
or favour, refused to give evi¬ 
dence, or gave it but in part, he 
was to hear his iniquity. It seems 
to be implied that such a one 
should be considered in the sight 
of God as guilty of the transgres¬ 
sion which he has thus endeavour¬ 
ed to conceal. 

SWINE, (Deut. xiv. 8,) or hog, 
was unclean by the ritual law, 
and an object of utter abhorrence 
to the Jews. Hence the employ¬ 
ment of the prodigal son implies 
the most contemptible degrada¬ 
tion. (Luke xv. 15.) Eating the 
flesh of swine is mentioned among 
the sinful practices of the Jews. 
(Isa. lxv. 4; lxvi. 17.) The filthy 
habits of this animal illustrate 
one feature in the character of 
sinners. (2 Pet. ii. 22.) 

The herd of swine miraculously 




swo 

destroyed (Matt. viii. 32) perhaps 
belonged to Jews, and if so, were 
of course kept in violation of their 
own law. (Lev. xi. 7.) 

To cast pearls before swine 
(Matt. vii. 6) is not more vain 
and wasteful than to offer the 
words of truth and wisdom to 
those who are known to despise 
them, and who would only return 
the offer with insult and ^buse. 

SWORD. (See Arms.) 

SYCAMINE. (Luke xvii. 6.) 
A tree common in Egypt, and 
closely resembling the mulberry- 
tree in its general appearance. 

SYCAMORE. (Luke xix. 4.) 
A common tree in Judea, and the 
East generally. The name is ap¬ 
plied (though improperly) to our 
buttonwood, or plane-tree, and 
also to a species of maple. The 
sycamore of the Scriptures is the 
Egyptian fig-troe. Its fruit, which 
closely resembles figs, is much es¬ 
teemed, and the gathering of it 
was intrusted to special officers. 
(1 Chron. xxvii. 28 ; Amos vii. 14.) 
The wood was used for building, 
and though much less valuable 
than the cedar, (1 Kings x. 27 ; 
Isa. ix. 10,) was very durable. 
Egyptian coffins, made of syca¬ 
more-wood, have been found in a 
sound state after the (supposed) 
lapse of 3000 years. 

SYCHAR. (See Shechem.) 

SYCHEM. (See Shechem.) 

SYENE. (Ezek. xxix 10.) A 
very ancient city, on the southern 
frontier of Egypt, near the ruins 
of which is the modern city of 
Assooar, or Aswan. The site of 
Syene shows some granite co¬ 
lumns and a confused mixture of 
monuments. “ Here,” says a cele¬ 
brated modern geographer, “the 
Pharaohs and the Ptolemies raised 
the temples and the palaces which 


SYN 

are found half buried under the 
drifting sand. Here are the quar¬ 
ries from which the obelisks and 
colossal statues of the Egytian 
temples were dug. And on the 
polished surface of some of the 
native rocks are found hierogly¬ 
phic, sculptured representations 
of Egyptian deities." 

SYLYANUS. (See Silas.) 

SYRACUSE. (Actsxxviii. 12.) 
A wealthy and important city on 
the eastern coast of the island of 
Sicily. It was founded b.c. 730, 
and is distinguished as the birth¬ 
place of Archimedes. Syracuse 
was on the direct course from 
Malta to Rome, and the apostle 
stopped there two or three days. 
It is now called Syracusa, or Sy- 
ragossa, and contains about 18,000 
inhabitants. 

SYNAGOGUE. (Matt. xii. 9.) 
There is no conclusive evidence 
that stated meetings of the people 
for social religious services, or 
meetings for receiving public in¬ 
struction, were known among the 
Jews before the captivity. After 
that event such meetings became 
common, and were called syna¬ 
gogues. They were probably held 
at first in private houses or in the 
open air. After a time, however, 
buildings were erected expressly 
for their use, and these were 
called synagogues, signifying pro¬ 
perty the collection of worshippers, 
but figuratively the place of meet¬ 
ing Tradition says there were no 
less than four hundred and eighty 
of these buildings in the city of 
Jerusalem before it was subdued 
by the Romans. Probably this 
is an exaggeration. To build a 
synagogue was considered a deed 
of piety and public advantage. 
(Luke vii. 5.) They might be 
built in any place where there 
631 


i 



SYN 

were worshippers enough to asso¬ 
ciate for the purpose. There was 
some resemblance between the 
construction of these synagogues 
and that of the temple. The 
centre building, which was called 
the temple, was furnished with 
an ark, or chest, containing the 
copy of the law which was read. 
A low desk or pulpit was erected 
about the middle of the syna¬ 
gogue. Some of the seats were 
higher than others, and were as¬ 
signed to the elders. They were 
called chief or uppermost seats. 
(Matt, xxiii. 6.) Each synagogue 
had its proper officers. The coun¬ 
cil, to whom the supreme direc¬ 
tion belonged, consisted of elders, 
or aged and influential men. The 
president of this council was called 
the ruler, or chief ruler of the syna¬ 
gogue. (Mark v. 22; Acts xiii. 
15 ,* xviii. 8.) The rulers of the 
synagogue had power to excom¬ 
municate and to scourge offend¬ 
ers. (Matt. x. 17; John xvi. 2.) 
The putting one out of the syna¬ 
gogue was a punishment greatly 
dreaded by the Jews—much more 
than scourging. It would seem, 
also, that judicial proceedings 
were sometimes had in the syna¬ 
gogues, where certain offences 
were tried, the punishment of 
which was scourging. The stripes 
were inflicted under the direction 
of the tribunal, in the synagogue, 
(Acts xxii. 19; xxvi. 11,) by an 
appointed person. 

When the apostles were ex¬ 
cluded from the Jewish syna¬ 
gogues, they held their religious 
meetings in private houses. Hence 
we repeatedly hear of churches in 
houses. (Acts ii. 46; v. 42 ; Rom. 
xvi. 5; 1 Cor. x^i. 19 ; Col. iv. 15. 
See Biblical Antiquities, vol. ii. 
ch. viii., and Selumiel, eh. xi.) 
632 


SYR 

The service of the synagogue 
was as follows: The people being 
seated, the minister, or angel of 
the synagogue, ascended the pul¬ 
pit and offered up the public pray 
ers; the people rising from theii 
seats, and standing in a posture 
of deep devotion. (Matt. vi. 5; 
Mark xi. 25; Luke xviii. 11,13.) 
The prayers were nineteen in 
number, and w^re closed by 
reading the execration. The next 
thing was the repetition of their 
phylacteries; after which came 
the reading of the law and the 
prophets. The former was divid¬ 
ed into fifty-four sections, with 
which were united corresponding 
portions from the prophets, (see 
Acts xiii. 15, 27 ; xv. 21;) and 
these were read through once in 
the course of the year. After the 
return from the captivity, an in¬ 
terpreter was employed in read¬ 
ing the law and the prophets, 
(Neh. viii. 2-8,) who interpreted 
them into the Syro-Chaldaic dia¬ 
lect, which was then spoken by 
the people. The last part of the 
service was the expounding of 
the Scriptures, and preaching 
from them to the people. This 
was done either by one of the 
officers, or by some distinguished 
person who happened to be pre¬ 
sent. This happened with our 
Saviour, (Luke iv. 17-20,) and 
there are several other instances 
recorded of himself and his dis¬ 
ciples teaching in the synagogues. 
(Matt. xiii. 54; Mark vi. 2; John 
xviii. 20 ; Acts xiii. 5,15,44; xiv. 
1; xvii. 2-4, 10, 17 ; xviii. 4, 26; 
xix. 8.) The whole service con¬ 
cluded with a short prayer, or 
benediction. 

SYRIA. (2 Sam. viii. 12.) 
When Babylon, instead of Nine¬ 
veh, was the seat of supreme 














. 







‘ 










Jewish Synagogue. 

















































SYR 

power ; the words Babylonia and 
Chaldea were equivalent to As¬ 
syria, and comprehended two ex¬ 
tensive regions on opposite sides 
of the Euphrates. These are 
called by the sacred writers Aram 
beyond the river, (2 Sam. x. 16,) 
and Aram on this side of the river. 
To the former, by way of distinc¬ 
tion, the Greeks gave the name 
Assyria, and to the latter the 
name of Syria, of which Zobah 
first, and afterwards Damascus, 
(Isa. vii. 8,) was the capital. (See 
Assyria.) 

The word Syria, called in He¬ 
brew Aram, from a son of Shem, 
(Gen. x. 22,) in its largest ac¬ 
ceptation, extended from the 
Mediterranean and the river 
Cydnus to the Euphrates, and 
from mount Taurus on the north 
to Arabia and the border of Egypt 
on the south. It was divided in¬ 
to Syria Palestina, including 
Canaan and Phenicia, Ccelo-Syria, 
between two ridges of mount Le¬ 
banon, and Upper Syria. The 
last was known as Syria in a re¬ 
stricted sense. The kings of these 
provinces were engaged in fre¬ 
quent wars with the children of 
Israel, sometimes subject to them, 
sometimes independent, some¬ 
times opposed, and sometimes in 
alliance with them. Syria was 
successively subject to the Assy¬ 
rian, Babylonian, Persian, Mace¬ 
donian, Seleucidan, Roman and 
Mohammedan dominion, to which 
last it now belongs. 

The loading features ; n the 
physical aspect of Syria consist 
of the great mountainous chains 
of Lebanon, or Libanus, and Anti- 
Libanus, extending from north to 
south, and the great desert lying 
on the south-east and east. The 
▼alleys are of great fertility, and 


SYR 

yield abundance of gram, vines 
mulberries, tobacco, olives, ex¬ 
cellent fruits, as oranges, figs, 
pistachios, Ac. The climate, in 
the inhabited parts, is exceed¬ 
ingly fine. Syria is inhabited by 
various descriptions of people, 
but Turks and Greeks form the 
basis of the population in the 
cities. The only tribes that can 
be considered as peculiar to Syria 
are the tenants of the heights of 
Lebanon. The most remarkablt 
of these are the Druses and Ma- 
ronites. The general language ia 
Arabic: the soldiers and officers 
of government speak Turkish. 
Of the old Syriac no traces 
exist. 

No country was more celebrat¬ 
ed in antiquity than Syria. In 
the south-west was the land of 
promise, the country of the Is¬ 
raelites, and the cradle of Chris¬ 
tianity. Phenicia, particularly its 
cities of Tyre and Sidon, were 
famous for commerce. Damas¬ 
cus was long the capital of a 
powerful kingdom, and Antioch 
was once a royal residence, and 
accounted the third city in the 
world in wealth and population. 
Balbec and Palmyra still exhibit 
splendid ruins of their anciont 
greatness. Hero have the Assy¬ 
rians, Jews, Greeks, Parthians, 
Romans, Saracens, the Crusaders, 
and the Turks, struggled at dif¬ 
ferent periods for possession. 
Ninus, Semiramis, Sesostris, Al¬ 
exander, Pompey, Antony, Caesar, 
Titus, Aurelian, Ac .; at a later 
period, Godfrey of Bouillon, Rich¬ 
ard Coeur de Lion, Saladin, Ac.; 
and, still more recently, Napo¬ 
leon and Mohammed Ali, have 
in turn acted a part on the plains 
of Syria. Ignorance, superstition 
and barbarism now cover thr 
033 




SYR 

land, and no traces of its civiliza¬ 
tion remain but ruins. 

The Nestorians of the present 
day call themselves Syrian Chris¬ 
tians, because they use the an¬ 
cient Syriac in their forms of wor¬ 
ship ; and they possess the New 
Testament in this language. At 
present the Arabic language pre¬ 
vails in Syria, and the Bible is 
therefore within their reach. 

Syria is one of the most inte¬ 
resting fields of missionary effort 
known in our times. Within its 
limits are to be found nine-tenths 
of the scenes of the sacred history. 
It was the only homo for the 
church for thousands of years : it 
was the candlestick for the only 
light which shined in a dark 
world for nearly twenty centuries: 
all parts of it have been trodden 
by the feet of the Son of God, or 
Dy his prophets and apostles: 
scarcely a hill or a valley but has 
resounded with the songs of Mo¬ 
ses, of David, and of Isaiah; while, 
above all, here was shed that blood 
which taketh atony the sin of the 
world. The whole country is one 
vast living commentary on the 
word of God, spread out for the 
perusal of every age, and for the 
confusion of every skeptic. 

And if these countries are un¬ 
rivalled in the thrilling interest 
of their past history, they are 
equally so in the singular features 
of their present condition, and in 


SYR 

tho solemnity of their future ex¬ 
pectations. Palestine, robbed and 
spoiled, sits in desolate widow¬ 
hood amidst the dust and ruins 
of her former greatness; and the 
remnant of the Jewish nation* 
once the entire church of God, 
live like aliens and bond-servants, 
in the land of their fathers. Bui 
if we have not read tho word of 
God in vain, there is much of un¬ 
fulfilled prophecy and promise 
scattered along the whole track 
of revelation, which, touching 
and glancing on every age, throws 
a strong and cheering light over 
the happy future; and faith rests 
assured, that 

“ These ruins shall be built again, 

And all this dust shall rise.” 

The present number of inhabit¬ 
ants is variously estimated from 
800,000 to 2,500,000. Probably it 
does not differ far from 1,000,000. 
This last estimate is somewhat 
confirmed by the part of the cen¬ 
sus which has already been taken 
by the present new government. 

Several missionary stations have 
been advantageously taken. A 
large number of missionaries are 
now on the ground; several 
schools are established; and the 
success of their proceedings is 
encouraging. 

Syria-Maachah. The same 
with Aram-Maachah. (See Aram.) 

SYRO-PHENICIA. (See 

Phenicia.) 


TAA 

T AANACH, (Josh. xii. 21,) or 
TANACH, (Josh. xxi. 25,) 
was a city of Manasseh, though 
within the boundaries of I?sa- 
ohar. It was not far from Me- 
634 


TAB 

giddo, in connection with which 
it is usually mentioned. 

TABERAH. (Num. xi. 3.) An 
encampment of the Israelites in 
the wilderness of Harau. This 







TAB 

name was given to it to coji- 
memorate the judgment by fire 
that came on the people for their 
murmurings at this place. (Num. 
xi. 3-34.) 

TABERNACLE (Ex. xxv. 9) 
probably means a tent, or mova¬ 
ble dwelling-place. In this sense 
it is used, Num. xxiv. 5; Job xi. 
14; xxii. 23; Matt. xvii. 4; but, 
in the Scriptures generally, it is 
applied to the structure which 
was prepared by Moses, under 
the divine direction, for the Jews 
to worship in. The tabernacle of 
the congregation (Ex. xxxiii. 7) 
was erected by Moses for his own 
use. In it he gave audience to 
the people, heard and decided 
controversies, and sought divine 
direction. Probably the public 
offices of religion were also per¬ 
formed here, and hence the name. 
Another tabernacle was erected 
by David for the reception of the 
ark. (2 Sam. vi. 17 ; 1 Chron. xvi. 
1.) But the tabernacle, pre-emi¬ 
nently so called, was built, as 
above intimated, by Moses for 
God, partly to be the palace of 
his presence as the King of Is¬ 
rael, and partly as the place of 
the most solemn acts of public 
worship. It was constructed with 
extraordinary magnificence in 
every part, according to the ex¬ 
press instruction of Jehovah, and 
evidently with typical design and 
use. (lleb. ix. 1-8.) The means 
of building it were furnished in 
superabundance by the volu atary 
contributions of the people, (Ex. 
xxxv. 4-9; xxxvi. 3-7,) who had 
enriched themselves with the 
spoils of the Egyptians, which 
they were directed to take as a 
remuneration for their labour. 
(Ex. iii. 21, 22. See Spoil.) The 
oversight of the work was intrust- 


TAB 

ed to Bezaleel and Aholiab, who 
were endued with supernatural 
skill for that purpose. (Ex. xxxi. 
1-6.) The plan, size, materials, 
furniture, &c., to the most minute 
particular, were repealed to Moses 
in mount Sinai. (Ex. xxv. 9-40.) 
The whole space enclosed for the 
tabernacle was one hundred and 
fifty feet by seventy-five. This 
space was surrounded by fine 
linen curtains, nearly eight feet 
in height, and hung from brazen 
(or copper) pillars. They were 
secured by rods or cords attach¬ 
ed to the top, and stretched so as 
to fasten to wooden or metal pins 
in the ground, as represented in 
the annexed cut. Twenty of those 



pillars or columns were on each 
side, and ten on each end. The 
entrance or gate of the court was 
closed with a curtain of different 
colour and texture from the rest, 
stretched on four of the pillars, 
and so hung as to be drawn up or 
let down at pleasure. (Ex. xxvii, 
9-18.) 

At the upper part of this en¬ 
closure, and facing the entrance, 
was the tabernacle properly so 
635 





































TAB 

called-; represented in its proper 
place in the preceding cut, and in a 
more distinct form on this page. 
This tabernacle proper was forty- 
five by fifteen feet, and fifteen feet 
high. The sides and rear were en¬ 
closed with boards, and the front 
was open. Over the top was thrown 
a rich, gorgeous fabric, of various 
materials, the connection and dis- 
nosition of which, as well as of 
the other parts of the covering, 
are prescribed with the utmost 
minuteness. (Ex. xxvi. 1-30.) 
The entrance or door of the taber¬ 
nacle was covered with a beauti¬ 
fully embroidered curtain, sus¬ 
pended on five columns. The 
interior was subdivided into two 
apartments, and separated, each 
from the other, by a richly wrought 
curta/.n hanging entirely across, 
and leaching from the top to the 
bottom. This was called the vail, 
or second vail, (Heb. ix. 3,) be¬ 
cause the first entrance was also 
curtained. The outer apartment 



was called the holy place, or sanc¬ 
tuary, or the Jirst tabernacle, and 
the inner was the second taber¬ 
nacle, or tne most holy place, or 
the holiest of all. (Heb. ix. 2-8.) 

As to the furniture of the court, 
there were—(1.) The altar of 
burnt-offering , which stood near 

m 


TAB 

the 3entre of the enclosure. (Sec 
Altar.) (2.) The brazen taver , 
(Ex. xxx. 18, corresponding to 
the molten sea, 1 Kings vii. 23,) 
which stood between the altar 
and the tabernacle, in its shape 
resembling an urn. It contained 
water for washing the hands and 
feet of the priests, when they were 
about to enter the sanctuary. 

As to the furniture of the taber¬ 
nacle itself, there was—(1.) The 
golden candlestick, standing on 
the left of a person entering the 
sanctuary. (See Candlestick.) 
(2.) The table of shew-bread, op¬ 
posite to the candlestick. (See 
Shew-Bread.) (3.) The altar 
of incense, between the shew- 
bread and the candlestick, and 
in front of the ark, (see Altar ;) 
and (4.) The ark of the covenant. 
(See Ark.) 

The tabernacle and its court 
were finished with perfect exact¬ 
ness, according to the pattern or 
model supornaturally revealed to 
Moses. (Heb. viii. 5.) And it is 
estimated that the silver and gold 
used in its construction (to say 
nothing of the brass or copper, 
the wood, the curtains and cano¬ 
pies, the furniture, Ac.) amounted 
to an almost incredible sum at 
the present value of the precious 
metals. 

When it was finished, it was 
consecrated, with very solemn 
and imposing rites to the service 
of Jehovah. (Ex. xxx. 23-33; 
xl. 9-11; Heb. ix. 21.) 

While passing through the wil¬ 
derness, the tabernacle was al¬ 
ways pitched in the midst of the 
camp. The tents of the priests 
and Levites surrouudoa tt in ap¬ 
pointed order; and, at some dis¬ 
tance from them, the residue of 
the tribes in four great divisions, 














TAB 

consisting of three tribes each, 
and each division with its appro¬ 
priate name ard standard or ban¬ 
ner. (Num. ii. 2-29.) The taber- 
naclo and its furniture were so 
constructed as to be conveniently 
taken down, transported,*and set 
up again ; and particular indivi¬ 
duals or classes had their respec¬ 
tive duties assigned to them. 
Every encampment and removal, 
and even the order of the march, 
were directed expressly by Jeho¬ 
vah. On the day the tabernacle 
was completed, God revealed him¬ 
self in a cloud, which overshadow¬ 
ed and filled it. By this cloud 
assuming the shape of a pillar or 
column, their subsequent course 
was governed. When it rested 
over the tent, the people always 
•estcd; and when it moved, the 
..abernacle was taken down, and 
the whole host followed wherever 
it led. In the night this cloud 
became bright like a pillar of fire, 
and preceded them in like man¬ 
ner. (Ex. xl. 35-38; Num. ix. 
15-23.) When the journeyings 
if the people were ended, and 
they entered Canaan, the tuber- ' 
nacle was erected at Gilgal, (Josh, i 
^v. 19,) where it continued until 
dia country was subdued, and 
then it was removed to Shiloh, 
(1 Sam. i. 3,) where it stood be¬ 
tween throe hundred and four 
hundred years. It was thence 
removed to Nob, (1 Sam. xxi. 
1-9,) and thence, in the reign of 
David, to Gibeon, (1 Chron. xxi. 
29,) where it was at the com¬ 
mencement of Solomon’s reign, 
(2 Chron. i. 1-13;) and when the 
temple was finished, the sacred 
fabric, with its vessels and furni¬ 
ture, was removed into it. (See 
Temple. See also Biblical An¬ 
tiquities, vol. ii. chap.ii.; Scrip- 
54 


TAB 

TURE Illustrations, vol. i. pp 
88-123; and Evening Recrka 
tions, vol. iv. pp. 16-28.) 

The worshippers of the heathen 
gods had tabernacles, (Amos v. 
26,) the idea of which they pro¬ 
bably took from the Jews. These 
tabernacles were probably port¬ 
able, carried upon the shoulders, 
and contained the idol. 

Tabernacle op witness. 
(Num. xvii. 7, 8,) Tabernaclh 
op testimony. (Ex. xxxviii. 21.) 
These terms may refer to the law, 
which was deposited in the taber¬ 
nacle, and which testified to God’s 
authority and holiness, (Ex. xxv. 
21;) or they may refer to the re¬ 
velations which God made of him¬ 
self in the tabernacle, and by 
which he testified his presence 
and majesty in Uie most sublime 
and mysterious manner. 

Tabernacles, feast of. (See 
Feasts.) 

TABITHA, or DORCAS. (Acts 
ix. 3f ) An exemplary disciple 
of Christ at Joppa, whose deeds 
of benevolence had greatly en¬ 
deared her to the people. (Acts 
j ix. 39.) After she was dead, and 
! her body prepared for the grave, 
she was miraculously restored to 
life through the instrumentality 
of Peter. 

TABLE. (1 Sam. xx. 29.) 
The table of ancient times was 
nothing but a circular skin, or 
piece of leather, spread upon the 
matted or carpeted floor; and 
this, at home as well as by tho 
way, answered for table and cloth. 
Near the edges of this leathern 
tray, there are holes, or loops, 
through which, when the meal is 
completed, a cord is drawn, by 
means of which the whole affair is 
compressed into a small compass, 
and hung upon a nail. Some have 
637 




TAB 

thought thi t this is the pavilion 
mentioned in Jer. xliii. 10. (See 
Bread.) 

The nearest approach to what 
we call a table is a mere stool, 
which is placed in the centre of 
the leather we have mentioned. 
This might be intended in Judg. 

1. 7. Its only use is to hold the 
principal dish or dishes. There 
have been seen among the Ara¬ 
bian nobles, and in cities, long 
tables. These, however, were only 
a span high, and not a yard wide, 
and were entirely uncovered, and 
usually held nothing but the 
dishes. More frequently all such 
conveniences are wanting, and the 
dishes stand on the leather. 

Instead of a table-cloth, there 
is spread round the leathern tray 
a long cloth, or two such cloths, 
of a dark colour, which prevent 
the soiling of the carpet. Among 
poorer people there is nothing of 
the kind, and every one uses his 
handkerchief, by way of napkin. 
Instead of plates, there are set 
thin, round cakes, of a coarse 
kind. (See Omar, pp. 30, 31.) 

After the captivity, raised tables 
like ours became common, and the 
Persian practice of reclining on 
couches at meals was introduced. 
(For the manner of sitting, see 
Seats, Eat.) 

To SERVE TABLES. (Acts vi. 

2. ) This expression may denote 
attention to the pecuniary or se¬ 
cular affairs of the church, (Matt, 
xxi. 12, and xxv. 27,) or it may 
relate to the oversight of the dis¬ 
tribution of the charity of the 
church for the relief of the poor 

Writing table. (See Book.) 

TABLET. (See Book.) 

TABOR, mount. (Judg. iv. 6.) 
A limestone mountain which rises 
on the northern border of the 
«38 


TAB 

I plain of Esdraelon, about fifty 

1 miles north of Jerusalem, and 
six from Nazareth. Its shape re¬ 
sembles a cone with the point 
struck off, the summit presenting 
a level area a quarter of a mile in 
length and the eighth of a mile 
in breadth. This area was once 
enclosed, and probably fortified, 
as there are the ruins of a thick 
wall of solid masonry and bastions 
all around the circumference of 
it, and the foundations of private 
dwellings within. The height of 
the mount is variously estimated 
from one thousand feet to three 
miles. By some the estimate is 
made from the time taken to as¬ 
cend, and by others from the 
actual measurement of the cir¬ 
cuitous path, which may be pur¬ 
sued on horseback even to the 
summit. The declivities on every 
side are covered to the very top 
with verdure and clumps of trees, 
(oaks, olives and sycamores,) in¬ 
terspersed with a rich variety of 
plants and flowers. The view 
from the summit of Tabor is de¬ 
scribed by all travellers in terms 
of the highest admiration. It 
overtops all the neighbouring 
hills. (Jer. xlvi. 18.) On the west 
is the noble expanse < f the Medi¬ 
terranean. Beneath are spread 
the beautiful plains of Esdraelon 
aud Galilee, while in the distance 
appear Carmel, and the height* 
of Samaria and Gilboa. East¬ 
ward, thirty miles off, is the sea 
of Tiberias; and north are the 
snow-covered peaks of Lebanon. 
The modern name of Tabor is 
Djebel Toor. 

On this mountain, Barak en¬ 
camped with ten thousand of the 
men of Zebulon and Naphtali, on 
the eve of the battle with Sisera, 
(Judg. iv. 6, 12, 14 j) and here. 



TAB 

recording to tradition, was the 
wonderful scene of the trans¬ 
figuration of Christ. (Matt. xvii. 

10 

An American missionary as¬ 
cended this mountain in the 
autumn of 1823, and spoaks of 
the summit as “ a lovely spot, and 
one on which every man, even if 
without any feelings of devotion, 
would love to linger. It resem¬ 
bles the centre of one immenso 
garden." The woody parts of 
the mountain abound in some 
species of wild beasts, and have 
ever been a resort for hunters 
and fowlers. (Hos. v. 1. For a 
more particular description and 
accurate engraving of this cele¬ 
brated mountain, see Views of 
Palestine, p. 20 ; see also Even¬ 
ing Recreations, vol. ii. pp. 
13-18, and Elis am A, pp. 143- 
145.) 

TABRET, (Gen. xxxi. 27,) an 
instrument of music used in the 
East at the present day, and 
called dift, was formed and play¬ 
ed like the modern tambourine. 

T A C II E S (Ex. xxvi. 6, 11) 
were hooks or clasps of gold and 
copper, used in connecting the 
curtains of the tabernacle. 

TACKLING. (Isa. xxxiii. 23 
Acts xxvii. 19.) Strictly, in the 
former passage, it is used for the 
ropes attached to the mast; in 
the latter, it is used loosely, and 
imports the sails, cordage, bag¬ 
gage, and indeed all the instru¬ 
ments of sailing except the an¬ 
chors, or what was indispensable 
to the preservation of the ship. 

T A D M 0 R, (1 Kings ix. 18,) 
signifying palm-tree. An ancient 
city, said to have been founded 
by Solomon, and one of the finest 
and most magnificent cities of the 
world. It was situated about one 


TAD 

hundred miles east of Damascus, 
twenty west of the Euphra tes, and 
one hundred and twenty from 
Aleppo, on a kind of island, sepa¬ 
rated from the habitable earth by 
a vast expanse of barren sands. 
Alexander the Great, who con< 
quered it, gave it the name of Pal¬ 
myra, or the city of palms, because 
of its position amid pairn groves. 
There is extant a folio volume 
with fifty plates, illustrating the 
ruins of this ancient city. Its 
desolate situation in the midst o» 
a vast and arid plain; its high 
antiquity, and its almost count¬ 
less remains of architectural splen¬ 
dour, claim for it the first atten¬ 
tion among the famous monuments 
of past ages. At present, it may 
be said to consist of a forest of 
Corinthian pillars, erect and 
fallen. So numerous are they, 
that the spectator is at a loss to 
reduce them to any order, or to 
conceive for what purpose they 
were designed. “ In the space 
covered by these ruins," says a 
celebrated modern traveller, “ we 
sometimes find a palace of which 
nothing remains but the court and 
the walls; sometimes a temple 
whose peristyle is half thrown 
down; and then a portico or gal¬ 
lery, or triumphal arch. Here 
stood groups of columns whose 
symmetry is destroyed by the fall 
of some of them; there we see 
them ranged in rows of such 
length, that like rows of trees 
they deceive the sight, and as¬ 
sume the appearance of solid 
walls. And if we cast our eyes 
on the ground, we behold nothing 
but subverted shafts, some above 
others shattered to pieces, or dis¬ 
located in their joints. And 
whichever way we look, the oarth 
is strewed with vast stones half 
639 




TAH 

Duried, with broken entablatures, 
mutilated friezes, disfigured relics, 
effaced sculptures, violated tombs, 
and altars defiled by dust.” Of 
all the ruins those of the temple 
of the sun are the most magnifi¬ 
cent. 

Situated on the great com¬ 
mercial thoroughfare between 
Syria and Mesopotamia, it is pro¬ 
bable that Tadmor was a place of 
importance long before the time 
of Solomon, and was used by him 
for purposes of commercial enter¬ 
prise. It is very obvious that the 
present ruins belong to different 
and far distant ages. The place 
is now occupied by some twenty 
or thirty huts or hovels, which 
afford shelter to a few wild Arabs. 

TAHAPANES, (Jer. ii. 16,) 
TEIIAPHNEHES, (Ezek. xxx. 
18,) TAIIPANHES, (Jer. xliii. 
7,) or HANES. (Isa. xxx. 4.) 
These several names were given 
to av. Egyptian city, known to 
the Greeks as Daphne , not far 
from Pelusium. It seems to have 
been an important place, contain¬ 
ing a palace of the king. (Jer. 
xliii. 9.) Thither the Jews under 
Johananfled from the Chaldeans, 
after the destruction of Jerusa¬ 
lem; but were pursued by Nebu¬ 
chadnezzar, king of'Babylon, who 
established his throne there, in 
accordance with Jeremiah’s pro¬ 
phecy. Jeremiah is supposed to 
have died there. 

TALENT. (See Measures.) 

TALITHA CUMI. (Mark v. 
41.) A phrase in the Syrian- 
Chaldaic language, the literal 
translation of which is given by 
the evangelist: Damsel , (or maid¬ 
en,) arise. 

TAM MUZ. (Ezek. viii. 14.) 
Probably the same with the 
Adonis of Grecian mythology; 

640 


TAR 

a pagan idol, the rites of whoso 
worship were in the highest de¬ 
gree obscene. (See Jealousy, 
idol of. Month.) 

TAPESTRY. (Prov. xxxi 
22.) Cloth woven or wrought 
with figures. 

TAPPUAH. (Josh. xv. 34.) 
There were evidently two cities 
of this name; one in the low 
country of Judah, towards the 
Mediterranean ; the other belong¬ 
ing to Ephraim, on the border 
of Manasseh, and most probably 
the En-tappuah of Josh. xvii. 7. 

TARES. (Matt. xiii. 25.) This 



term, as used in the Bible, is sup¬ 
posed to mean the darnel grass, 
now known in Eastern countries. 
Its resemblance to wheat is very 
exact, but some of its properties 
are highly pernicious. Travellers 
describe the process of pulling up 
this grass, and separating it from 
the genuine grain, and their de¬ 
scriptions perfectly accord with 
the language o_ our Saviour in 
the parable. Perhaps, however, 
he referred to any noxious weed 
which is suffered to grow with 
the grain for the sake of the 
latter, until the time of harvest, 
and is then sure to be separated 
and cast away. 

TARGET. (See Armour.) 





TAR 

TARSHISH, (Isa. xxiii. 1,) or 
THARSHISH. (1 Kings x. 22.) 
It is supposed that some place of 
this name existed on the eastern 
coast of Africa, or among the 
southern ports of Asia, with 
which the ships of Hiram and 
Solomon traded in gold and sil- 
ter, ivory and apes, and peacocks. 
(2 Chron. ix. 21.) It is said that 
once in every three years these 
ships completed a voyage, and 
brought home their merchandise. 
Hence, it is inferred, the place 
with which they traded must 
have been distant from Judea; or 
(and this idea is confirmed by the 
variety which was imported) that 
after visiting Tarshish, and pro¬ 
curing what it furnished, they 
traded with other and more dis¬ 
tant ports, and accomplished the 
whole in three years. The more 
rational hypothesis is, that in that 
age of the world, in those seas, 
and on that coast, a voyage of 
three years would not necessarily 
imply a great distance from port 
to port. Ophir was perhaps in 
the land of Tarshish ; and it is 
not improbable, that from the 
value of its productions, and the 
extent of its commerce, vessels 
trading in that direction, and al¬ 
ways touching there, would be 
called ships of Tarshish. The 
vessels given by Hiram to Solo¬ 
mon, and those built by Jehosba- 
phat, to go to Tarshish, were all 
launched at Eziongeber, at the 
northern extremity of the eastern 
gulf of the Red Sea, now called 
the gulf of Ahaba. (2 Chron. xx. 
36.) The trade of Dphir and 
Tarshish, wherever these places 
were situated, is generally ad¬ 
mitted to be what is now called 
the East India trade. 

There appears also to have been 
54* 


TAV 

a place of this name soraewheie 
on the Mediterranean, to which 
Jonah intended to flee; perhaps 
Tartessus, of Spain. (Jonah i. 3 • 
iv. 2.) Or we may suppose this 
name to have been originallj 7 ap¬ 
plied to Tartessus, (to which it is 
evidently similar,) and afterwards 
used to express any distant port. 
(See Ships, Tarsus.) 

TARSUS, (Acts xxi. 39,) the 
chief town of the ancient Cilicia, 
and the birthplace of the apostle 
Paul, was situated on the river 
Cydnus, about six miles from its 
mouth, and like Alexandria, was 
celebrated both for its commerce 
and literature. When Cilicia be¬ 
came a Roman province, Tarsus 
received from the emperor Augus¬ 
tus the privileges of a Roman 
colony. Hence Paul speaks of 
himself as free-born, and claims 
the immunities of a Roman citi¬ 
zen. (Acts xxii. 28.) The privi¬ 
leges of this city made it the re¬ 
sort of many wealthy and learned 
men, and was the occasion of its 
rising to great commercial emi¬ 
nence, and to be highly distin¬ 
guished as a seat of learning. In 
regard to the latter, profane his¬ 
torians say that in philosophy 
and polite learning, the schools 
of Tarsus excelled even those of 
Athens and Alexandria. Paul 
was indebted to his native city 
not only for his privileges of Ro¬ 
man citizenship, but for his lite¬ 
rary acquirements. Tarsus was a 
very ancient town, and, as some 
suppose, derived its name from 
Tarshish, one of the sons of Javan. 
(Gen. x. 4.) It is now poor and 
dilapidated, though it has a popu¬ 
lation of 30,000, and some com¬ 
merce. Its modern naic e is Tar sous 
TAVERNS. (See Threb 
Taverns.) 

641 

1 : J 


2 Q 



TEA 

TEARb. (Ps. lvi. 8.) Allusion 
'is supposed to be made in this 
passage to an ancient custom, 
which was preserved among the 
Romans, of collecting tne falling 
tears of mourners at funerals, and 
putting them into a bottle, or urn, 
called a lacrymatory, or tear-bottle. 
These vessels were afterwards 
fixed upon the sepulchres of the 
dead, thus seeming to preserve a 
memorial of the affection and 
grief of the survivors. 

TEBETH. (See Month.) 

TEETH. (See Tooth.) 

TEHAPIINEHES. (See Ta- 

HAPANES.) 

TEIL-TREE. (Isa.vi.13.) 
Though the original word in this 
passage is rendered oak, it is 
generally supposed, from the con¬ 
nection, that the lime, or linden, 
is here meant. Perhaps two dif¬ 
ferent species of the oak may be 
intended. 

TEKEL. (See Mene.) 

TEKOA, (2 Chron. xi. 6,) or 
TEKOAII. (2 Sam. xiv. 2.) A 
city of Judah, south-east of Jeru¬ 
salem, and a few miles from Beth¬ 
lehem. It was probably founded 
by Ashur, (1 Chron. ii. 2; iv. 5,) 
and was fortified by Rehoboam. 
(2 Chron. xi. 6.) This seems to 
have been a spot resorted to by 
Jierdsmen, among whom was 
Amos the prophet. (Amos i. 1.) 
It was here too that Joab obtained 
a woman of pecular skill and ad¬ 
dress to present a fictitious case 
to David, in order to force from 
him a favourable judgment in the 
parallel case of Absalom. David, 
however, detected the hand of 
Joab in the whole device. 

Wilderness of, was in the 
same region, and constituted part 
af the wilderness of Judah. Here 
Jehoshnphat dofeated the Am- 
642 


TEM 

monites and Moabites. (2 Chron. 
xx. 20.) 

TELABIB. (Ezek. iii. 15.) A 
town on the river Chebar, where 
Ezekiel and many of the Jewish 
exiles dwelt. Its site is supposed 
to be occupied by the modern 
Thelabar. 

TEM AN. (Amos i. 12.) A 
city of Edom, not far from Jok- 
theel, supposed to have been 
settled by Teman, grandson of 
Esau. (Gen. xxxvi. 11.) In Hab. 
iii. 3, allusion is made, in the 
highest grade of poetic imagery, 
to the removal of the symbols of 
the divine presence from the land 
of Teman and Paran to Sinai. 
(Ex. xix. See Edom.) 

TEMPLE. (1 Sam. i. 9.) The 
sacred edifice erected at Jerusa¬ 
lem as a permanent place of wor¬ 
ship for the Jewish church. Ir 
its general form it resembled the 
tabernacle, for which it was sub¬ 
stituted, and it was the centre of 
the same groat system of cere¬ 
monial worship. (See Taber¬ 
nacle.) The temple was built 
on mount Moriah. (2 Chron. iii. 
1.) This was one summit of a 
range of hills, the general name 
of which was mount Zion. (Ps. 
cxxxii. 13,14. See Jerusalem.) 
The idea of buildiag it was sug¬ 
gested to the mind of David, 
(1 Chron. xvii. 1,) and became a 
subject of his lively and unceas¬ 
ing interest. He collected what 
was equal to forty-eight thousand 
tons of gold and silver, or, af 
some have estimated tho amount, 
$35,520,000,000, (the lowest es¬ 
timates give one-fifth of this 
amount;) besides immense quan¬ 
tities of brass, iron, stone, timber, 
Ac.; and he secured skilful me¬ 
chanics and artificers for every 
branch of the work. (1 Chron. 




TEM 

«ii. 14; xxix. 4, 7.) He also 
furnished the design, plan and 
location of the building, in all 
which he w r as divinely instructed. 
(1 Chron. xxi.; xxii.; xxviii. 11- 
19.) He was not permitted, how¬ 
ever, to see a single step taken in 
its erection. (1 Kings v. 3.) The 
superintendence of the building 
was committed to Solomon, the 
son and successor of David, who 
oi the fourth year of his reign 
commenced the work. There 
were 183,600 Jews and strangers 
employed on it; of Jews, 30,000, 
by rotation 10,000 a month ; of 
Canaanites, 153,600, of whom 
70,000 were bearers of burdens, 
80,000 were hewers of wood and 
stone, and 3600 overseers. The 
parts were all prepared at a dis¬ 
tance from the site of the building, 
and when they were brought to¬ 
gether, the whole immense struc¬ 
ture was erected without the sound 
of hammer, axe, or any tool of 
iron, (1 Kings vi. 7,) and at the 
end of seven and a half years it 
stood complete in all its splendour, 
the glory of Jerusalem, and the 
most magnificent edifice in the 
world. 

The temple, like the tabernacle, 
had its front towards the east. 
The porch, or portico, extended 
across the whole front, projecting 
fifteen feet from the main build¬ 
ing, and rising to the height of 
one hundred and eighty feet. 
Upon the sides and rear of the 
main building was an additional 
building cf three stories, each 
nearly eight teet high. This 
structure was about half the 
height of the temple, and though 
built against the walls, was not 
fastened into them. (1 Kings vi. 
6.) It was divided into apart¬ 
ments like chambers, which open- 


TEM 

ed into the gallery that surrounded 
it. There was a flight of stairs 
on the south side which led into 
the second story, and another 
leading from the second to the 
third. (1 Kings vi. 8.) The wholo 
building and its environs were 
entered by two courts. The in¬ 
ner court, called the court before 
the temple, or the court of priests, 
corresponded generally with the 
court of the tabernacle, as did 
also the sacred apartments, fur¬ 
niture and utensils. 

The engraving on the follow¬ 
ing page represents (in outline) 
the temple and its various courts, 
as described by Jewish historians 
and antiquaries. 

The temple of Solomon stood, 
altogether, four hundred and 
twenty-four years; but in the 
short space of thirty years after 
its completion, it was plundered 
by Shishak, king of Egypt. (1 
Kings xiv. 25, 26.) After this it 
was frequently profaned and pil¬ 
laged, and was at last broken 
down and destroyed by the king 
of Babylon, b.c. 588, and the na¬ 
tion itself carried into captivity. 
In fifty-two years after these 
events, a number of the Jews 
returned, and the rebuilding of 
the temple was commenced under 
the superintendence of Zerubba- 
bel, the Jewish governor, and Jo¬ 
shua, or Joshua, the high-priest 
They were permitted and en¬ 
couraged to undertake it by Cy¬ 
rus, the Persian emperor, to whom 
Judea had now become tributary. 
(Isa. xliv. 28; xlv. 13.) Much in¬ 
terruption and delay attended the 
enterprise, of which we have a 
full account in the book, of Ezra. 
It was completed, however, and de¬ 
dicated b.c. 515, or about seventy- 
three years after the destruction 
643 








TEM 

«f it; and though inferior in 
many respects to the first temple, 
having no ark, no mercy-seat, no 
visible revelation of the divine 
glory, no sacred fire, no urim and 
thummim, and no spirit of pro- 


TEM 

phecy, (Ezra iii. 12, 13;) still it 
was in breadth and height twice 
the size of Solomon's. It fur 
nished a fixed place of worship 
for the nation, and ultimately 
became the theatre of far more 


West. 



«44 





























































































TEM 

A The outer wall. 

B The gates in the outer wall. 

C The gate Shushan, which is called the 
gate of the king. (1 Chron. ix. 18.) 

D Gate of Huldah. 

E Another gate of the same name. 

F The gate Tedi. 

G Solomon’s porch. (John x. 23.) 

H Court of the Gentiles. 

I The enclosure, or outer verge of the 
court, within which none but Jews 
might come, called the outer court, or 
court of the women. 

K The temple itself. 

L The foundation of the temple. 

M The flight of steps to the temple. 

N The columns called Jachin and 
Boaz. 


TEM 

P The vestibule, jr porch of the temple, 

Q The holy place. 

K The most holy place. 

S A court on each side of the temple, 
which separated the people from the 
court of the priests. 

V The brazen laver. 

W Ten brazen vessels, five on each side, 
(1 Kings vii. 38, 39,) where the sacri- 
fices were washed before they were 
brought to the altar. 

X The great altar of burnt-offerings. 

Y Twenty-four rings, to which the ani¬ 

mals were fastened that were design¬ 
ed for sacrifice. 

Z Eight marble tables, on which the slain 
animals were laid to be prepared for 
the altar. 


a Eight small marble columns, on which 
the slain animals were suspended. 

1 Gazith, the room or court where the 
great sanhedrim or Jewish court held 
its sessions. 

e Another part of the same court, where 
the priests’ courses were distributed 
by lot. 

d The place where was distributed all the 
wood required for the use of the 
temple. 

$ The court or chamber of the wheels, 
where the water for the officers of the 
temple to drink was drawn up by 
means of a wheel. 

/The gate of burnt-offering, through 
which the wood was brought. 

g The gate of firstlings, through which 
the firstlings were brought to be of¬ 
fered up. 

h The water gate. 

t Barriers to prevent the overlooking of 
the temple. 

1c The kitchen, in which that portion of 
the sacrifices which were designed for 
the priests was prepared for their \ise. 

I The court of the lambs, where eight 
lambs were kept for the daily sacrifice. 

wi The court of fire, where fire was con¬ 
stantly preserved. 


n The court of shew-bread, where the 
shew-bread w as prepared in the 
evening before the Sabbath. 
o The court in which was distributed oil 
or wine for the sacrifices. 
p The fire gate, leading to the place 
where the guards of the priests were, 
and where was a fire for the priests* 
use. 

q The gate of sacrifices, through which 
the sacrifices were carried into the 
inner court. 

r The gate of the singers, near to the 
singing Levites. 

s The washing gate, where the sacrifices 
were washed preparatory to being 
taken to the altar. 

t Parbar, or court gate, where the skins 
of animals were taken off and salted. 
u The chamber of salt. 
to The court of the priests, twenty-five 
feet wide and two hundred and sixty 
long. 

x Two tables, one of silver and the other 
of marble, near the altar of burnt- 
offering, containing ninety-three 
golden vessels. 

y Ash vessels, designed to receive the 
ashes of the consumed sacrifices. 
z A cistern of water. 


1 The court of the Israelites. 

2 The throne of Solomon. (2Chron.vi.13.) 

3 The place where the half-shekel tax 

was received. (Ex. xxx. 13.) 

4 The outer court of the women. 

6 The gate of Nicanor, called the higher 
gate, (2 Kings xv. 35,) and the new 
gate. (Jer. xxxvi. 10.) 

6 A court for the feast of tabernacles. 

7 Pulpit of the high-priest, from which a 

part of the law was read at the feast 
of propitiation. 

6 The great golden candlesticks. 

0 Places between the columns for receiv¬ 
ing gifts. 

».0 The court of the Nazarites. 


11 The court of wood, where wood wan 

selected for the burnt-offerings. 

12 The court where the lepers showed 

themselves to the priests before offer¬ 
ing their sacrifices. 

13 The court where oil and wine were de¬ 

posited for the daily sacrifices and for 
the lamps. (Ex. xxvii. 20.) 

14 Synagogue where the law was explain¬ 

ed on the Sabbath and feast days. 

15 The beautiful gate of the temple. 

16 The flight of steps on which the Le 

vites stood and sung the fifteen 
psalms, from cxx. to cxxxiv. incla- 
sive, at he feast of tabernacles. 

17 Cpenings for the passage of smoke. 

645 













TEM 

glorious illustrations of the divine 
attributes than the first temple ever 
witnessed. (Hag. ii. 6-9; Mai. 
iii. 1; Col. ii. 9; 1 Tim iii. 16 ; 

The temple of Z'erubbabel had 
Btood nearly five hundred years, 
and was much decayed, when 
Herod the Great, with a view to 
secure the favour of the Jews, and 
obtain to himself a great name, 
undertook to rebuild it ; so that it 
was not a new edifice, strictly 
speaking, but rather a complete 
repair of the second temple. He 
began the work only seventeen 
years before the birth of Christ, 
and completed the main building 
in less than ten years, so that it 
was fit for the.service. The whole 
work occupied forty-six yep,rs. 
(John ii. 20.) We shall describe 
it as it stood in the days of our 
Saviour. 

The outer wall, which enclosed 
the buildings, was about one- 
eighth of a mile square, and 
nearly forty feet above the sum¬ 
mit of the mount. This wall was 
built up from the valley beneath, 
and was in some places from six 
hundred to seven hundred feet 
high. It is supposed to have 
been from this height (or pin¬ 
nacle) that our Saviour was urged 
to cast himself. (Matt. iv. 6-7.) 
In these walls were seven massive 
and costly gates, each fifteen feet 
wide, and thirty feet high. These 
were in addition to the beautifxil 
gate , (Acts iii. 2,) which was 
on the east side, and was called 
beautiful because it was of the 
finest metal, and full seventy-five 
feet in height, highly polished, 
and richly adorned. Between the 
gates, along the inside of the wall, 
were piazzas supported partly by 
the wall itself, and partly by a 
double row of columns, except on 
646 


TEM 

the south side, w r here were three 
rows of columns. The porch on 
the east side was called Solomon’s, 
(John x. 23,) because he built it, 
or at least the stupendous wall on 
which it rested. All within the 
area which these walls enclosed 
was called the temple . 

The larger part of the area was 
vacant ground, completely paved 
with marble, and was distinguish¬ 
ed as the court of the Gentiles, 
because all classes of persons 
might enter it. But beyond the 
wail which separated this from 
the next court no uncircumcised 
person was permitted to pass. A 
prohibition to that effect was in¬ 
scribed upon the gate-post. (Eph. 

ii. 13,14.) Around this outer court 
the stock for the supply of the 
temple service was kept, and the 
money-changers had their places 
of business. The second court 
was enclosed by a wall. It was 
called the new court , (2 Chron. 
xx. 5,) the outer court, (Ezek. 
xlvi. 21,) or court of the women, 
because women were not allowed 
to go beyond it towards the sanc¬ 
tuary, unless when they brought 
a sacrifice. In this court men and 
women performed their ordinary 
worship unaccompanied with sa¬ 
crifices. (Luke xviii. 10-14 ; Acts 

iii. 1 ; xxi. 26-30.) Here also was 
the treasury, (Markxii. 41,) where 
the gifts for the service of the 
temple were deposited in small 
chests or coffers, fixed in the sur 
rounding wall; and this was the 
place where some of our Saviour’s 
most impressive discourses were 
delivered. (John viii. 20.) 

The next court -towards the 
sanctuary was the court of Israel. 
The outer half of this court was 
entered by common Israelites to 
attend on particular services of 



TEM 

religion: but the inner half, next 
to the sanctuary, was called the 
court of the priests, and they were 
separated from each other by a 
low railing. Our Saviour, being 
of the tribe of Judah, had no pri¬ 
vileges in the temple above any 
other Israelite. Hence, whatever 
he is said to have done in the 
temple must be intended of the 
courts of the temple. 

Witfiin the court of the priests 
stood the altar of burnt-offering 
and the brazen 1 iver, and not 
even an Israelite could, on any 
condition, pass the railing that 
enclosed them, unless when he 
came to offer his sacrifice before 
the altar. 

Next came the sanctuary , the 
materials of which were beauti¬ 
ful and costly beyond description. 
(Mark xiii. 1.) The porch ex¬ 
tended one hundred and fifty 
feet across the front of the main 
building. It was thirty feet wide, 
and rose at the highest elevation 
to nearly one hundred and eighty 
feet. The entrance to this porch 
was one hundred and thirty-five 
feet by thirty-seven. It had no 
door. The sanctuary itself was 
ninety feet high, ninety feet long, 
and thirty feet wide. Around it, 
except in front, was a structure of 
three stories high, like that at¬ 
tached to the first temple, as before 
described. The sanctuary had 
two apartments, separated from 
each other by a curtain or vail, 
(Matt, xxvii. 51,) viz. the holy 
place, which occupied sixty feet 
>f the whole length, and in which 
were the altar of incense, the 
golden candlestick, and the table 
of shew-bread; and tbi > most holy 
place, which measured thirty feet 
every way. It is worthy of re¬ 
mark, that in our translation of 


TEM 

the Bible, when these apartments 
are mentioned by these terms, tho 
word place is generally, if not al¬ 
ways, supplied by the translators. 

This temple was razed to its 
foundation by the Romans, A. n. 
70-71, and the site of it was 
made like a ploughed field. (Jer. 
xxvi. 18; Matt. xxiv. 2.) It is 
now occupied by a Turkish 
mosque, which neither Jew nor 
Christian was, until lately, per¬ 
mitted to enter. 

• The veneration with which the 
temple was regarded by the Jews 
appears from the manner in which 
they treated any supposed disre¬ 
spectful allusion to it. (Matt. xxvi. 
61; John ii. 19 r 20; Actsxxi. 28, 
29; xxiv. 6; xxv. 8. See Jeru¬ 
salem. Eor a full account of the 
temple, and its imposing services, 
see Selumiel, ch. iv.; and Bibli¬ 
cal Antiquities, vol. ii. ch. iii.— 
v.; also, Illustrative Plate of 
the same, in a separate sheet.) 

TEMPT, (Matt. xxii. 18,) 
TEMPTATION. (Luke iv. 13.) 
These words are used in various 
senses by the sacred writers. The 
ordinary import of them is allure¬ 
ment or enticement to sin. Hence 
our great adversary the devil is 
called the tempter. (Matt. iv. 3.) 
These words sometimes denote 
the trial of a person’s faith or 
obedience, (Gen. xxii. 1; James 
i. 2, 3,) or the trial of God’s pa¬ 
tience and forbearance, (Ex. xvii. 
2 ; 1 Cor. x. 9 ;) but generally they 
signify that which persuades to 
sin. The prayer lead us not into 
temptation (Matt. vi. 13) does not 
imply that God leads us into 
temptation, (James i. 13, 14,) but 
it is a prayer that we may not be 
suffered to fall into temptation. 
When it is said that the lawyer 
and others tempted our Saviour. 

647 




TEN 

(Matt xvi. 1; xix. 3; Mark x. 
2; Luke x. 25,) it is meant that 
they tried to ensnare him or lead 
him into the commission of some 
offence. 

TENT. (See Dwellings. 
See also Bedouin Arabs, ch. v. 
and viii.) 

Tent-maker. (Acts xviii. 3.) 
This is said to Dave been Paul’s 
trade; but it is supposed to refer 
to the manufacture of tent-cloth 
rather than to the preparing of 
tents. Some suppose that he made 
military tents, the material of 
which was goat skins. 

TENTH DEAL. (See Mea¬ 
sures.) 

TERAH. (Gen. xi. 31, 32.) 
The fhther of Abraham, who ac¬ 
companied him to Haran, in 
Mesopotamia, where he died at 
the ago of two hundred and five, 
Abraham being then seventy-five 
years of age. 

TERAPHIM. (Judg. xvii. 5.) 
From comparing Gen. xxxi. 19, 
30, it would seem that this word 
sometimes denotes household idol 
gods or images. Perhaps it was 
also applied to the forms or in¬ 
struments of astrology, and so 
might be found in possession of 
thoso who were not idolaters. As 
it is used by the prophet in rela¬ 
tion to the state of the Jews, (Hos. 
iii. 4,) it probably means that that 
unhappy nation should be with¬ 
out any god, true or false; not 
only without sacrifice and ephod, 
which belonged to their religious 
system, but also without images 
and toraphim, which were parts 
of their idolatry. 

TERTULLUS. (Acts xxiv. 1.) 
Probably a Roman lawyer, who 
acted as prosecutor in the case of 
Paul before Felix. The Jews, 
being ignorant of the Roman 
648 


TES 

forms >f law, <fcc., would naturally 
employ a person acquainted with 
them to manage their causes. 

TESTAMENT. (Heb. ix. 15.) 
The word testament, when applied 
to our Scriptures, (as the Old and 
Now Testament,) is used in the 
same sense with covenant. The old 
covenant is spoken of in Ex. xxiv. 

8, and the new in Matt. xxvi. 28. 
The former was ratified by the 
blood of sacrifices, and the latter 
(of which the other was a type) 
was ratified by the blood of 
Christ. 

According to some critics, the 
word testament is also used by 
the sacred writers, as it is in mo¬ 
dern times, to signify the instru¬ 
ment by which a man directs what 
disposition shall be^ made of his 
property after his death. (Heb. 
ix. 16.) It is well known that 
such an instrument takes effect 
only at the death of the testator, 
(or he who makes the testament.) 
Hence the apostle, in allusion to 
this fact, says in substance, that 
the death of Christ has the same 
effect on the covenant of redemp¬ 
tion, (which is the new testament,) 
as the death of the testator has 
on his last will and testament, 
viz. gives it force and validity. 
Others, however, have supposed 
that the apostle refers to the an¬ 
cient custom of confirming cove 
nants by sacrifices, (Gen. xv. 8 

9, ) in reference to which it is trui 
that a covenant was of no force si 
long as the victim, by whose deatl 
it wa3 to be confirmed, was liv 
ing. 

TESTIMONY, TESTIMO¬ 
NIES. (Ps. cxix. 88, 99.) These 
terms sometimes denote the whole 
revelation of God’s will. They 
frequently occur in this sense in 
the above Psalm They also re- 




TET 

fer to the tables of stone, which 
were part of the covenant between 
God and the people of Israel, 
(Ex. xxv. 16; and hence the ark 
in which they were deposited is 
called the ark of the testimony. 
(Ex. xxv. 22. See Ark.) The 
gospel is also called the testimony 
in 1 Cor. i. 6 ; Rev. i. 2, and else¬ 
where. (See Witness.) 

TETRARCII. (Matt. xiv. 1.) 
This title was given to a sove¬ 
reign prince, and strictly denotes 
one who governs the fourth part 
of a province or kingdom. In 
our Scriptures, however, it is ap¬ 
plied to any one who governed a 
province of the Roman empire, 
whatever portion of the territory 
might he within his jurisdiction. 
The tetrarch had the title of king. 
(Matt. xiv. 9.) 

THADDEUS. (See Jude.) 

THAMMUZ. (See Tammuz.) 

THANK-OFFERING. (See 
Offerings.) 

THARSHISH. (See Tar- 
shish.) 

THEATRE. (Acts xix. 29, 31.) 
A place of public amusement, 
where popular assemblies, courts, 
elections, Ac. were often held. 

THEBEZ. (Judg. ix. 60.) A 
city north-east of Shechem, with¬ 
in the territory of Ephraim, cele¬ 
brated as the place where Abime- 
lech was slain. (See Abimelech.) 

THEOPHILUS. (Luke i. 3.) 
A distinguished individual, pro¬ 
bably of Greece or Rome, to 
whom, as his particular friend 
or patron, Luke addressed both 
his gospel and his history of the 
Acts of tne Apostles. The title 
most excellent probably denotes 
official dignity. (Acts xxiii. 26; 
xxiv. 3, and xxvi. 25.) 

THESSALONICA. (Acts 
xxvii. 2.) The capital of one of 
55 


THE 

the pretorial districts of Mace¬ 
donia. It is now called Salo- 
nikiy and is situated in European 
Turkey, at the northern extremity 
of the gulf of Saloniki, (formerly 
the Thermaic Gulf,) two hundred 
and seventy-two miles west of 
Constantinople ; and, of the tow nr 
of European Turkey, is, in point 
of commerce, second only to that 
city. Its population is estimated 
at 70,000, of whom 30,000 to 
35,000 are Turks, 10,000 or 12,000 
Greeks, 20,000 to 30,000 Jews, 
and a few hundred Franks. The 
Jews are the principal business¬ 
men. The ancient walls are nearly 
entire, and are five or six miles in 
circuit. The Greeks have twenty- 
six churches, eighteen of which 
are spacious; and the Jews have 
seventy-six synagogues, thirty-six 
of which are small, and connected 
with private dwellings. 

Two of our American mission¬ 
aries, who visited Thessalonica in 
the spring of 1834, speak of the 
Jews as in a miserable condition, 
and as having fully preserved the 
spirit of their forefathers respect¬ 
ing Christianity. (Acts xvii. 5.) 
Paul and his associates, Timo- 
theus and Silas, (1 Thess. i. 1; ii. 
1, 2,) planted a church here about 
the year A. D. 52; and Aristar¬ 
chus and Secundus were among 
the converts to the faith. (Acta 
xx. 4, and xxvii. 2.) Two of his 
lotters are addressed to the dis¬ 
ciples of Christ in this city. 

THESSALONIANS, epistles 
to. These constitute the thirteenth 
and fourteenth in order of the 
books of the New Testament. 
They were written by the apostle 
Paul to the church of the Thessa- 
lonians. 'See Thessalonica.) 
The first epistle was probably 
written near the close of A. D. 53 
649 




THI 

«i beginning of 53; and it« de¬ 
sign is to establish the followers 
of Christ there in all those graces 
for which they were so conspicu¬ 
ous ; and encourage them, by the 
most affectionate and pointed ex¬ 
hortations, in seeking for higher 
attainments and richer consola¬ 
tions in the divine life. The fourth 
chapter is remarkable for the dis¬ 
tinctness with which it reveals 
the order of the general resurrec¬ 
tion. 

The second epistle was written 
60 on after the first, and seems to 
have been designed to correct 
6omo misapprehensions which had 
occurred respecting the first; and, 
at the same time, still further to 
establish and encourage them in 
their works of faith and labours of 
love. The second chapter con¬ 
tains a very full prophecy re¬ 
specting the revelation of anti¬ 
christ. 

THIGH. (Gen. xxiv. 2.) The 
practice of putting the hand un¬ 
der the thigh might denote the 
obedience or subjection of the in¬ 
dividual, or it might be connect¬ 
ed with the rite of circumcision 
as a token of God’s faithfulness. 
The inscription upon the thigh 
(Rev. xix. 16) alludes to the cus¬ 
tom of inscribing the names and 
deeds of conquerors on their gar¬ 
ments and weapons. The name 
might be inscribed on the sword, 
which was girded on the thigh, 
wr on that part of the dress which 
covered the thigh. Jacob’s thigh 
was smitten by the angel, (Gen. 
xxxii. 25,) to show that he had 
supernatural power, and that he 
yielded in mercy, and not from 
necessity. (See Jacob, Uncover.) 

THISTLES AND THORNS. 
t'Gen. iii. 18.) These terms are 
generally connected in the Scrip- 
650 


THI 

tures, and probably often denct« 
any kind of useless or noxious 
plants that grow spontaneously,, 
to the annoyance of the husband¬ 
man, and the great injury of his 
crops. The figurative use of these 
terms denotes desolation, (Prov. 
xxiv. 31 ; Isa. v. 6 ; IIos. ii. 6 ; 
ix. 6 ; x. 8 ;) the visitations of 
Providence, (Num. xxxiii. 55; 
Judg. ii. 3 ; 2 Cor xii. 7 ; difficul¬ 
ties and hinderances. (Prov. xv. 
19 ,) and troubles. (Prov. xxii. 

5 .) 

The crowning with thorns (Matt, 
xxvii. 29) was probably the wan¬ 
ton invention of the Roman sol¬ 
diery, and made no part of the 
established punishment. We are 
not certain as to the kind of 
thorns used. Some suppose the 
white thorn, which grows in 
abundance near Jerusalem ; some 
the acacia, and others the acan¬ 
thus, which blossoms in March. 
The object of the soldiers was to 
ridicule the idea of Christ being 
a king, and also to aggravate his 
sufferings. 

The passage (Hos. ii. 6) above 
cited, is forcibly illustrated by the 
remark of a modern traveller in 
Judea. “As we rode through 
Riphah, we perceived it to be a 
settlement of about fifty dwell¬ 
ings, all very mean in their ap¬ 
pearance, and every one fenced 
in front with thorn-rushes, while 
a barrier of the same kind en¬ 
circled the whole of the town. 
This was one of the most effectual 
defences which they could have 
raised against the incursions of 
horse-riding Arabs, the only ene¬ 
mies whom they have to dread, as 
neither will the horse approach 
to entangle himself in these 
thickets of brier, nor could the 
rider even if he dismounted, get 




THO 

over them, or remove them to 
clear a passage, Avithout assist¬ 
ance from some one within.” 

THOMAS, (John xx. 24,) one 
of the twelve apostles, was also 
called Didymus, (the twin.) We 
know little of his history. He 
seems to have been of singular 
temperament. (John xi. 16; xiv. 

5 ; xx. 20-29.) It is supposed he 
was actively engaged in propa¬ 
gating the gospel, and suffered 
martyrdom. 

THORNS. (See Thistles.) 

THREE TAVERNS. (Acts 
xxviii. 15.) A place so called, 
perhaps, from the circumstance 
that three houses of public enter¬ 
tainment were established there. 
It was about thirty-three miles 
from Rome; and Paul was met 
at that place, when on his way to 
Rome as a prisoner, by some 
brethren from that city, who had 
heard of his approach. 

THRESH, (Isa. xli. 15,) 
THRESHING-FLOOR. (Gen. 1. 
10.) The ancient threshing-floors 
were selected on the highest 
summits, open on every side to 
the wind. Though called floors, 
they were anciently nothing but 
plats of ground, levelled and roll¬ 
ed, so as to be as hard as a floor. 
The sheaves were thrown together 
in a loose heap, and the grain 
beaten out by a machine, or by 
the feet of oxen. (Deut. xxv. 4.) 
The threshing machine was form- 
id of a heavy square frame, with 
rollers, each of which was en¬ 
circled by three or four iron rings 
or wheels, serrated like the teeth 
of a saw. (Isa. xli. 15,16.) The 
machine was drawn by a pair of 
oxen, the driver sitting on a cross¬ 
piece fastened into the frame; 
and as the heavy rollers passed 
over it, the grain was crushed I 


TER 

out on every side. Sometime# 
this frame was so constructed afl 
to resemble a cart, (Isa. xxviiL 
27, 28,) and furnishes a striking 
figure of violence and destruction, 
(Amos i. 3; Hab. iii. 12.) After 
the grain was threshed and win¬ 
nowed, (see Fan,) the chaff and 
fine straw were collected on a 
neighbouring hill and burned. 
(Isa. v. 24; Matt. iii. 12.) 

In Isa. xli. 15, a new sham 
threshing instrument having teeth 
is mentioned. One of these in¬ 
struments is thus described by a 
traveller in Syria, in 1S37:— 
“ The threshing instrument is a 
board about three feet wide, six 
or eight feet long, and three in¬ 
ches thick. On the lower side, 
many holes are made, from an 
inch and a half to two inches, in 
which are fastened pieces of stone, 
flint, or iron. These project, it 
may be, from a half to three 
quarters of an inch fri m the face 
of the board, and ser« _ e as teeth 
to tear the beards of the grain in 
pieces. Oxen are fastened to the 
forward end of the boards, and 
driven round the floor, drawing 
it after them. The driver of the 
oxen usually stands or sits on the 
instrument. This is the common 
threshing instrument in these 
countries. I saw it ever) where, 
and I have seen no other. The 
oxen are usually without muzzles, 
and are often, as they pass around, 
taking up from time to time a few 
straws and feeding on them. I 
do not recollect of seeing the 
horse used in any instance on 
the barn floor—the oxen v*ry 
often.” (For cuts of threshing- 
instruments, and a minute de 
scription of the process, sod 
Hebrew Customs, pp. 63-65; 

I Elnathan, pp. 119 -123, and 
651 



THR 

Scripture Illustrations, part 
i. pp. 16-20.) 

Threshing-floor of Op nan. 
The apparent discrepancy be¬ 
tween 2 Sain. xxiv. 24, and 1 
Chron. xxi. 25, is reconciled by 
the probable supposition that in 
the former case nothing is in¬ 
cluded but the floor, oxen and 
threshing-machine; and, in the 
latter, the whole hill whereon 
the temple was afterwards erect¬ 
ed. (See Araunah.) 

THRONE. (See Footstool.) 
THUMMIM. (See Urim.) 

TIIYATIRA. (Acts xvi. 14.) 
A city of the province of Lydia, 
in Asia Minor, now known as 
Akhiaar. It is situated in an 
extensive plain, near a small 
river, a branch of the Caicus, 
north-east of Smyrna, between 
Sardis and Pergamos, and was 
the site of one of the seven 
churches of Asia, to which John 
wrote. (Rev. i. 11.) It was also 
the residence of Lydia, whom 
Paul met and baptized at Phi¬ 
lippi. Its present population may 
bo a thousand families, between 
three and four hundred of which 
are composed of nominal Chris¬ 
tians of the Greek and Armenian 
faith. Except the Moslem’s palace, 
there is scarcely a decent house 
in the place. Every thing indi¬ 
cates poverty, ignorance and de¬ 
gradation. 

Two American missionaries 
were at this city in the spring of 
1830. It had been devastated by 
tire a year or two previous. They 
found many ruins and inscrip¬ 
tions which bespoke a high an¬ 
tiquity. 

THYINE-WOOD (Rev. xviii. 
12 ) may mean sweet-scented wood 
generally, or the wood of a par¬ 
ticular speoies of. evergreen re- 
652 


TIM 

sembling the cypress, which wag 
prized for its aromatic properties, 
and for being susceptible of a fin® 
polish. 

TIBERIAS. (See Chinnb- 

reth.) 

TIBERIAS CESAR (Luke in. 
1) was the son-in-law and suc¬ 
cessor of Augustus, (Luke ii. 1,) 
and though with some apparent 
virtues, was one of the most infa¬ 
mous tyrants that ever scourged 
the empire of Rome. He began 
his reign a.d. 14, reigned during 
the eventful period of the suc¬ 
ceeding twenty-three years, and 
was finally murdered by suffoca¬ 
tion with pillows. (See Cesar.) 

TIG*LATII - PILESER. (See 
Ahaz.) 

TILING. (See Dwellings.) 

TIMBREL. (Ex. xv. 20.) A 
musical instrument, supposed to 
have resembled very nearly the 
instrument of modern days called 
the tambourine. A skin is stretch¬ 
ed over a rim like the end of a 
drum; around the rim are hung 
little bells, and the player strikes 
the skin with the knuckles of one 
hand, and shakes it with the other 
hand. It was used in ancient 
times chiefly by women. 

T I M E. (See Days. Hours, 
Watches.) 

TIMNATH, (Gen. xxxviii. 12,) 
or TIMNAH, (2 Chron. xxviii. 
18,) situated on the northern 
border of Judah, was one of the 
oldest towns of Canaan. In Sam¬ 
son’s time it belonged to the Phi¬ 
listines, and he obtained bis wife 
there. (Judg. xiv. .1-5.) The in¬ 
habitants were called Timnitea. 
(Judg. xv. 6.) 

TIMNATH -SERAH, (Josh, 
xix. 50,) or TIMNATH-HERES, 
(Judg. ii. 9.) was a city on mount 
Ephraim, given to Joshua at hi» 



TIM 

own request, and the place of his 
residence and burial. 

TIMOTHY (1 Tim. i. 2,) or 
TIMOTHEU8, (Acts xvi. 1,) was 
a native either of Derbe or Lys- 
tra. His mother’s name was 
Eunice, and she was a woman of 
distinguished piety, as was also 
his grandmother Lois, ,2 Tim. i. 
5;' and by them he was educated 
religiously. (2 Tim. iii. 15.) His 
father was a Greek. Paul found 
him in one of the cities above 
named, and being informed of 
his good standing among the 
Christians there, selected him as 
an assistant in his labours, and, 
to avoid the cavils of the Jews, 
performed on him the rite of cir¬ 
cumcision. (1 Cor. ix. 20.) He 
afterwards became the compa¬ 
nion of Paul; and that he was the 
object of the extraordinary affec¬ 
tion and solicitude of that apostle, 
his letters plainly show. lie was 
left in charge of the church at 
Ephesus, and that, probably, when 
he was quite young. (1 Tim. iv. 
12 .) 

Epistles of Paul to. These 
are the fifteenth and sixteenth in 
order of the books of the New 
Testament. The first is supposed 
to have been written about the 
year 60, and contains special in¬ 
structions respecting the qualifica¬ 
tions and the duties of sundry 
ecclesiastical officers, and other 
persons, and the most affection¬ 
ate and pungent exhortations to 
faithfulness. The second epistle 
ivas written a year or two later, 
and while Paul was in constant 
expectation of martyrdom, (2 Tim. 
iv. 6-8,) and may be regarded as 
the dying counsel of the venera¬ 
ble apostolic father to his son in 
the Lord. It contains a variety 
of injunctions as to the duties of 
55* 


TIS 

Christians under trials and temp¬ 
tations, and concludes with ex¬ 
pressions of a full and triumphant 
faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, 
and in all the glorious promises 
made to his true followers. 

TIN. (Num. xxxi. 22.) A 
well-know T n metal, in use at a 
very early period, and an article 
of Tyrian commerce* (Ezek 
xxvii. 12.) In Isa. i. 25, the word 
rendered tin probably means a 
sort of dross. 

TINKLING. (See Bells, 
Clothes.) 

T I P S A H, (1 Kings iv. 24,) 
meaning a ford, is the same as 
Thapsacus, and was situated on 
the western bank of the Euphra¬ 
tes. It was the extreme limit of 
Solomon’s dominions in that di¬ 
rection. It is generally supposed 
that the place of this name men¬ 
tioned, (2 Kings xv. 16,) was near 
Samaria. 

TIRSHATHA. (Neh. vii. 65.) 
An officer of state. 

TIRES. (Isa. iii. 18.) This 
generally denotes an ornamental 
head-dress, but it may mean other 
parts of the attire; and in the 
text cited the original probably 
signifies a necklace, the parts of 
which might have resembled the 
moon in shape. 

TIRZAII (1 Kings xvi. 17) was 
the residence of the kings of Is¬ 
rael from the time of Jeroboam to 
that of Zimri, or nearly fifty years. 
Its exact site is uncertain, though 
it is supposed to have been within 
the territory of Ephraim. 

TISHBITE. (1 Kings xvii. 1.) 
Elijah is called the Tishbite; but 
whether it denotes the place of 
his nativity or residence, or 
whether it simply describes his 
office as a reprover wnd reformer, 
is uncertain. 


65 ? 




TIS 

TISHRI. (See Month.) 

TITHES, (Gen. xiv. 20,) or 
tenths. A sort of tax known long 
before the time of Moses, and 
practised under the civil and re¬ 
ligious government of heathen 
nations. It was introduced into 
the Levitical code, and consisted 
in rendering a fixed proportion 
of the produce of the earth, herds, 
<fec. to the service of God their 
King, whom they were taught to 
consider as the proprietor of all. 
One-tenth of this produce went 
to the use of the Levites, who had 
no part in the soil, and of course 
were dependent on their brethren 
for the means of subsistence. One- 
tenth of their tenth they paid in 
their turn to the priests. (Num. 
xviii. 21-32.) 

The nine parts were tithed 
again, and of this second tithe a 
feast was made in the court of the 
sanctuary, or in some apartment 
connected with it If, however, 
the Jew could not with conveni¬ 
ence carry his tithe thither, he 
was permitted to sell it, and to 
take the money, adding one-fifth 
of the amount, (that is, if he sold 
the tithe for a dollar, he should 
bring, in money, a dollar and 
twenty cents,) and to purchase 
therewith what was required at 
the feast, after they came to the 
sanctuary. (Lev. xxvii. 31; Deut. 
xii. 17,18; xiv. 22-27.) 

At this feast of thanksgiving, 
they entertained their families 
and friends, and also the Levites. 
It has been supposed by some, 
from Deut. xiv. 28, 29, that in 
every third year a third tithe was 
required; but it is more probable 
ihat in the third year the second 
tithe above mentioned was con¬ 
sumed at home, instead of at the 
sanctuary, so that tie poor neig'i- 


TIT 

hours and friends, and especially 
such as were aged and infirm, 
might partake of it. 

The cattle were tithed by let¬ 
ting them pass out of an enclo¬ 
sure, under a rod held by some 
person, who touched every tenth 
beast, which thereupon became 
the property of the Levites; so 
that if exchanged, both were for 
feited. (Lev. xxvii. 32, 33.) 

It does not appear that the 
tithe of herbs was demanded. 
The Pharisees, however, tithed 
their mint, anise, cummin and 
rue; nor was it for this that our 
Saviour condemned them, but for 
neglecting weightier things, as 
mercy, judgment and faith, whilo 
they were so scrupulously exact 
in matters of inferior moment. 
(Matt, xxiii. 23.) 

Under the gospel dispensation, 
the ministers of religion seemed 
to have relied for their support 
chiefly on the hospitality of their 
brethren and friends, (Matt. x. 
10 ; Luke x. 7;) and it is cer¬ 
tainly reasonable that those who 
give themselves wholly to the 
ministry of the word should be 
exempted from all anxiety re¬ 
specting their own subsistence. 
The system of tithes known in 
modern times has very little (if 
any) resemblance to that under 
the Jewish dispensation, either in 
the collection or disbursement of 
them. 

TITLE. (See Cross ) 

TITTLE. (Matt, v. 18.) The 
least point. 

TITUS. (Gal. ii. 1.) A Gen. 
tile by descent, and probably con¬ 
verted to Christianity under the 
preaching of Paul. (Titus i. 4.) 
He, however, refused to subject 
him to the rite of circumcision, 
though, as some have inferred, he 




TOB 

was strongly urged so to do. (Gal. 
li. 3-5.) Titus was the companion 
of Paul in many of his trials and 
missionary tours, (2 Cor. viii. 6, 
16, 23,) and was intrusted with 
several important commissions. 
(2 Cor. xii. 18; 2 Tim. iv. 10; 
Titus i. 5.) 

Epistle of Paul to, is the 
seventeenth in order of the books 
of the New Testament. It was 
designed to instruct Titus in the 
right discharge of his ministerial 
offices in Crete, or rather to fur¬ 
nish the Cretans, through Titus, 
with a variety of important rules 
of Christian conduct. 

TOB. (Judg. xi. 3, 5.) A dis¬ 
trict in the south-east of Syria, 
whither Jephthah fled, and 
whence he was called to lead 
the army of Israel against Am¬ 
mon. 

TOBIAH. (Neh. ii. 10.) An 
Ammonite of considerable influ¬ 
ence, and a leader in the opposi¬ 
tion which was made to the re¬ 
building of the temple by Ne- 
hemiah. Being connected by 
marriage with some influential 
families, he became the head of 
a formidable party, and main¬ 
tained a correspondence with the 
nobles of Judah adverse to the 
interests of Neh^niah and his 
party, and even descended to 
threats, for the purpose of deter¬ 
ring that devoted man from the 
prosecution of his purpose. Dur¬ 
ing the absence of Nehemiah 
from Jerusalem, Tobiah obtained 
apartments in the temple for his 
private residence; but Nehemiah, 
as soon as he returned to Jerusa¬ 
lem, expelled him and his furni¬ 
ture from the holy place, and 
ordered the chamber which had 
been thus desecrated to be tho¬ 
roughly cleansed. 


TOR 

TOGARMAH. (Ezek. xxvn. 
14.) A country deriving its name 
probably from a descendant of 
Japheth, (Gen. x. 3,) and trading 
with Tyre in horses and mules. 
The connection in which Togar- 
mah is usually mentioned would 
place it in Armenia. (Ezek. 
xxxviii. 5, 6.) 

TOMB. (See Burial.) 

TONGUE. (See Language.) 

TOOTH. (Ex. xxi. 24.) The 
law of retaliation allowed the Jew¬ 
ish magistrate to give to one who 
had been deprived of a tooth or 
an eye, the tooth or eye of the 
aggressor in revenge. The Jews 
construed this law to justify pri¬ 
vate revenge; and this construc¬ 
tion and the whole principle of 
the law were condemned by our 
Saviour, and the law of forbear¬ 
ance and forgiveness commended. 
(Matt. v. J9-.) Cleanness of teeth is 
a figurative expression for famine. 
(Amosiv. 6.) Gnashing the teeth 
indicates terror, rage and despair. 
(Matt. viii. 12.) The phrase in 
Ezek. xviii. 2, denotes that the 
children suffer for the sins of their 
fathers. 

TOPAZ. (Ex. xxviii. 17.) A 
precious stone of various colours, 
which is supposed by many to 
have been the ancient chrysolite. 
A single topaz has been sold (it 
is said) for upwards of a million 
of dollars. The finest specimens 
are found in the East Indies. 

The topaz of Ethiopia, (Jtb 
xxviii. 19,) or southern Arabia, 
(see Ethiopia,) was probably 
distinguished for its beauty and 
value; and that the most pre¬ 
cious stones were once found 
there, profane history asserts 

TOPIIET. (See Hell.) 

TORCHES. (John xviii. 3.) 
Resinous wood, or the twisted 
655 



TOR 

fibres of wool or flax saturated 
with inflammable matter, served 
for torches, and in seme parts of 


TOW 

the Old World at this day the like 
substances are borne aloft in lioi 

frames. 



TORMENTORS. (Matt, xviii. 
34.) This probably means the 
keepers of the prison, who were 
often employed to torture crimi¬ 
nals in various ways. 

TORTOISE. (Lev. xi. 29.) It 
is generally supposed that this 
word, in the original, denotes a 
species of lizard, and not the am¬ 
phibious animal known to us as 
the tortoise. » 

TOWER. .(Matt. xxi. 33.) 
Towers were common in vine¬ 
yards, (Isa. v. 2,) and are often 


seen at the present day. They 
are sometimes thirty feet square, 
and sixty feet high, and ire a 
kind of pleasure-house serving at 
a shelter for the watchmen, and 
as a summer retreat of the ownei, 
affording an extensive prospect 
and fresh air. 

Tower of Babel. (Set-. Ba- 
bei, Language.) 

Tower of Edar, (Gen. xxxv. 
21 ,) or tower of the flock, as it is 
called, (Mic. iv. 8.) This is sup¬ 
posed to have been a particular 
















TOW 

tower about a mile from Bethle¬ 
hem, and to have been erected, 
like other towers, for the use of 
shepherds and herdsmen to su¬ 
perintend their- flocks, and descry 
the approach of danger. (2 Chron. 
xxvi. 10.) Some have supposed 
that the phrase tower of the fock 
had prophetic reference to Beth¬ 
lehem, as the birthplace of the 
Saviour. 

Tower of Shechem. This 
seems to have been a very strong 
and spacious citadel, in the 
vicinity of the town of Shechem, 
to which the inhabitants fled for 
refuge when the town was be¬ 
sieged by Abimelech. Fearing 
that this would not protect them, 
they escaped to the temple of 
one of their idol gods, which 
was also fortified, and the sup¬ 
posed sanctity of which they 
hoped would deter Abimelech 
from attacking it; but he sur¬ 
rounded it with fire made of 
green boughs, and burned or 
suffocated the whole multitude. 
(Seo Vines.) 

Tower of Siloam. (Luke xiii. 
4.) Supposed to have been a 
high structure erected near the 
fountain or pool of Siloam. To 
those whom our Saviour address¬ 
ed, the loss of life occasioned by 
the falling of this tower was fa¬ 
miliar. 

TOWNS. (See Cities.) 
TRACHONITIS. (Lukeiii. 1.) 
A rocky, broken district east of 
tb<i Jordan. It was infested with 
robbers, and Herod the Great ob¬ 
tained the province on condition 
that he would extirpate them. At 
his death his son Philip succeed 
ed to the government of it. 

TRADITION. (Matt. xv. 2.) 
A precept or custom not contain¬ 
ed in the written law, but handed 


TRA 

down from generation to genera¬ 
tion. The Jews maintain that 
God gave Moses, besides the law 
which wo have in the Old Testa¬ 
ment, a variety of precepts, which 
he made known to Joshua, by 
whom they were communicated 
to the elders, and by them to the 
judges, prophets, <fcc.; that they 
were finally collected from vari¬ 
ous sources, and recorded in what 
is called the Talmud. Many of 
their traditions were in direct op¬ 
position to the law of God, a strik¬ 
ing example of which is given by 
our Saviour in connection with 
the passage above cited. There 
were, however, a variety of tra¬ 
ditions, or doctrines and precepts, 
which persons divinely inspired 
taught by word of mouth. (2 
Thess. ii. 15, and iii. 6.) The 
only way in which we can know 
satisfactorily that any tradition 
is of divine authority, is by its 
having a place in those writings 
which are generally acknowledg¬ 
ed to be the genuine productions 
of inspired men. All traditions 
which have not such authority 
are without value, and tend 
greatly to distract and mislead 
the minds of men. 

TRANCE. (Acts x. 10.) This 
word occurs but twice in the Old 
Testament, (Num. xxiv. 4, 16,) 
and in both instances is supplied 
by the translators, and not found 
in the original. The word denotes 
a state of mind in which external 
objects are entirely unnoticed and 
forgotten, so that the soul seems, 
for the time, to have passed out 
of the body, and to be occupied 
in purely spiritual contemplations. 
This state may sometimes be the 
effect of natural causes; but, in 
the case of Peter, there was an in¬ 
terposition of supernatural power. 

657 


2 R 




TRA 

TRANSFIGURE. (Matt, xvii, 
2.) This term denotes a change 
of aspect or appearance, not of 
substanee or body. The change 
was seen in the face of the Re¬ 
deemer, and in his apparel. It 
was exceedingly majestic and glo¬ 
rious, and is particularly describ¬ 
ed by the evangelists, and alluded 
to by Peter. (2 Peter i. 16-18.) 
The design of this miraculous 
event was manifold, but chiefly 
to attest, in the most solemn and 
mysterious manner, the divinity 
of the Messiah’s person and mis¬ 
sion ; to support the faith of the 
disciples by evidence of the ex¬ 
istence of a separate state, which 
was furnished by the appearance 
and conversation of Moses and 
Elias, and as showing, by the 
audible declaration of the Father, 
a broad distinction between this 
prophet and all others— This is 
my beloved Son, hear him. (See 
Life of Peter, pp. 53-56.) 

TRANSGRESSION. (Heb. ii. 
2.) The two words used in this 
passage are by common usage 
nearly synonymous. Perhaps the 
former may be considered as 
passing over the bounds pre¬ 
scribed by a law, or doing the 
things we ought not to do; and 
disobedience as a refusal to do 
what it enjoins, or not doing the 
things we ought to do. 

TREASURE CITIES, (Ex. i. 
11,) TREASURE HOUSES. 
(Ezra v. 17.) The kings of Ju¬ 
dah had keepers of their treasures 
both in city and country, (1 
Chron. xxvii. 25;) and the towns 
where these treasures were de¬ 
posited were called treasui e cities, 
and the magazines or houses for 
their safe keeping were called 
treasure houses. (Seo PiTHOM.) 

TREASURY, (John viii. 20,) 
658 


TRI 

TREASURIES. (1 Chron. ix. 26.) 
The place in the temple where 
gifts were received. (Soe Tem¬ 
ple.) 

TREE OF KNOWLEDGE. 
(See Adam. See also The FiRSf 
Man, § ii.) 

TRESPASS (Lev. vi. 2) usu. 
ally denotes an offence committed 
against, or an injury done to 
another. It implies a departure 
from duty in respect to God or 
man. (Matt. vi. 15.) 

Trespass - offering. (See 
Offering.) 

TRIBE. (Num i. 4.) The 
posterity of each of the twelve 
sons of Jacob is called a tribe. 
Jacob, on his deathbed, adopted 
Ephraim and Manasseh, the sons 
of Joseph, as his own children, 
(Gen. xlviii. 5,) and thus made 
two tribes of one. In the distri¬ 
bution of the promised land, 
however, only twelve shares were 
made ; for the tribe of Levi were 
to minister in the temple, aad to 
be supported by the contributions 
of the rest. (See Levites, Tithes, 
<fcc.) The twelve tribes continued 
to be one people until after the 
death of Solomon, when ten of 
them revolted, and became a sepa¬ 
rate monarchy under Jeroboam, 
and were called the kingdom of 
Israel, leaving the tribes of Ben¬ 
jamin and Judah under the go¬ 
vernment of Rehoboam, with the 
name of the kingdom of Jud&h. 
(See Hebrews.) 

TRIBUTE. (Gen. xlix. 15.) 
That which is paid to rulers in 
token of subjection, and for the 
support of government. By tne 
Jewish law, (Ex. xxx. 13,) a tri¬ 
bute or capitation-tax was half a 
shekel, or twenty-five cents, which 
was expended in the temple ser¬ 
vice. The conversation ol 




TRO 

Saviour with Peter, on tne sub¬ 
ject of paying this tribute-money, 
was designed to show him that, 
being himself the Son of God, 
the king for whose service the 
tribute was paid, he might justly 
be exempted from paying it; but 
to prevent any needless irritation 
on the part of the officers or na¬ 
tion, he, by miraculous power, 
provided the means of paying the 
required tribute, which amounted 
to fifty cents for both. (Matt, 
xvii. 24.) 

T R 0 A S. (Acts xvi. 8.) A 
maritime city of Mysia, on the 
Mediterranean, near the site of 
ancient Troy, so celebrated in 
Grecian history. Paul visited it 
repeatedly. (Acts xx. 5-12; 2 
Cor. ii. 12; 2 Tim. iv. 13.) 

TROGYLLIUM. (Acts xx. 15.) 
A town at the base of mount My- 
cale, in Ionia, opposite to Samos, 
where Paul tarried one night on 
his way from Troas to Miletus. 

TROPHIMUS. (Acts xx. 4.) 
A native of Ephesus, (Acts xxi. 
29,) and a convert to the faith of 
the gospel—probably under Paul’s 
ministry. He became one of the 
apostle’s companions and helpers 
in missionary travels and labours. 
(2 Tim. iv. 20.) 

TRUMPET. (Ex.xix. 16.) 
The trumpet differed little from 
the horn, and in particulars which 
are no longer discoverable. The 
silver trumpets were used by the 
priests alone in publishing the 
approach of festivals, and giving 
signals of war. (See Feasts.) 

TUBAL. (Gen. x.2.) Fifth son 
of Japheth, whose descendants 
probably peopled a country lying 
south of the Caucasus, between 
the Black Sea and the Aranes, 
whose inhabitants were the Tiba- 
reni of the Greeks. The Circas 


TYR 

sians, who inhabit this region, are 
slave-dealers, and they of Tubal 
traded in the persona of men 
(Ezek. xxvii. 13; xxxviii. 2. 
Comp. Rev. xviii. 13.) 

TURBAN. (See Clothes.) 

TURTLE-DOVE. (Lev. i. 14.) 
A species of pigeons By the 
Jewish law, the poor who could 
not afford a more costly sacrifice 
were permitted to bring two turtle¬ 
doves, or two young pigeons. 
(Lev. xii. 6-8.) By this the out¬ 
ward circumstances of Mary, the 
mother of Christ, are known. 
(Luke ii. 24.) 

It is a bird of passage, (Jer. 
viii. 7,) and hence the allusion, 
(Sol. Song ii. 12.) Our transla¬ 
tion of Ps. lxxiv. 19, would be 
more comformable to ancient ver¬ 
sions, if it should read, Oh deliver 
not the soul of him that confesseth 
thee, &o. And this variation can 
easily be accounted for, only by 
supposing that, in the Hebrew, 
one letter has been substituted 
for another very much like it. 
There is, therefore, a strong pro¬ 
bability that the Septuagiut and 
the Syriac have preserved the 
true reading in this place. (See 
page 670.) 

TYCIIICUS. (Acts xx. 4.) A 
companion of Paul, and evidently 
a devoted and faithful disciple. 
(Eph. vi. 21, 22; Col. iv. 7, 8.) 

TYRE, (Josh. xix. 29,) or 
TYRUS. (Ezek. xxvi. 2.) A city 
of Phenicia, now in the pashalie 
of Acre, about ninety miles north¬ 
west of Jerusalem, and twenty or 
thirty miles south-west of Sidon, 
and a city whose antiquity is 
very remote. (Isa. xxiii. 7.) It 
was probably built thirteen hun¬ 
dred years before Christ. This, 
which was on the continent, and 
was destroyed by Nebuchaluez 



TYR 


TYR 



■ar after a siege of thirteen years, 
must be distinguished from Insu¬ 
lar, now Peninsular, Tyre, called 
Sour, (Sur.) The latter is about 
five miles distant from the other, 
and was the city which Alexan¬ 
der reached by means of a cause¬ 
way from the main land, and en¬ 
tirely consumed, in accordance 
with prophecy. (Zech. ix. S, 4.) 
Subsequently to this it revived, 
and belonged successively to Syria 
and Egypt, to the Romans, Sara¬ 
cens, Crusaders, and finally was 
razed to the ground by the Ma¬ 
melukes of Egypt, to prevent the 
660 


ingress of Christians. The citj 
has now about four thousand in¬ 
habitants, and has some commer¬ 
cial prosperity. 

The luxury, vice and destruc¬ 
tion of this mighty city, which 
once had the entire control of the 
trade with India, and into whose 
lap the treasures of the world were 
poured, form the subject of some 
of the most interesting prophecies, 
(Isa. xxiii.; Ezek. xxvi. xxviii.;) 
and we are told by modern tra¬ 
vellers that its desolation is com¬ 
plete. Two of our American 
missionaries were there in the 





TYR 

fall of 1823, one of whom de¬ 
scribes the town and harbour as 
environed by rocks, on the ledges 
of which arc scattered in every 
direction the fragments of ancient 
columns. They counted not less 
than one hundred columns in one 
piace on the rocks, and some ten 
or fifteen feet under water. The 
harbour is small and shallow, and 


TYR 

they oxpress their conviction that 
the waves of the sea now roll 
where once stood the vast and 
magnificent palaces of Tyrian 
wealth and luxury, and that the 
monuments of commercial enter¬ 
prise and prosperity have been 
overwhelmed by the storm of di¬ 
vine indignation, and are as il 
they had never been. 


ULA 


UNI 



U LAI. (See Shushan.) 

UNCIRCUMCISION. (See 
Circumcised. ) 

UNCLEAN. (See Clean and 
Unclean.) 

UNCOVER. (Lev. x. 6.) Un¬ 
covering the head was a token of 
mourning and captivity. (Isa. 
xlvii. 2.) Uncovering tho thigh 
was removing the gar¬ 
ments from it prepara¬ 
tory to passing through 
the water. Uncover¬ 
ing the arm (Ezek. iv. 

7) was a preparation 
for the siege, by re¬ 
moving every incum- 

hi-n non 

UNCTION (1 John 
ii. 20) denotes the 
grace of God’s Spirit 
bestowed on believers, 
and used figuratively 
(in reference to the 
ceremony of anoint¬ 
ing) to signify either 
health or purity, or as a token 
of rejoicing. (Seo Anoint.) 

UNDERGIRDING. (Acts 
xxvii. 17.) Encircling the vessel 
with a stout cable. Lord Anson 
mentions a Spanish man-of-wai 
that was saved by throwing over¬ 
board one tier of guns, and tak¬ 
ing six turns of a cable around 
56 


the ship, by which she was pre¬ 
vented from opening. 

UNDERSETTERS. (1 Kings 
vii. 30.) Projections by which 
the brazen laver was ornamented 
and supported. 

UNICORN, (Deut. xxxiii. 17,) 
or one-horned. The animal desig¬ 
nated by this name was evidently 


distinguished for its ferocity, (Isa. 
xxxiv. 7,) strength, (Num. xxiii. 
22; xxiv. 8,) agility, (Ps. xxix. 
6,) wildness, (Job xxxix 9,) and 
the prominency of its horn. (Deut. 
xxxiii. 17; Ps. xcii. 10.) But 
whether the original word trans¬ 
lated unicorn means any particu¬ 
lar animal, or at least any animal 
661 








UNI 

flow known, is very problemati¬ 
cal. That it was not the rhino¬ 
ceros seems generally agreed by 
modern critics, and that it might 
have been the Eastern buffalo is 
not improbable. 

UNITY OF THE SPIRIT (Eph. 
iv. 3) signifies a union of. judg¬ 
ment, affection and feeling among 
those who constitute the one body 
of Christ. It is the gift of God. 
(Jer. xxxii. 39.) It was remark¬ 
ably enjoyed in the early ages of 
the church, (John xvii. 21; Acts 
iv. 32,) and is to be desired and 
sought after as among the chief of 
Christian graces. (2 Cor. xiii. 11.) 

UNRIGHTEOUS MAMMON. 
(See Mammon.) 

UPHARSIN. (See Mene.) 

U P P E R-R 0 0 0 M. (See 

DWELLINGS.) 

UPPERMOST SEATS. (See 
Synagogues.) 

UR, (Gen. xi. 28,) called Ur of 
’’he Chaldees, was the birthplace 
of Abraham. Its connection with 
the history of Abraham and Ja¬ 
cob, and the position of the only 
Haran now known, have induced 
modern geographers to place Ur 
in the north-west part of Mesopo¬ 
tamia, which was the land of the 
Chaldeans, (Ezek. i. 3,) where 
Orfah (formerly Edessa) now 
stands. A modern missionary 
tells us that Orfah is between 
twenty and thirty miles distant 
from Ilaran, and that the Eastern 
Jews still make their pilgrimage 
to this place as Ur of the Chal¬ 
dees, and the birthplace of their 
great progenitor. Orfah is known 
in modern history as the seat of 
war between the emperor Julian 
and the Persians. It has now a 
population of 30,000, and derives 
its sustenance from manufactures 
and the caravan of Aleppo. 

662 


USU 

URIAH, (2 Sam. xi. 3,) or 
URIAS. (Matt. i. 6.) The hus- 
band of Bathshcba, and an offi¬ 
cer in David’s army. Ilis death 
was purposely brought about by 
an understanding between Joab 
and David, in order that David’* 
guilt in the case of Bathsheba 
might be concealed, and that he 
might obtain her for his wife. 

URIM AND TIIUMMIM. 
(Ex. xxviii. 30.) These words 
literally signify lights arid ‘perfec¬ 
tions. And whether they denote 
some divine manifestation made 
in or upon the breastplate itself, or 
whether it was a visible append¬ 
age to the breastplate, indicating 
its peculiar and sacred use in this 
respect, we know not. The ut¬ 
most that can be satisfactorily 
known respecting the subject is, 
that it was the manner or thing 
through which a knowledge of the 
divine will was sought and con¬ 
veyed. (Deut. xxxiii. 8 ; 1 Sam. 
xxviii. 6.) 

USURY. (Matt. xxv. 27.) The 
word usury, by modern usage, 
means exorbitant or unlawful 
interest; but in the Scriptures it 
means any interest. The law of 
Moses prohibited the Jews from 
taking any interest of each other 
for the loan of money, or any 
thing else, though they were al¬ 
lowed to take it of foreigners. 
The exchangers of money were 
in the habit of receiving it at low 
interest, and loaning it at high 
interest, taking the difference for 
their gain. (Ezek. xxii. 12.) The 
practice of usury is severely de¬ 
nounced in the Scriptures. (Neh. 
v. 7, 10; Ps. xv. 5; Prov. xxviii. 
8.) It has sometimes oeen asked 
why the Jews were permitted to 
take usury of strangers, while 
they were forbidden to take it of 




USF 

each other. It is quite clear that 
the civil economy of the Jewish 
State excluded the general use of 
usury as a means of gain in a 
medium of exchange. They had 
no commerce with foreign na¬ 
tions, as we have in modern 
times, or as the Gentile nations 
had in that age. They had their 
inheritance apportioned to them 
in the division of the land, and 
were rather branches of the same 
family settled together, than inde¬ 
pendent communities, and their 
united business transactions were 
to be of the most friendly nature. 
In dealing with foreigners whose 
object was gain, they were allow¬ 
ed to avail themselves of the or¬ 
dinary principles of trade. 


TJZZ 

UZ. (Lam. iv. 21.) A district 
of Arabia, which was prrc bably 
settled by the posterity of Uz, or 
Huz, a descendent of Shem, (Gen. 
x. 23; xxii. 21,) and distinguish¬ 
ed as the dwelling-place of Job, 
whose estate was like that of a 
mtdern Bedouin sheikh. It was 
probably an extensive district, 
(Jer. xxv. 20,) and perhaps 
subject to Idumea. (Lam. iv. 
21 .) 

UZZAH. (2 Sam. vi. 3.) A 
son of Abinidab, who was in¬ 
stantly killed, by the immediate 
act of God, for laying his hands 
upon the ark, in violation of the 
express provisions of the divine 
law. (Num. iv. 2-15.) 

UZZIAH. (See Azariah.) 


VAI 


/'AIL or VEIL. (Gen. xxiv 
65.) An indispensable part 



at an Eastern female’s dress. 
Vails were of two kinds: one, 
made of thin muslin, something 
resembling the European vail * 


VEN 

the other a kind of wrapper, 
with which ladies enveloped 
themselves when they went out. 
(See Temple, Clothes.) 

VALLEY OF SALT. (See Salt.) 

VASHTI. (Esth. i. 9.) Queen 
of Persia, and the repudiated 
wife of Ahasuerus. (See Ha- 
dassah, pp. 14-16.) 

VENGEANCE. (Rom.xii. 19.) 
This word often denotes merely 
punishment, without any refe¬ 
rence to the state of mind in 
which it is inflicted. In the pas¬ 
sage cited, and elsewhere, (Deut. 
xxxii. 35,) the exclusive right of 
God to punish wrong-doers, and 
to vindicate the truth, is plainly 
asserted. Hence every act of re¬ 
venge is an interference with the 
divine prerogative. The word is 
applied to God in the same man¬ 
ner in which anger, hatred, Ac. 
are applied; not as denoting a 
state or temper of mind, but a* 
663 























VER 

Implying an act or course of pro¬ 
ceeding sueh as usually indicates 
a particular state of mind, when 
done or pursued by man. 

VERMILION. (Ezek. xxiii. 
14.) A chemical substance, used 
for colouring red, and much 
valued for ornamenting dwellings 
(Jer. xxii. 14) and painting ima¬ 
ges. (Ezek. xxiii. 14.) Modern 
travellers mention that the cus¬ 
tom of painting and sometimes 
gilding the ceilings of Eastern 
houses is still prevalent. 

VIAL. (See Censer.) 

VILLAGES. (See Cities.) 

VINEGAR. (Prov. x. 26.) The 
Hebrews seem to have had two 
kinds of vinegar ; one of which 
they used as a drink, (Num. vi. 
3,) which was probably a weak 
red wine; and the other as an 
acid diluted with water. Bread 
and cider formerly made a com¬ 
mon article of food among labour¬ 
ing men in some parts of this 
country. (Ruth. ii. 14.) The first 
kind was probably provided for 
the Roman soldiers on the occa¬ 
sion of the crucifixion. (John 
xix. 29.) The unpleasant sensa¬ 
tion produced upon the teeth by 
vinegar illustrates the offensive¬ 
ness of a sluggard to those who 
employ him. (Prov. x. 26.) And 
the effervescence occasioned when 
vinegar is poured upon nitre or 
soda, represents the opposition or 
incongruity of mirth and sorrow, 
and the effect of attempting to 
mingle them. (Prov. xxv. 20.) 

VINES (Num. xx. 5) and 
VINEYARDS (Ezek. xxviii. 26) 
have been highly prized in every 
country. We first read of a vine¬ 
yard in the history of Noah. (Gen. 
ix. 20.) The cultivation of the 
vine had attained to some perfec¬ 
tion in very early times. In the 
664 


VIN 

accounts of Melchizedek, who set 
bread and wine before Abraham; 
of Lot, who was drunken ; of aged 
Isaac, when regaled by his sons; 
in the prophecy of dying Jacob, 
and in the book of Job, we have 
the earliest accounts of wine ns a 
common drink. (Gen. xiv. 18, 
xix. 32 ; xxvii. 25 ; xlix. 12; Job 
i. 18; Prov. xxiii. 36, 31; Isa. 
v. 11.) 

The vineyard is commonly 
mentioned in the Bible in contra¬ 
distinction fivm the field, and is 
occasionally used in speaking of 
ordinary gardens. Vines were 
usually planted upon heights and 
precipitous crags, (Jer. xxxi. 5,) 
where it was sometimes necessary 
to build walls in order to retain 
the soil. 

The methods of planting the 
vine were various. They were 
usually propagated by suckers. 
The branches were sometimes 
suffered to creep upon the earth ; 
or the vine stood upright without 
support; or a post was erected 
with a cross-piece; or a trellis or 
arbour was set up, with four or 
more upright pillars, over which 
the boughs spread. We are told 
that the vines in Africa, Syria 
and all Asia were left to trail 
upon the ground, and this method 
is observed in the region of Le¬ 
banon, and about Joppa. (Ezek. 
xvii. 6.) Very often, however, 
the Syrian vines are trained upon 
trellis or frame-work, in straight 
rows; sometimes upon trees, and 
particularly the fig-tree, whence 
the proverbial expression, to re¬ 
pose under one’s own vine and 
fig-tree, as an emblem of peace 
and security. (Micahiv. 4; Zech. 
iii. 10.) Vines are found at He¬ 
bron trained in this manner, and 
bearing clusters of ten pounds* 



VIN 

weight. Sometimes they run up 
upon the sides of the house. (Ps. 
cxxviii. 3. See Walls.) 

"Vineyards were enclosed with 
a hedge or a wall, to defend them 
from the ravages of beasts, to 
which they are often exposed. A 
tower was also built as the station 
of a watchman. (Num. xxii. 24; 
Ps. lxxx. 8-13 ; Prov. xxiv. 31; 
Sol. Song ii. 15; Matt. xxi. 33. 
See Tower.) 

The Hebrews devoted as much 
care to their vineyards as to their 
agriculture. When Isaiah pre¬ 
dicts the invasion of the Assyri¬ 
ans, he declares that the vineyard 
where there were a thousand 
vines for a thousand pieces of 
silver, shall be even for briers 
and thorns. (Isa. vii. 23.) When 
he would represent sorrow, he 
says, The new wine mourneth, the 
vine langnisheth, and all the 
m^rry-hear ted do sigh. (Isa. xxiv. 
7.) So Zechariah (viii. 12) fore¬ 
tells future prosperity thus : The 
seed shall be prosperous, the vine 
shall give her fruit. (See also 
Hab. iii. 17; Mai. iii. 11.) 

The pruning of the vine is a 
familiar operation, which we all 
know to be necessary in order to 
its fruitfulness. The law which 
forbade the Israelites to gather 
the grapes of the first three years, 
(Lev. xix. 23,) gave occasion to 
the more careful and unsparing 
use of the pruning-knife; hence 
the young stock came to much 
greater strength. A traveller 
mentions a custom of the vine¬ 
dressers to prune their vines 
thrice in the year; the first time 
in March. When clusters be¬ 
gin to form, they again lop off 
those twigs which have no fruit; 
the stock puts out new twigs in 
April, some of which form clus- 
56* 


VIP 

ters and those which havo none 
are again cut off in May. The 
vine shoots a third time, and the 
new branches have a third set of 
clusters. (See John xv. 2, in 
which passage tho word purgeth 
may be rendered pruneth.) 

What remains of the culture 
of the vine is very simple. Once 
or twice in the season the plough 
was run through the vineyard to 
loosen the earth, and free it from 
weeds ; the stones were gathered 
out, and a proper direction waa 
given to the growing branches. 
(Isa. v. 2.) The vine-dressers, or 
keepers of the vineyard, formed a 
distinct branch of labourers. (2 
Kings xxv. 12.) 

The regular vintage begins in 
Syria about the middle of Sep¬ 
tember, and lasts about two 
months. (Lev. xxvi. 5; Amos ix. 
13.) Ripe clusters, however, are 
found in Palestine as early as 
Juno and July, although the re¬ 
gular vintage begins in Septem¬ 
ber. This difference may arise 
from the threefold growth of tho 
vine already mentioned. Tho first 
gathered in Canaan is prchably 
meant in Num. xiii. 20. 

The vintage was celebrated by 
the Hebrews with still more fes¬ 
tivity than the harvest, (Isa. xvi. 
9,) and was sometimes a season 
of wicked mirth. (Judg. ix. 27.) 

VINTAGE. (See Wine, 
Vine.) 

VIOL. (Amos vi. 5.) This 
was an instrument of music, and 
supposed to be the same with tho 
psaltery. (Seo Music.) Chanting 
to the sound of it was to make 
like sounds with the voice, modu¬ 
lating the tones so as to corre¬ 
spond with the sounds of the in¬ 
strument. 

VIPER. (Job xx. 16.) A 
665 




VIS 

venomous serpent, from two to 
t five feet in length. Its bite is 
extremely painful, and, in many 
spocies, quickly and certainly fa¬ 
tal : so that it was anciently re¬ 
garded as a special judgment from 
heaven to be bitten by one. (Acts 
xxviii. 1-6.1 Hence the viper is 
an emblem of what¬ 
ever is deceitful and 
destructive. (Matt, 
iii. 7 ; xii. 34; xxiii. 

33 ; Luke iii. 7. See 
Cockatrice.) 

VISION. (Num. 
xxiv. 4.) In former 
times God was pleas¬ 
ed to reveal himself, 
and communicate his 
will in what were 
called visions, which 
were caused either in 
the night in ordinary 
sleep, (Dan. vii. 1,) 
or by day in a temporary trance. 
(Acts xxvL 13. See Dream, 
Trance.) 

VOW. (Num. vi. 2.) In the 
scriptural use, thifl word means a 
solemn religious promise or cove¬ 
nant, by which one binds himself 
to do or suffer certain things, de¬ 
pending on God for power to ac¬ 
complish them. Hence vows were 
made with prayer, and paid with 
thanksgiving. (Num. vi. 2-21; 
Judg. xi. 30, 31; Ps. lxi. 5; Acts 
xviii. 18. See Nazarite. See 
also Biblical Antiquities, vol. 
li. ch. v. £ 1.) 

VULTURE. (Lev. xi. 14.) A 
filthy, rapacious bird, unclean by 
the ceremonial law, (Deut. xiv. 
13,) but useful for destroying sub¬ 
stances which might otherwise 
p/oduce pestilence. They flock 
to fields of battle to satiate them¬ 
selves upon the unburied. (Isa. 
xxxiv. 6,15.) The extreme acute- 
666 


VUL 

ness of the sense of sight in the 
vulture enables it to discern its 
prey at a great distance: and it 
is a striking instance in the accu¬ 
racy of the Scripture writers, that 
while common sentiment attri¬ 
butes to the sense of smelling the 
peculiar faculties of this bird, its 


Hebrew name means seeing. And 
in the recital of God’s wonders 
in the animal creation, in the 
book of Job, the characteris¬ 
tic of the eagle (one of the same 
tribe with the vulture) is, that 
her eyes behold, afar off. The 
same peculiarity is referred to, 
Job xxviii. 7, there is a path which 
the vulture's eye hath not seen; 
implying that its vision is most 
acute and penetrating. Recent 
experiments by a naturalist in 
South Carolina, where vultures 
abound, prove satisfactorily that 
this bird is guided solely by its 
sight in the pursuit of its prey, 
and that its powers of vision are 
very extraordinary: thus sustain¬ 
ing the truth of Scripture, even 
in matters not of a religious or 
moral character; and this, in con¬ 
tradiction to the common opinion 
of mankind. 





WAP 

AFER. (Ex. xvi. ?1.) A 
thin cake of line flour, used 
In various offerings anointed with 
oil. (See Manna.) 

WAGON. (Gen. xlv. 19.) 
Wagons, and similar vehicles, 
which are considered by us so in¬ 
dispensable in transportation, are 


not used at this day in the East 
or in Egypt. Niebuhr states that 
he saw nothing of the kind either 
in Arabia or Egypt. In ancient 
times, however, they were well 
known, and frequently employed. 
(Num. vii. 3; Amos ii. 13.) Wo 
have figures of rude vehicles of 
this kind on monuments, suppos¬ 
ed to be as ancient as the age 
succeeding that of Joseph. 

WAIL. (Ezck. xxxii. 18.) To 
mourn with loud and violent 
expressions of distress and de¬ 
spair. 

WALLS. (G in. xlix. 6.) The 
walls of ancient times were gene¬ 
rally hi lit of earth or clay, mix¬ 
ed with straw, and hardened in 
the sun. Hence it was necessary 
to build them of great thickness, 
in order to ensure their perma- 
ien?y. When any breach took 
place in such a mass of earth, 
either by heavj rains or some 


WAL 

defect in the foundation, the con- 
sequences were very serious. (Ps. 
Ixii. 3; Isa. xxx. 13.) The fact 
that the bricks were made in such 
a rude and perishable manner, 
gives force to the contrast pre¬ 
sented in Isa. ix. 10 ; and as con¬ 
siderable straw entered into their 
composition, and the 
earth of which they 
were made was dry 
and porous, it is not 
surprising that they 
could be destroyed by 
fire. (Amos i. 7, 10, 
14.) 

The expression in 
Job xxiv. 11 is sup¬ 
posed by sorde to re¬ 
fer to the low walls 
which were built in 
vineyards for the vines 
to run upon ; and they 
maintain that the pas¬ 
sage should read thus—“They 
work at midday among their 
walls on rows of vines.” It 
may bo that olive-yards were en¬ 
closed with walls, as we know 
vineyards were, and then the pas¬ 
sage would be plain as it stands. 

The walls of vineyards were 
temporary, being probably de¬ 
signed chiefly to guard the enclo¬ 
sure against the jackals, which 
were numerous in Palestine, espe¬ 
cially during the vintage, often 
destroying whole vineyards and 
fields of cucumbers. Hence the 
bitterness of the sarcasm of To¬ 
biah, (Neh. iv. 3,) as if the wall 
the Jews were building for the 
protection of their capital, was 
scarcely better or stronger than 
a temporary vineyard-wall to bar 
out jackals or foxes. (See cut, 
next page.) 

A fencecLwall (Isa. ii. 15) is a 
fortified waft. (See Cities.) 

667 











WAR 


WAR 



Letting dowi\ ly the wall. 


WAR. (Gen. xiv. 2.) We read 
of vast armies in the land of Pa¬ 
lestine. (2 Chron. xiii. 3; xiv. 
8, 9; xvii. 14—r8; xxv. 5—7: 
xxvi. 11-15.) 

From the nature of the arms 
and the customs of the ancients, 
their battles were tru'y murderous. 
In thoso times, heroes sought 
through the whole field for their 
personal enemies. Scarcely ever 
was any quarter given, except 
where the vanquished was re¬ 
tained as a slave, gmd conse¬ 
quently the number of killed 
668 


was often immense. (2 Chron. 
xiii. 17.) 

Although the military art wa* 
comparatively simple, yet ingeni¬ 
ous stratagems of various kinds 
were practised. Enemies were 
then, as now, surprised and over¬ 
come by unexpected divisions of 
the forces, by ambushes, and by 
false retreats. (Gen. xiv. 15; 
Josh. viii. 12; Judg. xx. 36-39; 
2 Kings vii. 12.) 

Previously to the invention ol 
fire-arms, it was found necessary 
to resort to many complicated an i 





































































WAR 


WAR 


anwieluy machines for casting 
heavy stones, and other destruc¬ 
tive missiles. We find, however, 
little allusion to these in the 
Bible. About the end of the 
ninth or the beginning of the 
eighth century before Christ, Uz- 
ziah made in Jerusalem engines 
invented by cunning men, to be on 
the towers and bulwarks, to shoot 
arrows and great stones withal. 
|2 Chron. xxvi 15.) These were 


obviously similar to those in us« 
by the Greeks and Romans. 

Among these was the battering, 
ram. (Ezek. iv. 1, 2; xxi. 22.) 
This was nothing more than a 
long beam of strong wood, usu¬ 
ally oak. It was intended to bat¬ 
ter down walls, and the end with 
which the assault was made was 
armed with amass of heavy metal, 
in the shape of a ram’s head. Occa¬ 
sionally they were sharply pointed 



*1 this end. These great beams 
*^ere at first carried by the sol¬ 
diers, and driven against the 
walls; afterwards they were plac¬ 
ed upon wheels; but in process 
of time, they were suspended by 
heavy chains, so that a compara¬ 
tively small force would impel 
them with vast elect against a 
fortification. The men who work¬ 
ed Ihe battering-ram were pro¬ 
tected by a covering or roof, 
spread with something damp and 
tough, (as wet hides,) to resist 
the fire and the weapons of the 
besieged. 

It is supposed that Hushai (2 


Sam. xvii. 13) alluded to a ma¬ 
chine like the crow, when he said 
to Absalom, If David be in a city, 
then shall all Israel bring ropes 
to that city, and we will draw it 
into the river, until there be not 
one small stone found there. The 
crow could only be effective whore 
the walls of a town were not in 
good condition, or not well de¬ 
fended ; and then, if the besiegers 
were sufficiently numerous to work 
it, by applying a great numbez 
of ropes to the same beam, they 
could soon open a way for the be¬ 
sieging army. There certainly is 
reason to conclude that Hushai’a 
669 




















WAR 

proposition arose from his know¬ 
ing that king David was almost 
deserted, and that the hearts of 
the mer. of Israel were after Ab¬ 
salom, and that the plan, though 
injudicious in itself, alluded to the 
use of some weapon of attack 
similar to the crow, which was 
worked by means of ropes, so 
pointedly mentioned in this other¬ 
wise obscure passage. 

But there was no part of the 
ancient military preparations 
which was more terrible than 
the chariot. (Ex. xiv. 7 ; Deut. 
xx. 1; Josh. xvii. 16; Judg. iv. 
3.) They were in common use 
wherevor there was any cavalry. 
(2 Sam. x. 18; 1 Chr'on. xviii. 4. 
2 Chron. xii. 3; xiv. 9. See Cha¬ 
riot.) 

Walls and towers were used in 
fortifications, and the latter were 
guarded by soldiers, and are call¬ 
ed garrisons. (2 Sam. viii. 6; 
Ezek. xxvi. 11. See Ward.) 

As to the order of battle, we 
have no certain knowledge. The 
prophet alludes to it. (Jer. x vi. 
3, 4.) Among all ancient nations, 
it was customary to take previous 
refreshment of food, in order to 
give strength to the army. The 
soldiers, and especially the com¬ 
manders, arrayed themselves in 
their costliest garments and fair¬ 
est armour, excepl in cases where 
disguise was attempted. (1 Kings 
xxii. 30.) 

Various passages lead to the 
opinion that divisions of the army 
were common, as in modern times. 
(Gen. xiv. 15; Judg. vii. 16; 1 
Sara. xi. 11.) The most frequent 
division of the host was into tens, 
hundreds, and thousands; and 
each of these had its commander 
or captain. (Judg. xx. 10 ; 1 Sam. 
viii. 12; 2 Kings xi. 4.) This is 


WAR 

an ancient method, and is still 
common in Persia. Among the 
Hebrews these divisions had some 
reference to the several families, 
and were under the heads of fa¬ 
milies, as their officers. (2 Chron. 
xxv. 5 ; xxvi. 12.) The captains 
of hundreds and of thousands 
were of high rank; or (so to speak) 
staff-officers, who were admitted 
to share in the councils of war. 
(1 Chron. xiii. 1.) The whole army 
had its commander-in-chief or 
captain, who was over the host, 
and its scribe or keeper of the 
muster-roll. (1 Kings iv. 4; 1 
Chron. xviii. 15, 16; xxvii. 32- 
34; 2 Chron. xvii. 14; xxvi. 11.) 
In Isa. xxxiii. 18, the words trans¬ 
lated he that counted the toioers, 
probably indicate what we should 
call a chief engineer. 

Under David, the army of 
288,000 men was divided into 
twelve corps, each of which was 
consequently 24,000 strong, and 
had its own general. (1 Chron. 
xxvii.) Under Jehoshaphat this 
was altered, and there were five 
unequal corps, under as many 
commanders (2 Chron. xvii. 14- 
19.) 

The cohort had five or six hun¬ 
dred men, and the legion em¬ 
braced ten cohorts. 

The light troops were provided 
with arms which they used at 
some distance from the enemy. 
They are designated 2 Chron. 
xiv. 8; while the heavy armed 
were those who bore shield and 
spear. (1 Chron. xii. 24.) The 
light troops were taken princi¬ 
pally from the tribe of Benjamin, 
as appears from the last-cited 
texts. 

Kings and generals haa ar¬ 
mour-bearers, selected from the 
bravest of their favourites, and 



WAR 

who not only carried their ar¬ 
mour, which was in those days a 
necessary service, but stood by 
them in the hour of danger, car¬ 
ried their orders, and were not 
unlike modern adjutants. (1 Sam. 
xxxi. 4.) 

The troops were excited to ar¬ 
dour and bravery by addresses 
from their priests, who were com¬ 
manded to appeal to thorn. (Deut. 
xx. 2.) In later times kings them¬ 
selves were accustomed to ha¬ 
rangue their armies. (2 Chron. 
xiii. 4.) Finally (perhaps after 
the sacrifices had been offered) 
the summons was given by the 
holy trumpets. (Num. x. 9, 10; 
2 Chron. xiii. 12-14.) 

It was the practice of the Greeks, 
when they were within half a 
mile of the enemy, to sing their 
war-song. A similar custom pro¬ 
bably prevailed among the Jews. 
(2 Chron. xx. 21.) 

Next followed the shout , or war- 
cry, which the Romans accom¬ 
panied with the noise of shields and 
spears struck violently together. 
This war-cry was common in the 
East, as it is to this day among the 
Turks. It was the alarm or shout 
so often mentioned in Scripture. 
(1 Sam. xvii. 52; 2 Chron. xiii. 
15,* Job xxxix. 25; Jer. iv. 19.) 

The frequent figurative allu¬ 
sions to the art and weapons of 
war, used by the sacred writers, 
are obvious without explana¬ 
tion. 

The practice of offensive war 
in modern times cannot be de¬ 
fended by reference to sacred 
history. We have a new and bet¬ 
ter dispensation, which breathes 
forgiveness and forbearance; and 
the tendency and promised fruit 
of which is to banish wars and 
fightings from the earth, and 


WAT 

make it the abode of peace aud 
love. (For further information 
on this subject, see Arms, Ar 
moitr. See also Omar, ch. iii.- 
v., and Biblical Antiquities, 
vol. i. ch. ix. $ 6.) 

WARD. (Gen. xl. 3 ; Acts xiL 
10.) A prison, or an apartment 
thereof. Also a garrison or mili¬ 
tary post, (Neh. xii. 25,) or a class 
or detachment of persons for any 
particular service. (1 Chron. ix. 
23; xxv. 8; Neh. xiii. 30.) 

WARDROBE. (2 Kings xxii. 
14.) The place where the royal 
robes or priest’s vestments were 
deposited. 

WASHING. (See Feet.) 

WASHPOT. (Ps. lx. 8.) This 
word in its connection signifies 
that the Moabites should be re¬ 
duced to the most abject and de¬ 
grading servitude. 

WATCH. (Ex. xiv. 24.) The 
original division of the night was 
into the first, middle, and morn¬ 
ing watch; but after the capti¬ 
vity, the Jews adopted the cus¬ 
tom of Rome and Greece, which 
divided the twelve hours of the 
night into four watches, begin¬ 
ning with six in the afternoon. 
(Mark xiii. 35. See Cock-crow¬ 
ing.) The time that passed be¬ 
tween the watches seems to a per¬ 
son that sleeps soundly as but a 
single moment. (Ps. xc. 4.) 

WATCHER. (Dan. iv. 17, 23.) 
This word is supposed to denote 
either the Divine Being himself 
(ver. 24), or his holy messengers, 
(ver. 13.) It imports the special 
universal providence of God, by 
which the affairs of the universe 
are ordered, and the rise and fall 
of kings and empires controlled. 
The twelve superior gods of the 
Chaldeans were called counsellor 
gods , and were supposed to watch 
671 



WAT 

•>ver and interest themselves in 
the minutest affairs of men. 

WATCHMAN. (Sol. Song v. 
7; Isa. xxi. 11.) In Persia, the 
watch mon were required to in¬ 
demnify those who were robbed 
in the streets, and hence they 
were extremely vigilant to give 
the alarm, and protect the city 
and its inhabitants from violence. 
(Ezek. xxxiii. 2-6.) The watch¬ 
man was also required to call the 
hours of the night in a loud voice, 
as he patrolled the streets. This 
is customary at the present day 
in some large cities. In time of 
danger the watchmen were post¬ 
ed in towers over the gates of the 
city. (Isa. xxi. 8 : lxii. 6.) 

WATER. (Gen. xviii. 4.) The 
scarcity of water is one of the 
calamities of the Eastern world, 
and the distress which is often 
experienced by man and beast for 
want of it is indescribable. Park, 
the African traveller, tells us that 
after several days of privation, he 
had fallen asleep, and his fancy 
would carry him to the banks of 
some clear and beautiful river, 
which he surveyed with trans¬ 
port, and eagerly hastened to 
quench his parching thirst,'and 
the fancied effort would wake him 
to the dreadful disappointment. 
How admirably does this illus¬ 
trate Isa. xxix. 8. 

In Prov. xxi. 1, the original 
term rendered rivers signifies di¬ 
visions, partitions, sections, and 
refers to the ancient Oriental 
methods of conveying water to 
orchards and gardens. This was 
by means of canals or rivulets 
flowing in artificial channels, call¬ 
ed in Hebrew divisions, i.e. cuts 
or trencher, which distributed the 
water in every direction, to irri¬ 
gate abundantly their otherwise 
672 


WAT 

parched and barren soil. With a 
similar allusion, the Psalmif t (Ps. 
i. 3) say» of the godly man, the 
lover of the divine law, that he 
shall be like a tree planted by the 
rivers of water, (divisions or sec¬ 
tions of water,) that bringeth forth 
his fruit in his season, and his 
leaf shall not wither. The refer¬ 
ence is doubtless to trees nour¬ 
ished by artificial irrigation, like 
those in the neighbourhood of 
Damascus. The gardens are 
thickset with fruit-trees of all 
kinds, kept fresh and verdant by 
the waters of the Barady. This 
river, as soon as it issues out from 
the cleft of the mountain into the 
plain, is immediately divided in¬ 
to three streams, of which the 
middlemost and largest runs di¬ 
rectly to Damascus, through a 
large open field called the Ager 
Daniascenus, and is distributed to 
the cisterns and fountains in the 
city. The other two, which are 
taken to be the work of art, are 
drawn round, the ODe to the right 
hand, and the other to the left, 
(as the rivers of water are turned,) 
on the borders of the gardens, in¬ 
to which they are let out as they 
pass, by little currents, ( divisions ,) 
and so dispersed all over the vast 
wood; insomuch that there is not 
a garden but has a fine quick 
stream running through it. A tra¬ 
veller, describing the orange gar¬ 
den of the emir of Beyroot, ob¬ 
serves that “it contains a large 
quadrangular plat of ground, di¬ 
vided into sixteen lesser squares, 
four in a row, with walks between 
them. The walks are shaded with 
orange-trees, of a large spreading 
size. Every one of these sixteen 
lesser squares in the garden was 
bordered with stone; and in the 
stone-w vrk were troughs very ar- 



WAT 

'dficially contrived, for conveying 
the water all over the garden; 
there being little outlets cut at 
every tree, for the stream, as it 
passed by, to flow out and water 
it.” With these items of Oriental 
custom before us, we perceive at 
once the point of the comparison 
in the passage, Prov. xxi. 1. In 
Deut. xi. 10, it is said of the land 
of promise, The land whither thou 
goest in to possess it, is not as the 
land of Egypt, from, whence ye 
came out, where thou sowedst thy 
seed, and wateredst it with thy 
foot, as a garden of herbs. The 
phrase watering with the foot may 
refer to the construction of chan¬ 
nels and water-courses like those 
above mentioned, which was ac¬ 
complished by the action of the 
foot in digging. So also in 2 Kings 
xix. 24, I have digged and drunk 
strange waters, and with the sole 
of my feet have I dried up all the 
rivers of besieged places; i. e. I 
have digged new channels by the 
labours of the spade, have turned 
the rivers out of their ancient 
courses, which consequently were 
dried up, and 'thus have made my 
army to drink of strange waters, 
flowing in channels to which they 
had never before been accustom¬ 
ed. It would with us be a very 
bold figure to say that Cyrus dried 
up the Euphrates, the river of 
Babylon, with his foot; but when 
understood, as now explained, of 
digging a new channel, which was 
done with proper implements by 
the agency of many thousand 
feet, the expression would be by 
nomeanshigh-wroughttothe ima¬ 
gination of an Oriental. Another, 
and some think, much more na¬ 
tural opinion is, that allusion is 
made to the machinery for draw¬ 
ing up water, by means of a rope 
57 2 


WAT 

or string of buckets attached to a 
wheel, which was turned like a 
modern treadmill; a description 
and cut of which may be seen in 
Scripture Illustrations, part 
i. pp. 22-39. 

In the hot countries of the East 
the assuaging of thirst is one of 
the most delightful sensation* 
that can be felt, and hence the 
frequent allusions to it in the 
sacred writings. (Ps. cxliii. 6; 
Prov. xxv. 25, Ac.) Every at¬ 
tention which humanity and hos¬ 
pitality can suggest is paid at the 
present day to furnishing tra¬ 
vellers with water. We are told 
that public reservoirs or pools are 



opened in Arabia and Egypt; and 
in the Mohammedan villages of 
Palestine, bread and water wore 
furnished by the inhabitants gra¬ 
tuitously. In India, at this day, 
the natives offer water to weary 
travellers, in honour of their gods. 
Hence the force and beauty of the 
allusion. (Matt. x. 42.) Water 
was commonly drawn out of wells 
by females,-and transported, upon 
♦he shoulder or head, in large 
S 673 





WAX 

leathern or earthen vessels, from 
whence it was poured into jars or 
poto. (See Conduit; Evening 
Recreations, vol. ii. pp. 110-114; 
and Bedouin Arabs, ch. ii.) 

Water-spouts. (Ps. xlii. 7.) 
This surprising phenomenon was 
not unfrequently seen on the Sy¬ 
riac and Jewish coasts. It is 
forcibly alluded to by the psalm¬ 
ist in the passage above cited. 
He represents the calamities that 
came upon him, according to the 
prediction, (2 Sam. xii. 11,) as 
like a violent storm at sea, where 
the torrents that pour down from 
above meet the columns of water 
that ascend from the depths be¬ 
neath ; the clouds above calling 
to the waters below, and exciting 
each other to join their force and 
overwhelm the despairing sufferer 
in hopeless destruction. 

WAX. (Ps. xxii. 14.) A well- 
known substance, easily softened 
and dissolved by heat. (Ps. Ixviii. 
2 ; xcvii. 5 ; Micah i. 4.) 

WEASEL. (Lev. xi. 29.) Ge¬ 
nerally agreed to mean the mole. 
(See Mole.) 

WEATHER. (Job xxxvii. 22.) 
The words fair weather might 
better be rendered golden splen¬ 
dour, and then the allusion to the 
aurora borealis is obvious. 

WEDDIN G-G A R M E N T. 
(Matt. xxii. 11.) The wedding- 
garments were furnished by the 
host, and were required to be 
worn by those who were admitted 
as guests at marriage-suppers. So 
holiness and righteousness are 
called the garments in which the 
guests must appear at the mar¬ 
riage-supper of the Lamb. (See 
Marriage.) 

WEEK. (Gen. xxix. 27.) The 
word in this passage means the 
term of seven days, during which 
674 


WEL 

the marriage-festival lasted, as ft 
Laban had said, “Attend to tne 
ceremonies of the present mar¬ 
riage first, and then commence 
another term of seven years ser¬ 
vice for Rachel.” The division 
of time into portions of seven 
days had its origin at the begin¬ 
ning of the creation, (Gen. rii. 4 
-10 ; viii. 10, 12,) and traces of 
it are found in every quarter of 
the world. It is to be observed 
that this is not a division of time 
suggested, like the day, month or 
year, by the revolutions of the 
heavenly bodies. It is perfectly 
arbitrary, and yet in all the coun¬ 
tries of the East, among ancient 
nations, before they had any 
knowledge of the sacred history, 
or even in the uncultivated tribes 
of Africa, this division is recog¬ 
nised, and the days of the week 
named. 

The Jews gave no names for 
the days of the week, but simply 
the number, as the first, second or 
third day. And this practice is 
adopted by many persons at the 
present day, especially by the So¬ 
ciety of Friends. The names of 
the days in modern use are de 
rived from the Saxon language, 
in which they have a mythologi¬ 
cal signification. 

Besides weeks of seven days, 
which were rendered from one 
Sabbath to another, they had e 
week of years, or seven years, and 
a week of seven times seven years, 
which brought in the fiftieth oi 
jubilee year. 

Feasts of weeks. (Sot 
Feasts.) 

WEIGHTS. (See Measures.) 

WELLS. (Ex. xv. 27.) These 
were very essential in a country of 
flocks and herds, and were gene¬ 
rally provided at each place of pa»> 



WHA 

furage. They were deep, (John iv. 
II,) and expensive to dig and pre¬ 
serve, and hence were a valuable 


WHE 

part of the husbandman s pra 
perty. (Num. xx. 17-19.) They 
were sometimes owned in com- 



An Eastern Welt. 


inon. (Gen. xxix. 2, 3.) To pro¬ 
tect them from the sand, and 
from being used by others, they 
were covered usually with a stone. 
(Gon. xxix. 2, 8.) To stop them 
up was, and still is, regarded as 
an act of hostility, (Gen. xxvi. 
15;) and to invade the right of 
property in them was often the 
cause of sharp contention. (Gen. 
xxi. 25.) In a country where 
water was so valuable, and so 
difficult to be procured, it was an 
appropriate emblem of rich bless¬ 
ings. (Jer. ii. 13; xvii. 13.) 

Jacob’s well. (See Omar, pp. 
110-114.) 

WHALE. (Job vii. 12.) In 
the Mosaic account of the crea¬ 
tion, we are told that on the fifth 


day God created great wa«».le9. 
(Gen. i. 21.) The word probably 
means no particular species of 
animals, but the largest class of 
creeping things, whether inhabit¬ 
ing the land or water. The geo¬ 
logical investigations of the pre¬ 
sent day determine such to have 
existed, of a character different 
from any now known; and com¬ 
parative anatomy proves their 
nature to be most accurately de¬ 
scribed by the term great creeping 
things. This use of a general 
word to denote some huge mon¬ 
ster is supposed by some to occur 
in l>s. civ. 26; Ezek. xxxii. 2, 
compared with Matt. xii. 40, and 
also Job vii. 12. (See Jonah.) 

WHEAT. (Judg. vi. 11.) Thin 
675 










WHI . WID 

snost useful and important of all I translation it is often mentioned 
grains was produced abundantly I under the general na-me of corn, 
in the land of Canaan. In our I (See Corn. For a particular de¬ 



scription of the grain, see Scrip¬ 
ture Illustrations, part i. pp. 
11-15.) The above cut shows 
the appearance of the grain, 
and is probably not more rank 
and full than the common crop 
of Egyptian wheat; and it shows 
also that Pharaoh’s dream about 
seven ears of corn coming up 
upon one stalk (Gen. xli. 5) was 
according to the course of na¬ 
ture. 

The figurrtive allusions to this 
grafti (Ps. lxxxi. 16; Jer. xii. 13* 
Joel ii. 24; Matt. iii. 12) are 
sufficiently obvious. 

WHISPERERS. (Rom. i. 29.) 
Such as secretly excite suspicions 
against others, and propagate an 
evil report with an affected de¬ 
sire to speak of it only in a whis¬ 
per. 

WHITED SEPULCHRES 
(Matt, xxiii. 27.) It was custom 
676 


ary to whitewash the Jewish 
sepulchres annually, that they 
might be distinctly seen and 
avoided, inasmuch as coming in 
contact with them was the occa¬ 
sion of ceremonial defilement. 
(Num. xix. 16.) This practice 
gave them a neat and beautiful 
appearance, and presented a strik¬ 
ing contrast to the dark and of¬ 
fensive mass of putrefaction with¬ 
in. 

WIDOW. (1 Tim. v. 4.) By 
the Jewish law, (Deut. xxv. 5.) 
i if a married man died leaving no 
I children, his brother was required 
to marry the widow, in order— 
first, that the estate might be 
kept in the family; and second, 
that he might, in their descend¬ 
ants, perpetuate the name. There 
is reason to believe that more dis¬ 
tant relatives were permitted to 
enter into the same relation for 









WIF . 

like purposes, as in the case ox 
Boaz and Ruth. 

WIFE. (See Marriage.) 

WILDERNESS (Ex. xiv. 3) 
and desert. These words do not 
necessarily import a mere waste, 
hut rather extensive tracts not 
under cultivation, but affording 
rich and abundant pasturage. 
v Josh. xv. 61; Isa. xlii. 11.) The 
principal tracts of this description 
were the wilderness of Jericho, 
Judah, Engedi, Ziph-maon, Beer- 
sheba, Tekoa, Gibeon, and Betha- 
ven. (See these under their re¬ 
spective heads.) 

WILD-HONEY. (See Honey.) 

WILL OF GOD (Mark iii. 35) 
signifies either his purpose or 
pleasure, (Eph. i. 11,) or his laws, 
(Matt. vii. 21,) or his revealed 
will contained in the Scriptures 
of the Old and New Testament. 
(Rom. xii. 2.) 

WILL-WORSHIP (Col. ii. 23) 
means the practice of such expe¬ 
dients for serving and pleasing 
God as are not required nor sanc¬ 
tioned by divine authority; but 
are such as man chooses for him¬ 
self, independently of revelation, 
as deism, and the whole system 
of idolatry. 

WILLOW. (Lev. xxiii. 40.) A 
well-known tree, which flourishes 
best in marshy ground, and on the 
borders of water-courses. (Job 
xl. 22 ; Isa. xv. 7 ; xliv. 4; Ezek. 
xvii. 5.) The beautiful species 
known to us as the weeping wil¬ 
low is called the Babylonian 
willow, in allusion to Ps. cxxxvii. 
2 . 

WIMPLES. (Isa. iii. 22.) 
Supposed by some to mean a 
broad full mantle, or shawl, like 
the vail which Ruth had, (Ruth 
iii. 15;) and by others a vail, coif 
ot hood, and this last is its Ger- 
57 * 


WIN 

man signification at the preseni 
day. 

WIND. (Ex. xv. 10.) The 
east wind was injurious to vege 
tation, and dangerous at sea. (Ps. 
xlviii. 7.) The south wind brought 
heat, (Luke xii. 55;) the south¬ 
west and the north fair weather. 
(Job xxxvii. 9,22 ; Prov. xxv. 23.) 
The character of the east wind 
may be inferred from Gen. xii. 6 j 
Job i. 19; Ps. xi. 6; Isa. xxvii. 
8; Jer. iv. 11-13 ; Ezek. xvii. 10; 
xix. 12; xxvii. 26; Hos. xiii. 15. 
(See Euroclydon.) 

WINDOW. (Gen. vi. 16.) In 
Eastern houses the windows open 
upon the court within, and not 
upon the street without. (See 
Dwellings.) One of the objects 
in view is to escape the dust of 
the narrow Eastern streets. This 
gives a melancholy aspect to the 
streets, as nothing but an un¬ 
broken line of blind walls is seen 
on either side. There is sometimes 
a projecting balcony or porch, in 
front of the house, carefully closed 
by lattices of what is called Ve¬ 
netian work, and opened princi¬ 
pally upon some festival. From 
such a place Jezebel is supposed 
to have been looking out when 
she was seized and put to death by 
Jehu. (2 Kings ix. 30.) And this 
was probably called the casement. 
(Prov. vii. 6; see also Sol. Song 
ii. 9.) Glazed windows were en¬ 
tirely unknown among the He¬ 
brews, and are scarcely ever seen 
in the East at the present day. 
This is not wonderful, for in latex 
times glass has been as costly as 
gold, and it was not until long 
after the Christiai. era that glass 
windows were used. 

WINE. (Gen. xiv. 18.) There 
has been some controversy as to 

I the naturo and qualities of th* 

677 



WIN 

liquor which is called wine in our 
Scriptures. The plain reader of 
the Bible will be satisfied, how¬ 
ever, that it was unquestionably 
an intoxicating drink. (Lev. x. 
9; Eph. v. 18; 1 Pet. iv. 3.) 

The ancient Egyptians drank 
no wine, unless we give that name 
to the sweet, unfermented juice of 
the grape; such as Pharaoh’s 
butler was accustomed to express 
into the cup in the king’s hand, 
(Gen. xl. 9-11,) and which was 
mixed with water. Fermented 
wine they considered as the in¬ 
vention of an evil spirit, and it 
was not offered to their gods. 
Yet in very early times they had 
learned the art of brewing a kind 
of beer from barley, which, ac¬ 
cording to the Greek historians, 
was called barley-wine. This beer 
is said to have been costly, and 
little, if at all, inferior to wine. 
Lt was also known to the He¬ 
brews, irho, however, had the 
leso nee 1 of it, as their land was 
productive of the richest vintage. 

Like ^11 other countries, Canaan 
had w oes of various strength; 
and a distinguished writer on 
Jewish antiquities observes, “the 
wines in those countries cannot 
easilj be used without water.” 
Anotb-er ancient author says, that 
“ the wine at Aleppo resembles 
that of Cyprus, and is so fiery 
that when drunk unmixed it 
tauses great inconvenience.” It 
is very clear, however, that in¬ 
temperance prevailed among the 
Jews, (Isa. v. 11; xxviii. 1-8 ; lvi. 
12;) and it is not inconsistent 
with any known facts to suppose 
that their wines generally had the 
into Heating principle. Whether 
the svine into which cur Saviour 
miraculously changed the water 
it Cana (John ii. 3) possessed. 
678 


. WIN 

this principle or not we cannot 
know, nor would a decision of the 
question in the least degree affect 
the character of the transaction, 
any more than it would affect the 
prescription of the apostle to 
Timothy. (1 Tim. v. 23.) The 
process by which the juice of 
grapes, apples, pears, <fcc. be- 
comes an intoxicating drink, is 
as kindly and benevolently pro¬ 
vided as the process by which 
those fruits themselves come to 
maturity. And so far as the use 
of the liquid, after this process 
has taken place, tends directly or 
indirectly to the injury of body or 
soul, so far are we forbidden to 
use it on any pretence or consi¬ 
deration whatever. The inquiry, 
therefore, what the wine of the 
Bible was in this respect, seems 
to be without any practical ad¬ 
vantage, inasmuch as the injuri¬ 
ous use of it is fyrbidden in a 
thousand forms; and when it 
possesses the intoxicating quality, 
the unnecessary use of it is in¬ 
expedient, if not injurious, and 
hence sinful. (Seo Drink.) 

In the East casks were un¬ 
known. The wine was kept in 
jars or flagons, and improved by 
age, (Luke v. 39,) and by stand¬ 
ing on the lees. (Isa. xxv. 6.) 
The original word rendered lees 
signifies preservers. 

The mixed wine , often mention¬ 
ed by the sacred writers, (Ps. 
lxxv. 8; Prov. xxiii. 30,) was not 
diluted with water, but on the con¬ 
trary was increased in strength, oi 
improved in flavour and colour, 
by a mixture of drugs, herbs and 
spices. (Sol. Song viii. 2.) Saf¬ 
fron is used at this day among 
the Persians to give a deep colour 
to their wines. Some suppose, how¬ 
ever, that the phrase mixed win* 



WIN 

lenotes wine ren dered stronger by 
oeing shaken up and mingled 
with the lees. 

It was necessary for the liquor 
to remain on the lees for a time 
after the fermentation had ceased. 
Whenever this first fermentation 
has been deficient, the wine will 
have a richer and sweeter taste. 
Unless, however, it undergo a fur ¬ 
ther fermentation the lying upon 
the lees will not secure strength 
or flavour, but after repeated par¬ 
tial fermentation, will run into a 
thin acid. This beautifully ex¬ 
plains Jer. xlviii. 11. 

Wine vessels. The Hebrews, 
as well as the Greeks, preserved 
their wine in large earthen ves¬ 
sels or jars, which were buried up 
to their necks in the ground. (See 
Cellar.) These jars are quite 
large, containing often as much' 
as one of our barrels. The must, 
or new wine, after being poured 
into such vessels, is stirred for 
'about twenty days, thrice a day, 
with wooden rods. When wine 
is to be transported, the Persians 
sometimes decant it into flasks or 
bottles, but skins are in common 
use, as they were among the an¬ 
cients. The Hebrews poured even 
the must, or new wine, into skins; 
but for this purpose they used 
such as were fresh and flexible, 
and therefore not liable to be 
broken by the fermentation of the 
liquor. (Matt. ix. 17.) 

By new wine (Joel i. 5) is in¬ 
tended sweet wine, which was 
purer and stronger, and more ca¬ 
pable of preservation, and of 
course more inebriating. (Isa 
iiix. 26; Acts ii. 13.) 

Red wine is more esteemed in 
Eastern countries than white. 

The wines of Lebanon and of 
Jlelbon, near Damascus, were 


WIN 

celebrated for their excellonee, 
(Ezok. xxvii. 18; Hos. xiv. 7,) 
and the former retains its cha¬ 
racter to this day. 

Drinking wine in bowls (Amos 
vi. 6) is supposed to refor to the 
richness and magnificence of the 
vessels, and not to the quantity 
of wine drank. 

Wine-presses (Job xxiv. 11) 
were cavities in the ground, (Matt, 
xxi. 33,) built up or lined with 
mason-work. They are now found 
in this form in Persia, oight feet 
square and four feet deep. In 
Isa. v. 2, and Mark xii. 1, the 
term wine-press rather means the 
open place or vessel which re¬ 
ceived the expressed juice from 
the wine-press. It was in one 
of these cavities that Gideon 
worked. (Judg. vi. 11.) 

Eastern travellers tell us that 



Treading the unne-press. 

the first vintago usually begin! 
in the latter part of August; that 
they often see the black grapes 
spread on the ground in beds, ex¬ 
posed to the sun to dry for raisins. 

670 














WIN 


WIS 


While at a little distance, one. or 
two, and sometimes as many as 
five men, are seen with feet and 
legs bare, treading the fruit in a 
kind of cistern, or vat, usually 
about eight feet square and four 
feet high, with a grated aperture 
near the bottom, through which 
the expressed juice runs into a 
vessel beneath. (Isa. lxiii. 3; 
Hag. ii. 16.) The treaders sung 


and shouted, (Isa. xvi. 10,) wnili 
the red blood of the grapes flow¬ 
ed around them, and thoroughly 
stained their flesh and garments. 
(Isa. lxiii.1-3; Jer. xxv. 30; xlviii. 
33; Lam. i. 15 ; Rev. xix. 13-15.) 

The ancient Egyptian mode of 
expressing the juice of grapel 
may be learned from the follow 
ing cut, from a monument i* 
Memphis. The fruit is placed i» 



a cloth, which is twisted and 
Btrained until the liquor is wrung 
out into a vessel below. 

W IN N 0 W. (Isa. xxx. 24.) 
The process of winnowing among 
the Hebrews was much like that 
in use at the present day. The 
grain was taken upon a shovel 
and thrown up in the wind, and 
the lighter chaff and straw sepa¬ 
rated, sometimes by the help of 
a fan. (Isa. xli. 15, 15; Matt, 
iii. 12. (See Threshing-Floor, 
Fan.) 

WINTER. (See Seasons.) 

WISE MEN. (Matt. ii. L.) 
Men of wisdom and learning in 
things natural and divine; de¬ 
moted to philosopny, especially to 
680 


astronomy, and to the contempla¬ 
tion and worship of the Deity. 
They were of Persian origin, but 
had spread in Arabia and other 
neighbouring countries of the 
East. They were distinguished 
from other classes of their coun¬ 
trymen by their peculiar habitj 
and pursuits. They worshipped 
the only one God; and so blame¬ 
less did their studies and their re¬ 
ligion appear to be, that the pro¬ 
phet Daniel, scrupulous as he was, 
to the hazard of his life, with re¬ 
spect to the Jewish religion, did 
not refuse to accept the office 
which Nebuchadnezzar gave him, 
of being master of the Magi, and 
chief-governor over all the wia» 













WIT 

mer of Babylon. As they thus 
acquired great honour and influ¬ 
ence, they were introduced into 
the courts of kings, and consulted 
on all occasions. They also fol¬ 
lowed them in warlike expedi¬ 
tions ; and so much importance 
was attached to their advice and 
opinions, that nothing was at¬ 
tempted without their approba¬ 
tion. 

WITCHCRAFT, (1 Sam. xv. 
23,) WITCH, (I>eut. xviii. 10,) 
WIZARD. (Lev. xx. 27.) A man 
who pretends to supernatural 
power, so that he can foretell 
future events, cure diseases, call 
up or drive away spirits, or dis¬ 
close information beyond the 
reach of the natural powers, is 
called a wizard. A woman of 
like practices is called a witch, 
and the evil art itself is called 
witchcraft. No sin is more se¬ 
verely denounced by the sacred 
writers, not only under the Mo¬ 
saic dispensation, (Ex. xxii. 18; 
Deut. xviii. 11,12,) but under the 
gospel. (Gal. v. 20.) Those who 
consult such foolish and wicked 
pretenders are partakers of their 
guilt, and are abominable in God’s 
Eight. (Lev. xx. 6; Nah. iii. 4.) 
A famous pretender to supernatu¬ 
ral power lived at Endor. (See 
Saul.) 

WI T H S. (Judg. xvi. 7.) A 
band of pliable twigs, (as of the 
willow or osier kind,) twisted 
closely together while green, and 
used instead of ropes. The mar¬ 
ginal reading of the above pas¬ 
sage is small cords. 

WITNESS. (Gen. xxi. 30) 
One who gives testimony. Tw) 
or more were required in judicial 
investigations, (Deut. xvii. 6, 7;) 
and when the sentence of stoning 
was pronounced, they were re- 


WOL 

quired to commence the proeeei 
of execution. (Acts vii. 58. Seo 
Stoning.) 

The witness of the Spirit with 
our spirit (Rom. viii. 16) denotes 
the consciousness, more or less 
distinct, of the operations of the 
Spirit upon the mind, enlighten¬ 
ing the understanding, and in¬ 
clining the subject of them to do 
the will of God. 

The expression faithful witness 
(Ps. lxxxix. 37) is supposed to 
refer to the moon, (Jer. xxxiii. 
20,) that rules the night, and 
will remain as long as i/he night 
itself, which, by the terms of 
God’s covenant, shall not cease. 
(Gen. viii. 22.) 

John often exhibits the gospel 
in the light of a testimony, (1 
John v. 9;) and Christ himself is 
called the faithful and true wit¬ 
ness, (Rev. i. 5; iii. 14,) not only 
to the glory and perfection of the 
Father, but also to his own divine 
mission, and to the universality 
and perpetuity of his kingdom. 

WIZARD. (See Witch.) 

WO. (Num. xxi. 29.) This 
term often denotes a feeling of 
compassion or sympathy, (Matt. 
xX»v. 19, ) or a simple lamenta¬ 
tion, as, “Alas for me!” (Ps. 
cxx. 5.) In other connections it 
is equivalent to the threatening 
of punishment. (Hab. ii. 6, 9,15, 
19 ; Zech. xi. 17.) 

WOLF. (Isa. xi. 6.) A fierce, 
cruel, ravenous animal, in size 
and general appearance resem¬ 
bling a dog, and a most terrible 
enemy to sheep. (Isa. lxv. 25, 
Matt. vii. 15; x. 16; John x. 12; 
Acts xx. 29.) The rapaciousness 
of the tribe of Benjamin was 
foretold by Jacob by a compari¬ 
son wi 4 .h the wolf. (Gen. xlix. 
27. See Judg, xx. and xxi.; and 




W OM 

comp. 1 Sam. ix. 1, and xx. 31, 
and Acts ix. 1; Rom. xi. 1; Phil, 
lii. 5.' The sacred writers also 
illustrate the cruelty of Israel’s 
oppressors by an allusion to the 
wolf, (Ezek. xxii. 27;) and the 
rallying forth of the evening wolf 


WOK 

in search of prey (Hab. i. 8; is 
emblematical of the destruction 
which awaits wicked men. (Jor. 
v. 5, 6.) The allusion, Zeph. iii. 
3, is to the circumstance that the 
wolf in its greediness often soizea 
on more than it can consume. 



WOMA N. (1 Cor. xi. 8, 9.) 
The companion and helper of 
man, and by express command 
made subject to him. (Gen. iii. 
16.) The word, when used a#a 
term of salutation, as in Matt, 
xv. 28, implies no disrespect, but 
great tenderness and courtesy. 
It was thus that our Saviour ad¬ 
dressed Mary under the most 
touching circumstances. (John 
xx. 15.) 

WOOL. (S«3 Sheep.) 

WORD. (John i. 1.) This is 
one of the titles of Jesus Christ. 
It may denote that he is the me¬ 
dium by which the Father de¬ 
clares his order or will. The 
Jews commonly used this term 
to designate the Messiah ; and so 
prevalent was its use among the 
682 


Gentiles also, that the evangelist 
is particular to define clearly the 
true doctrine respecting Him to 
whom it was applied; and no lan¬ 
guage can more clearly express 
the idea of eternity and self-ex¬ 
istence than the language he em¬ 
ploys to describe the being and 
attributes of the Messiah. The 
Scriptures are figuratively calk*! 
the icord of God , (Rom. ix. 6;) 
the icord of righteousness , (Heb. 
v. 13;) the word of faith, (Rom. 
x. 8,) and the word of salvation, 
(Acts xiii. 26.) 

WORKS. (Ps. cxlv. 9.) The 
works of God are the things cre¬ 
ated and governed by his wisdom 
and power. 

Good Works (Eph. ii. 10) are 
such as proceed from love to God, 










TV O R 

and aro done in obedience to his ' 
law, and from a regard to his 
glory. 

TV e are saved by faith; but 
faith without works is dead , i. e. 
it is without any evidence of life. 
Works constitute the evidence 
and determine the strength and 
character of faith. 

WORLD. (1 Sam. ii. 8.) This 
term is used by the sacred writers 
in a variety of senses, each of 
which may ordinarily be deter¬ 
mined by its^jpnnection. Among 
them may be mentioned the fol¬ 
lowing: The habitable earth, (Ps. 
xxxiii. 8 ;) time, (Isa. xlv. 17; 
Matt, xxviii. 20;) present ex¬ 
istence, (John i. 9;) future exist¬ 
ence, (Mark x. 30;) the nations 
and kingdoms subject to Rome 
in the time of our Saviour, (Luke 
ii. 1;) an indefinite number, (John 
xii. 19; Acts xix. 27;) close of 
the Jewish dispensation connect¬ 
ed with the final consummation 
of all things, (Matt. xxiv. 3;) the 
corrupt sentiment, disposition and 
practices of sinners. (James i. 
27 ; 1 John iv. 5.) 

WORMS. (Ex. xvi. 20.) A 
large class of animals without any 
of the senses belonging to other 
animals, except feeling. From 
the circumstance that one or more 
species of worms are found in pu¬ 
trefying flesh, we have the figu¬ 
rative expressions in Job xix. 26 ; 
xxi. 26; xxiv. 20; Isa. xiv. 11. 
Owing to tho constant accumula¬ 
tion of filth and putrefaction in a 
valley near Jerusalem, it was al¬ 
ways alive with worms, and fires 
were maintained day and night to 
consume the sources of pestilence. 
Hence the allusion, Isa. lxvi. 24; 
Mark ix 44, 46, 48. At an ad¬ 
vanced stage of some diseases, 
worms are bred In the flesh. (Job 


WRl 

' vii. 5; xvii. 14; Acts xii. 23.) 
The meanness of the worm, and 
its liability to be trodden down 
unnoticed, afford the illustrations 
in Job xxv. 6; Ps. xxii. 6, and 
Isa, xii. 14. 

WORMWOOD. (Deut. xxix. 
18.) A plant of which there are 
several species, and all distin¬ 
guished for intense bitterness, 
and probably some may be not 
only bitter and nauseous, but 
positively hurtful. Hence it is 
often joined with or used in the 
same sense as gall and hemlock, 
to denote what is offensive or in¬ 
jurious. (Dcut. xxix. 18; Prov. 
v. 4; Amos v. 7; vi. 12.) To be 
obliged to use it as food expresses 
the extreme of suffering. (Jer. 
ix. 15 ; xxiii. 15 ; Lam. iii. 15,19.) 

WORSHIP. (Matt. ii. 2.) This 
word, as used in our Bible, has 
various significations. In most 
instances it means simply an act 
of respect, (Matt. ix. 18; Acts x. 
25,) and does not imply any re¬ 
ligious emotion. Where the act 
respects the Divine Being, the 
only proper object of religious 
worship, the connection shows it. 
OJohn iv. 24; Heb. i. 6; Rev. 
xxii. 9.) It is used, however, in 
relation to idol gods. (Dan. iii. 
5, 12, 14; Acts xix. 27.) 

WRITING. (Ex. xxxii. 16.) 
Writing by pictures or in hiero 
g'yphics is an art of very ancient 
date, and is even now common in 
many savage nations. An eye re 
presented God as the Omniscient, 
an eye and sceptre, a king; a lion, 
courage, <fcc. This is common, 
in its most unimproved form, 
among our American aborigines ; 
and was the common method used 
by the Mexicans, some of whose 
ancient pictures of this kind are 
preserved. 

683 



WRI 


The most numerous and re¬ 
markable specimens of hierogly¬ 
phic writing exist in Egypt; they 



have been sought out by travel¬ 
lers, and copied in drawings and 
copperplates, but have baffled the 
ingenuity and labour of all ages. 


WRJ 

until within a few years. A dieu 
tinguished French antiquary has 
succeeded in deciphering a great 
number of them, and his labours 
have thrown great light upon the 
Scriptures, and vindicated the 
Mosaic history from a multitude 
of objections. 

It is not improbable that these 
pictures, which were at first ac¬ 
curate resemblances of objocts, 
became at last merely signs of 
ideas, and that hence alphabeti¬ 
cal writing came into use. It is 
the prevailing opinion that the 
Israelites were acquainted with 
letters when they were in Egypt 
as bondmen ; and when they took 
possession of the land of Canaan 
they found a city called Kirjath- 
sepher, which means the city of 
books or letters, and indicates the 
existence of the art among that 
people. Through all the Mosaic 
history, books and writing are 
mentioned as in familiar use. 
The practice of employing an 
amanuensis was much more com¬ 
mon in ancient days than now. 
Hence Paul notices it as a spe¬ 
cial circumstance that he wrote 
the letter to the Galatians with 
his own hand. (Gal. vi. 11.) 
This fact also explains Rom. 
xvi. 22; 1 Cor. xvi. 21 ; Col. 
iv. 18, and 2 Thess. iii. 17. (See 
Book.) 


YAR 

ARN, linen. (1 Kings x. 28.) 
There is a diversity of opin¬ 
ion as to the meaning of this 
term. There is very strong reason 
to doubt the correctness of the 
rendering in our translation, 
though we have mentioned it 
684 


YEA 

without comment in the article 
Linen. 

YEAR. (Gen. xvii. 21.) Thai 
space of time wherein the sun 
finishes his course through all the 
signs of the zodiac ciicle of the 
heavens, consisting of the four 































YEA 

•easons of spring, summer, au¬ 
tumn, and winter. It consists of 
three hundred and sixty-five days 
five hours forty-nine minutes. 
Julius Caesar fixed the Roman 
year at three hundred and sixty- 
five days and six hours, which in 
four years make one day, and in 
the fourth year is added to Feb¬ 
ruary, and occasions that to be 
called leap-year. By this year 
we still reckon our time; but as 
it includes eleven minutes too 
much, this, in one hundred and 
thirty years, runs the reckoning 
forward one day, and in our reck¬ 
oning had run forward the year 
full eleven daj's, till this was rec¬ 
tified by the introduction of the 
new style among us, as it was in 
several countries abroad, by Pope 
Gregory, almost two hundred 
years ago. In prophetic language, 
a year signifies three hundred 
and sixty years, and a month 
thirty, a day being put for a year; 
and so three years and a half, and 
times, time, and half a time, or 
forty-two months, or twelve hun¬ 
dred and sixty days, denote the 
twelve hundred and sixty years 
duration of Antichrist. (Rev. xi. 
2, 3 ; xii. 6, 14.) With the Jews 
the year was civil or sacred, solar 
or lunar. (See Month.) 

Fallow year. In the seventh 
year all agricultural labour was 


YOK 

suspended, and spontaneous pre* 
ductions were left to the poor, the 
traveller and the wild beasts. 
(Lev. xxv. 1-7.) This was, (1.) 
For the sake of the ground; (2.) 
For the preservation of wild 
beasts; and '3.) To make the 
people provident and sensible of 
dependence. The people could 
fish, hunt, take care of bees and 
flocks, repair buildings, manu¬ 
facture clothes, and carry on 
commerce. This year was re¬ 
ligiously observed. (Deut. xxxi. 
10-13.) 

Year of jubilee. (See 
Feast.) 

YOKE. (Gen. xxvii. 40.) The 
yoke was laid upon the neck of 
the beast, and fastened with 
thongs to the animal, and to the 
plough-beam. It thus became a 
lively image of slavery, subjec¬ 
tion, imprisonment, and severe 
rule, while the removal of the 
yoke indicated the corresponding 
deliverance. (Jer. ii. 20.) Break¬ 
ing the yoke also represents the 
rejection of authority. (Jer. v. 
5; Nah. i. 13.) The following cut 
represents the ancient Egyptian 
yoke. 



ZAA 

AANAN. (Mic. i. 11.) Most 
probably a city of Judah, the 
same as Zenan mentioned in Josh, 
xv. 37, situated in the valley or 
plain towards the Mediterranean 

C °ZAANANNIM. (Josh. xix. 33.) 
A city of Naphtali, in the plain 
53 


ZAC 

of Zaanaim, (Judg. iv. 11,) north 
east of Kedesh, near the water* 
of Merom. 

ZACCIIEUS. (Luke xix. 2.) 
A rich Jew resident in Jericho, 
and chief officer of the tax or 
tribute collectors in that place, 
and hence he is called a sinner, 
685 









ZAC 

■or the Jews regarded all publi¬ 
cans or tax-gatherers in this light. 
His curiosity to see Christ was 
so much excited, that he took 
pains to climb into a tree by the 
roadside, that he might have a 
fair view of him as the crowd 
passed. Jesus, knowing his cha¬ 
racter and motives, proposed to 
spend the day with him, to which 
Zaccheus gladly assented. His 
mind was probably brought at 
once under the influence of the 
Spirit of God, and on that very 
day he and his family became 
interested in the salvation of the 
gospel. (Luke xix. 1-10.) The 
expression forasmuch as he also 
is a son of Abraham probably de¬ 
notes that he was not only a na¬ 
tural descendant of the patriarch, 
but that he had now become a 
partaker of the like faith and 
promises. 

ZACHAItlAII, 1, (2 Kings xiv. 
29,) was son and successor of 
Jeroboam II. king of Israel. lie 
reigned but six months, and then 
fell by the hand of Sballum, who 
took the throne. (2 Kings xv. 
8-11. Comp. Amos vii. 9.) 

2. (Ezra v. 1.) The prophet, 
was the son of Barachia, and the 
grandson of Iddo. (Zech. i. 1.) 
The expression in Ezra is conso¬ 
nant to the Jewish usage of call¬ 
ing a descendant son or daughter, 
and an ancestor father or mother, 
though they might be removed 
two or three degrees from these 
relations. Zechariah returned 
from Babylon with Zerubbabel, 
and prophesied contemporane¬ 
ously with Haggai. 

Prophecy of, is the last but 
one in the order of the books of 
the Old Testament. Its grand 
design is to encourage the Jews 
in the re-establishment of their 
686 


ZAL 

national institutions. Though the 
languago is often obscure, and 
the style seemingly unconnected, 
it contains several animating pre¬ 
dictions of the future glory of 
Christ’s kingdom, in terms re¬ 
markably full and explicit. (Se# 
Mine Explored, p. 204.) 

ZACHARIAS. 1. (Matt, xxiii. 
35. See Barachias.) 

2. (Luke i. 5.) A priest of the 
family of Abia, (see Aria,) the 
father of John the Baptist. The 
character of himself and his wife 
is given us in the simplest yet 
most expressive language. (Luke 

i. 6.) The birth of John was 
announced to him in a miracu¬ 
lous manner, and seemed so be¬ 
yond the range of probability, 
that his faith had failed, and ho 
asked for some extraordinary 
sign that the promise should be 
accomplished. He was immedi¬ 
ately deprived of the power of 
speech, and remained dumb until 
the eighth day after the birth of 
the promised child; when, being 
asked to give the infant a name, 
in obedience to the angelic direc¬ 
tion he called him John, and 
forthwitn the power of speech was 
restored to him, and he employed 
it in a strain of the most devout 
gratitude and praise. (Luke i. 
57-80.) 

ZADOK, (2 Sam. viii. 17,) the 
successor of Abiathar in the Jew¬ 
ish priesthood, was the son of 
Ahitub, of the family of Eleazar. 
(Comp. 1 Sam. ii 30-36 ; 1 Kings 

ii. 27, 35.) 

ZALMON, (Judg. ix. 48,) or 
SALMON. (Ps. lxviii. 14.) A 
hill near to Shecbem, which, it 
appears from the above passage 
in Psalms, was covered with snow 
It is also the name of a 
(Matt. i. 5.) 



ZAM 

ZAMZUMMIMS, (Deut. ii. 
20,) or ZUZ1MS. (Gen. xiv. 5.) 
A tribe of people of gigantic sta¬ 
ture and strength, who inhabited 
the country east of the Jordan 
and the Dead Sea. They were 
attacked and routed by Chedor- 
laomer, and afterwards expelled 
by the Ammonites. 

' ZANOAH. (Josh. xv. 34, 56.) 
There were probably two cities 
of this name, both in Judah ; one 
in the valley or low country, the 
other in the mountains, or interior. 

ZAPIION, (Josh. xiii. 27,) or 
SIIOPHAN. (Num. xxxii. 35.) 
One of tne cities of Gad, situated 
in the valley, lying along the east 
side of the Jordan. 

ZARED, (Num. xxi. 12,) or 
ZERED. (Deut. ii. 13.) A brook 
rising in mount Abarirn and 
emptying into the Dead Sea, 
south of Arnon, in the land of 
Moab. On its banks the Israel¬ 
ites encamped, on their journey 
from Egypt to the promised land. 

ZAREPHATII. (See Sa- 

REPTA.) 

ZARETAN, (Josh. iii. 16,) or 
ZARTANAH, (1 Kings iv. 12,) 
or ZARTHAN, (1 Kings vii. 46.) 
or ZEREDA. (1 Kings xi. 26,) or 
ZEREDATIIA, (2 Chron. iv. 17,) 
or ZERERATH, (Judg. vii. 22,) 
all supposed to denote one and 
the same place, viz. a town on 
the west bank of the Jordan, at 
the place where the Israelites 
crossed, when the waters were 
gathered into a heap on either 
side. It was near Bethshean, 
and opposite to Suceoth, and was 
distinguished as the birthplace of 
Jeroboam. 

ZEBOIM. (Gen. x. 19; xiv. 
2.) One of the cities of the plain, 
destroyed with Sodom aui Go¬ 
morrah. There was al/o a city 


ZED 

and valley of this name m th« 
lot of Benjamin. (1 Sam. xiii. 
18 ; Neh. xi. 34.) 

ZEBULON, (Gen. xxx. 20,) or 
ZABULON. (Rev. vii. 8.) The 
sixth son of Jacob and Leah. The 
portion of his descendants in the 
promised land was assigned pro¬ 
phetically by his father and their 
ancestor. (Gen. xlix. 13.) 

Tribe of, possessed that dis¬ 
trict of Canaan which lay between 
the sea of Galilee (Matt. iv. 13) 
and the Mediterranean ; bounded 
south by Issachar, and north by 
Asher and Naphtali. This last 
tribe allied itself to the tribe of 
Zebulon, and joined the forces of 
Barak and Deborah against the 
army of Jabin. (Judg. v. 18.) 

The town of Zebulon (Josh, 
xix. 27) was within the territory 
of Asher, but was probably a pos¬ 
session of the tribe of Zebulon. 
Elon, a judge of Israel, was of 
this tribe, and was buried within 
its bounds. (Judg. xii. 12.) 

ZECIIARIAH. (See Zacha- 
riah.) 

ZED All or ZEDAD. (Num. 
xxiv. 8.) Supposed to be tho 
same with the modern Sudud—a 
large village surrounded by gar¬ 
dens and cultivated fields—peo¬ 
pled by Christianswho speakon’y 
Arabic. Comp. Ezek. xlvii. lJ. 

ZEDEKIAH, (2 Kings xxiv. 
17,) the last king of Judah, was 
the son of Josiab, and the uncle 
of Jehoiachin, his immediate pro- 
decessor on the throne, ilis pro¬ 
per name was Mattaniah, but 
Nebuchadnezzar changed it to 
Zedekiah. He commenced his 
reign at twenty-one, and reigned 
eleven years. (2 Chron. xxxvL 
11.) He is represented as a very 
wicked man, and the nation dur¬ 
ing his reign was remarkably 




ZEL 

bold and obdurate in sin. For 
this oause the prophet Jeremiah 
was commissioned to threaten 
them with severe judgments, 
which were visited upon them 
in the most fearful manner. In 
the ninth year of his reign, he 
revolted against Nebuchadnezzar, 
in consequence of which the As¬ 
syrian monarch marched his army 
into Judea, and took all the forti¬ 
fied places. In the eleventh year 
of his reign, on the ninth day of 
the fourth month, (July,) Jerusa¬ 
lem was taken. The king and his 
people endeavoured to escape by 
night; but the Chaldean troops 
pursuing them, they were over¬ 
taken in the plain of Jericho. 
Zedekiah was seized and carried 
to Nebuchadnezzar, then at Rib- 
lah, in Syria, who reproached 
him with his perfidy, caused all 
his children to be slain before 
his face, and his own eyes to be 
put out; and then loading him 
with chains of brass, he ordered 
him to be sent to Babylon. (2 
Kings xxv. 1-11; 2 Chron. xxxvi. 
12, 20 ) It is worthy of special 
remark, that two prophecies, 
seemingly irreconcilable, were 
both literally fulfilled in the case 
of Zedekiah. (Jer. xxxii. 4, 5; 
xxxiv. 3. Comp. Ezek. xii. 13.) 

There were two or three false 
prophets of this name, one of 
whom withstood Micaiah in a 
most insolent manner. (1 Kings 
xxii. 11-37; 6ee also Jer. xxix. 
22 .) 

ZELOTES. (See Simon.) 

ZEMARAIM, mount, (2 Chron. 
xiii. 4,) was in mount Ephraim, 
»nd a city of the same name was 
in the southern section of the 
territory of Benjamin, near Bethel. 
(Josh, xviii. 22.) 

ZEN AN. See Zaanan.) 

688 


ZER 

ZEPHANIAH (Zeph. i. 1) wm 
the son of Cushi, and lived in the 
days of Josiah. 

Prophecy of, is the thirty- 
sixth in the order of the books of 
the Old Testament. It was ut¬ 
tered in the early part of the 
ministry of Jeremiah, and is de¬ 
signed mainly to excite the Jew¬ 
ish nation to repentance, in view 
of threatened judgments, and to 
comfort the people of God with 
promises of the final triumph of 
righteousness. (See Mine Ex¬ 
plored, p. 261; Elisama, pp. 
46, 47.) 

Zephaniah, (Jer. xxix. 25,) 
the son of Maaseiah, who is called 
the second priest, (2 Kings xxv. 
18,—see High-priest,) was put 
to death by Nebuchadnezzar at 
Riblah. (2 Kings xxv. 18-21.) 

ZEPHATIIA, valley of, (2 
Chron. xiv. 9-13,) was in the 
south-western section of the terri¬ 
tory of Judah, near Mareshah, 
and is memorable for the battle 
of the Jews with the Ethiopians. 
There was also a city of this 
name ( Zephath ) within the bounds 
of Simeon. (Judg. i. 17.) 

Z E R A II. (2 Chron. xiv. 9.) 
An Arabian king, who, with an 
immense army, invaded the king¬ 
dom of Judah in the reign of 
Asa The pious king of Judah, 
depending on the arm of the Lord, 
went out against him without 
fear, and obtained a signal vic¬ 
tory. The prayer of Asa on this 
occasion is worthy of all adrnira- 
tion. (2 Chron. xiv. 11.) 

ZERED. (See Zared.) 

ZEREDA. (See Zaretan.) 

ZEREDATHAH. (See Zark- 

TAN.) 

ZERESH. (Esth. v. 10.) The 
wife of Haman, and his coun¬ 
sellor and instigator in iniquity. 



ZER 

ZER5JRRABEL, (1 Chron. iii. 
19,) or ZOKOBABEL, (Matt. i. 
12,) was the leader of the first 
colony of Jews that returned 
from the captivity in Babylon, 
(Ezra ii. 2,) and was of the family 
ef David. To him Cyrus com¬ 
mitted the sacred vessels that 
were returned to Jerusalem. 
He laid the foundations of the 
temple, (Zech. iv. 6-10,) and 
was chiefly instrumental in re¬ 
storing the usual religious rites 
of the nation. (Ezra iii. 2-13. 
See Temple; see also Elisama, 
ch. viii. and ix.) 

ZIBA. (2 Sam. xix. 17.) A 
servant of Saul, whom David ap¬ 
pointed a sort of steward to 
Mephibosheth. (2 Sam. ix. 2- 
12 .) 

ZIDON. (See Sidon.) 

ZIF. (See Month.) 

ZIKLAG. (Josh. xix. 5.) A 
eity in the southern extremity of 
the territory of Judah, though al¬ 
lotted to Simeon. In the time of 
Saul it was in the hands of the 
Philistines, and Achish, their 
king, granted it to David as a 
temporary residence when he was 
flying from the persecution of 
that wicked monarch. (1 Sam. 
xxvii. 6.) During the absence 
of David and his principal men 
on a campaign, the Amalekites 
burned the city, and made the 
women and children prisoners. 
David pursued them under divine 
direction, and surprised the Ama¬ 
lekites, and not only defeated 
them, but recovered all that had 
been taken. (1 Sam. xxx.) 

ZILPAH. (Gen. xxx. 9.) The 
handmaid of Leah, and the mo¬ 
ther of Gad and Asher. 

ZIMR1. (See Omm.) 

ZIN, DESERT of, (Num. XX. 1,) 
wjL i'ERNESS of, (Num xiii. 

58 * 2 


ZIO 

21,) stretched southwardly, about 
five miles in Ireadth, from the 
Dead Sea to the Red Sea, and 
was once probably the valley of 
the Jordan. It is now called El 
Ghor. It is often mentioned in 
the journeyings of the Israelites, 
and is connected with some ol 
the most interesting events of 
that period. 

ZION, (Ps. cxxxiii. 3,) or SION. 
(Deut. iv. 48.) The last name 
seems to have been applied to 
mount Ilermon. (See Hermon.) 
Both names are applied princi¬ 
pally to the hill or fortress (called 
the castle of Zion, 1 Chron. xi. 5) 
which was taken from the Jebu- 
sites by Joab, one of David’s 
chief captains. Thither David 
removed from Hebron, whence it 
was called the city of Davit. (2 
Sam. v. 9; vi. 10 ) It was the 
southernmost of the hills on wliicb 
Jerusalem was built, having the 
valley of Kedron on the east, and 
the valley of Hinnom or Gehen¬ 
na south and west, Acra to the 
north, and Moriah north-east. 
On it was erected Solomon’s 
palace, called the house of the 
forest of Lebanon; and afterward 
the magnificent palace of Herod, 
destroyed by the Romans. The 
temple and its courts on mount 
Moriah were called Zion, (Ps. 
lxv. 1; lxxxiv. 7;) and the ap¬ 
pellation is appropriated figura¬ 
tively to the church, whether on 
earth or in heaven, as the living 
temple of Jehovah. (Isa. ii. 3 ; 
Ileb. xii. 22; Rev. xiv. 1.) 

Two American missionaries 
visited mount Zion in the spring 
of 1823. They describe it as 
partly covered with the tombs of 
Greek and Armenian Chrstians. 
On the east and south sides it is 
ploughed and cultivated. Neat 
T 689 



ZIP 

the summit is a little walled vil¬ 
lage, containing a mosque and a 
few Mussulmans’ houses. The 
Jews call this village the city of 
Zion, and it is generally believed 
by them to contain the tombs of 
David and Solomon, and the 
.iher kings of Israel. 

A modern traveller speaks of 
it as about a mile in circum¬ 
ference, and raised about three 
hundred and sixty feet. The soil, 
which was then being ploughed, 
(Mich. iii. 12,) consisted of stones 
and lime mixed with earth, which 
is usual in the foundations of 
ruined cities. (See Jerusalem.) 

Daughter of Zion (Isa. i. 8) 
means Jerusalem, and is so called 
necause Zion was the original, or 
mother settlement. Hence also 
the kindred expressions, sons of 
Zion , (Zech. ix. 13,) children of 
Zion, &c. (Joel ii. 23.) 

ZIPH. (Josh. xv. 24.) There 
were two cities of this name in 
the lot of Judah; one towards 
the coast of Edom, south-west, 
(Josh. xv. 55,) the other (Josh, 
xv. 24) a few miles east of He¬ 
bron, on a hill, on the border of 
the wilderness of Ziph, (1 Sam. 
xxiii. 13-24,) into which David 
fled from Saul and concealed 
himself. The latter was probably 
the one which Rehoboam forti¬ 
fied. (2 Chron. xi. 8.) 

ZIPHRON. (Num. xxxiv. 9.) 
In the vicinity of Zedad. (See 
Zedad.) 

ZOAN. (Num. xiii. 22.) By 
he Greeks called Tunis, and by 
he Arabs San, was one of the 
oldest cities of the world, found¬ 
ed only seven years later than 
Hebron, and situated on the Ta- 
naitic arm of the Nile. It was 
evidently the residence of a line 
>f princes, (Isa. xix. 12-13; xxx. 

6<t0 


ZUP 

4,) and probably the place wrier* 
Moses wrought the Egyptian mi¬ 
racles. (Ps. lxxviii. 12, 43.) Eze¬ 
kiel prophosied against it, (Ezok. 
xxx. 14,) and its ruins are yet 
visible, and present numerous 
pillars and obelisks, as evidence 
of its former magnificence. 

ZOAR. (Gen. xiv. 2.) A small 
city, originally called Bela, a't the 
southern extremity of the Dead 
Sea, whose king, with four others, 
rebelled against Chedorlaomer, 
and was conquered. It was after¬ 
wards threatened with the same 
destruction as Sodom, but spared 
at Lot’s request, who fled to i» 
for safety from the storm of di¬ 
vine wrath. (Gen. xix. 20, 22.) 

ZOBAH. (1 Sam. xiv. 47.) A 
town and province of Syria, lying 
along the Euphrates, north of 
Damascus, and extending to¬ 
wards Aleppo, whose king (Ha- 
darezer) was smitten by David, 
when he went to recover his bor¬ 
der on the Euphrates. (2 Sam. 
viii. 3.) 

ZOPHAR. (Job ii. 11.) One 
of Job’s three friends. He is 
called the Naamathite, probably 
because ho belonged to Naamah, 
(Josh. xv. 41,) a town assigned 
to Judah. 

Z 0 R A H, (Josh. xix. 41,) or 
ZORAN. A city belonging ori¬ 
ginally to Judah, and afterwards 
t o Dan, near the boundary line 
between them; the birthplace of 
Samson, (Judg. xiii. 2,) and pro¬ 
bably fortified by Rehoboam. (2 
Chron. xi. 10.) It is called Zoreah, 
(Josh. xv. 33,) and its inhabit¬ 
ants are called Zorites, (1 Chron. 
ii. 54,) and Zoraihites. (1 Chron. 
iv. 2.) 

ZOROBABEl.. (See Zerub- 

BABEL.) 

ZUPH. (1 Sam. ix. 5.) Thf 




ZUP 

Hind of Zuph probably derived 
its name from Zuph, one of the 
ancestors of Samuel the prophet. 
(1 Chron. vi. 35.) Ramath, which 
was within the province of Zuph, 
was thence called Ramath-zophim 
or Ramcithaim. (1 Sam. i. 1. See 
Raua.) 


ZUZ 

ZUR. (Josh. xiii. 21.) A Mi- 
dianitish prince, (Num. xxv. 15,) 
who was slain, with others, by 
the Israelites, when the Midian- 
ites suffered the judgments of 
God for their sins. (Num. xxv. 
17, 18.) 

ZUZIMS. (See Zamzummimb.^ 


THE END. 



CHRONOLOGICAL INDEX TO THE BIBLE 


Embracing the principal events recorded in the Holy Scriptures, and cover¬ 
ing a period of four thousand one hundred and four years. There are different 
opinions respecting Scripture Chronology, but the difference is not such as to 
impair the evidence of truth of the sacred volume in the slightest degree. 


PERIOD OR AGE I. 


A.M. 

B.C. 

4004 

1 

4003 

2 

4002 

3 

4003 

129 

3875 

130 

3874 

622 

3382 

687 

3317 

930 

3074 

987 

3017 

1042 

2962 

1056 

2948 

1536 

2468 

1656 

2348 


From the Creation to the Deluge , 1656 years. 


The creation of the world. 

Fall of our first parents, Adam and Eve, from holi¬ 
ness and happiness, by disobeying God, and the 

promise of a Saviour. 

Cain born... 

Abel born. 

Abel murdered by his brother Cain. 

Seth born, Adam, his father, being 130 years old... 

Enoch born.— 

Methuselah born. 

Adam dies, aged 930 years... 

Enoch translated, aged 365 years. 

Seth dies, aged 912 years. 

Noah born.-. 

The deluge threatened, and Noah commissioned I 
to preach repentance during 120 years.| 

Methuselah dies, aged 969 years. 

In the same year Noah enters the ark, he being 
600 years old. 


Gen. i. ii. 


Gen. iii. 

iv. 1. 

2 . 

8 . 

v. 3. 

18,19. 
21 . 

25. 

24. 

8 . 

28,29. 

vi. 3, 22. 

1 Pet. iii. 20. 

2 Pet. ii. 5. 
Gen. v. 27, 28. 

vii. 6, 7. 


PERIOD OR AGE II. 

From the Deluge to the Call of Abraham, 427 years. 

1657 2347 Noah, with his family, leaves the ark after the") 

deluge, and, sacrificing, he receives the cove- ( Gen. viii. 18- 
nant of safety, of which the rainbow was the f 20; ix. 8-17. 

token.J 

1770 2234 Babel built, the confusion of languages, and the 

dispersion of mankind. xi. 19. 


692 



















CHRONOLOGICAL INDEX. 


A.M. B.C. 

1771 2233 Nimrod lays the first foundation of the Babylo¬ 
nian or Assyrian monarchy. Gen. x. S-1L 

1816 2188 Mizraim, the son of Ham, the son of Noah, com¬ 
mences the foundation of the Egyptian mon¬ 
archy. 

1824 2180 The trials of the patriarch Job are by many placed 


about this time. 

2006 1998 Noah dies, aged 950 years. ix. 28, 29. 

2008 1996 Abram born. xi. 26. 


PERIOD OR AGE III. 

From the Call of Abraham to the Exodus of Israel from Egypt, 430 years. 

2083 1921 Abram called from Chaldean idolatry, in his 75tli 

year. Gen. xii. 

2107 1897 The covenant of God with Abram, and his name 

changed to Abraham—circumcision instituted— 

Lot delivered, and Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, 
and Zeboim destroyed by fire on account of 
their abominations. xvii.-xix. 

2108 1896 Isaac born, Abraham being 100 years old. xxi. 

2133 1871 Abraham offers Isaac as a burnt-sacrifice toj fi e p 17-19 

. * \ James ii. 21. 

2145 1859 Sarah, Abraham’s wife, dies, aged 127 years. Gen. xxiii. 1. 

2147 1857 Isaac marries Rebecca. xxiv. 

2168 1836 Jacob and Esau born, Isaac being 60 years old. xxv. 26. 

2182 1822 Abx-aham dies, aged 175 years. 7, 8. 

2244 1760 Jacob goes to his uncle Laban, in Syria, and mar¬ 
ries Rachel and Leah, his daughters. xxviii. 

2259 1745 Joseph bora, Jacob being 90 years old. xxx. 23,24. 

2255 1739 Jacob returns to Canaan. xxxi. xxxii. 

2276 1728 Joseph sold by his brethren to be a slave. xxxvii. 

2289 1715 Joseph explains the dreams of Pharaoh, and is 

made governor of Egypt. xli. 

2298 1706 Joseph’s brethren and father settle in Egypt. xliii. xlvi. 

2315 1689 Jacob foretells the coming of Messiah, and dies in 

Egypt, aged 147 years. xlix. 

2369 1635 Joseph dies, aged 110 years. 1. 

2430 1574 Aaron born.....Ex.vi.20; vii.7. 

2433 1571 Moses born.ii. 1-10. 

2473 1531 Moses flees into Midian. 11-13. 

2513 1491 Moses commissioned by God to deliver Israel. iii. 


PERIOD OR AGE IV. 


From the Exodus of Israel from Egypt to the Entrance into Canaan, 40 years. 


2513 1491 

2514 1490 

2552 1452 

2553 1451 


Miraculous passage of the Israelites, and Pharaoh 

drowned. Exod. xiv. xv. 

The law delivered on Sinai—the tabernacle erected xix. xl. 

Miriam, sister of Moses, dies, aged 130 years. Num. xx. 1,2. 

Aaron dies, aged 123 years. 28, 29. 

Moses dies, aged 120 years—Joshua ordained liis 

successor. Deut. xxxiv 

693 





























CHRONOLOGICAL INDEX. 


PERIOD OR AGE V. 


From the Entrance of Israel into Canaan to the Building of Solomon’s Temple , 


448 years. 

am. , , _ . 

2553 The Israelites pass the river Jordan, the manna ceases, and Jeri¬ 
cho taken, Josh, i.-vi...— 

2561 Joshua dies, aged 110 years, Josh, xxix. 

2849 Samuel born, 1 Sam. i. 19.-. 

2888 Eli, the high-priest, dies—Ark of God taken by the Philistines, 

1 Sam. iv... 

2909 Saul anointed king, 1 Sam. x.; xi. 12-15. 

2919 David born......-.—. 

2941 David anointed to be king, 1 Sam. xvi. 13... 

2942 David slays Goliath, 1 Sam. xvii. 49-51. 

2949 Saul is defeated in battle, and in despair kills himself—David ac¬ 
knowledged king by Judah, 1 Sam. xxxi.-. 

2956 Islibosheth, king of Israel, treacherously slain, and the whole 

kingdom united under David, 2 Sam. i. 

2957 Jerusalem taken from the Jebusites by David, and made the 

royal city, 2 Sam. v.-... 

2969 David commits adultery with Bathsheba, and contrives that her 

husband Uriah may be killed in battle, 2 Sam. xi. 

2970 David brought to repentance for his sin by Nathan the prophet, 

sent to him by the Lord, 2 Sam. xii. 

2971 Solomon is born, 2 Sam. xii. 24......... 

2981 Absalom rebels against his father, and is slain by Joab, the king’s 

general, 2 Sam. xv.-xviii...^.....—. 

2989 David causes Solomon to be proclaimed king, 1 Kings 1. 

2990 David dies, aged 70 years, 1 Kings ii.•.•... 

3000 Solomon’s temple finished, after seven years, 1 Kings vi., vii. 


B.C. 


1451 

1443 

1155 

1116 

1095 

1085 

1063 

1063 

1055 

1048 

1047 

1035 

1034 

1033 

1023 

1015 

1014 

1004 


PERIOD OR AGE VI. 


From the Building of Solomon’s Temple to the Babylonish Captivity , 415 years. 


3001 

3029 


3033 

3108 

3165 

3194 

3278 


Solomon’s temple dedicated, 1 Kings viii.. 

Solomon dies—The ten tribes revolt to Jeroboam—Jeroboam 
abolishes the worship of the Lord in Israel, and sets up a golden 
calf at each end of his kingdom to be adored—Great numbers 
of the priests and Israelites, on account of the idolatry, with¬ 
draw from his government, and unite with Judah, 1 Kings xii.; 

2 Cliron. xi. 13-16.-.-.-.-. 

Rehoboam abandons himself to impiety, so that the Lord per¬ 
mits Shishak, king of Egypt, to take Jerusalem, and pillage 
the king’s palace and the consecrated temple, 1 Kings xiv. 25; 
2 Cliron. xii. 1-9. 


Elijah the prophet, being translated to heaven, is succeeded by 

Elisha, 2 Kings ii. 

Elisha dies, 2 Kings xiii. 

Uzziah, called also Azariali, begins to reign in Judah for 52 years; 
in whose time Isaiah and Amos prophesy in Judah, and Jonah 

and Ilosea in Israel, 2 Kings xv. 1-5; 2 Chron. xxvi. 

Ilezekiah endeavours to effect a complete reformation in the neg¬ 
lected services of religion, and establishes a society of scribes 
for circulation of the Scriptures, 2 Kings xviii.; 2 Chron. xxix. 
-xxxi.; Prov.xxv. 


694 


1003 


975 

971 

896 

839 

810 

726 

























CHRONOLOGICAL INDEX. 


A.M. B.C. 

3283 The kingdom of Israel totally destroyed by the Assyrians, after 
it had subsisted apart from Judah 254 years, under nineteen 

wicked kings, 2 Kings xvii.,. 721 

3292 Micah and Nahum prophesy. 712 

3308 Isaiah, as is believed, is sawn asunder by order of Manasseh, the 

wicked king of Judah, son of Hezekiah. 696 

3363 Zephaniah prophesies. 641 

33S1 Joel prophesies. 623 

3395 Habbakuk prophesies. 609 


3398 Nebuchadnezzar takes Jerusalem, makes the king tributary, and 
carries many captives to Babylon, among whom were Daniel 
and his three companions, and Ezekiel the prophet, 2 Chron. 
xxxvi.; Dan. i. 1, 2; Jer. xxix. 10; Ezek. i.—The seventy years’ 
captivity, as foretold by Jeremiah, begins, Jer. xxv. 12; xxix. 10 606 


3399 Jeremiah begins to commit his prophecies to writing . 605 

3410 Ezekiel begins to prophesy in Chaldea, Ezek. i. 1, 2. 594 


3416 Jerusalem with its temple burnt, after a long siege by Nebuchad¬ 
nezzar; and the Jews, except a few of the poorest, carried cap¬ 
tives to Babylon. The kingdom of Judah had subsisted 468 
years from David’s accession to the throne; 338 from the sepa¬ 
ration of the ten tribes, and 134 from the ruin of the kingdom 
of Israel, 2 Chron. xxxvi. 14-21. 588 

PERIOD OR AGE VII. 

From the Babylonish Destruction of Jerusalem to the Birth of Christ, 588 years. 


3416 The first destruction of Jerusalem. 588 

3417 Jeremiah carried into Egypt by the Jews, and prophesies there... 587 

3419 Obadiah prophesies. 685 

3424 Nebuchadnezzar sets up a golden idol—The three Hebrew youths 

preserved in the fiery furnace, Dan. iii. 680 

3466 Belshazzar’s impious feast; at which Babylon is taken by Cyrus 
the Persian, and the kingdom transferred to his uncle Darius 
the Mede, and the king slain, Dan. v.—Thus the Assyrian, or 

first universal, empire ended, Dan. ii. 36-38; vii. 5. 538 

3468 Cyrus succeeds Darius to the throne, and issues an edict for the 
release of the Jewish captives, and the rebuilding of the temple 
of Jerusalem, delivering up at the same time the sacred vessels, 

Ezra i.; Isa. xlv. 1. 536 

3484 Ilaggai and Zachariah prophesy, Ezra v. 520 

3488 Esther, a Jewish captive, married by Aliasuerus, Esther i., ii. 516 

3489 The second temple at Jerusalem finished and dedicated, Ezra vi... 515 

3537 Ezra sent to Jerusalem to regulate the Jewish state, and to re¬ 
form religion, Ezra vii... 467 

3550 Nehemiah obtains leave to rebuild Jerusalem, Neh. ii. 454 

3563 Nehemiah returns to king Artaxerxes, Neh. v. 14. 441 

3565 Nehemiah goes again to Jerusalem, and completes a reformation 

of religion among the people—Ezra revises those books of the 
Old Testament which had been written, and compiles the books 
of Chronicles, Neh. v. 14; viii.-xiii. 6. 439 

3566 Malachi prophesies: the last of the Old Testament writers. 438 

3604 The Old Testament history closes about this time. 400 

3672 Alexander the Great, having entered Asia, visits Jerusalem, reve¬ 
rences Jaddua the high-priest, and favours the Jews. 331 

3674 Alexander overthrows the Medo-Persian, the second universal em¬ 
pire, slays Darius, and sets up the Macedonian or Grecian em¬ 
pire, Dan. ii. 39; vii. 6; xi. 1-3. 330 

695 


























CHRONOLOGICAL INDEX. 

A.M. B.C. 

3720 The Old Testament translated into Greek about this time: the 

version called the Septuagint . 284 

3837 The seven brethren and their mother martyred at Antioch, by 

order of Antiochus, king of Syria, 2 Maccab. vii. 167 

3839 Judas Maccabeus recovers Jerusalem from the Syrians, and re¬ 
stores the worship of God. 165 

3939 The Romans conquer Syria, terminate the third, or Grecian em¬ 
pire, and establish their own, the fourth universal empire, Dan. 

ii. 40-43. 65 

3941 Judea made a Roman province. 63 

A. D. 

3999 John the Baptist born, six months before Jesus Christ, Luke i. ... 5 

4000 Jesus Christ born, being four years earlier than the common reck¬ 

oning, Anno Domini. 4 

PERIOD OR AGE Yin. 

From the Birth of Jesus Christ to the End of the First Century. 

4012 Jesus Christ hears and questions the Jewish doctors in the temple, 

he being about twelve years of age, Luke ii. 8 

4032 Pilate sent from Rome into Judea as governor. 28 

4033 John the Baptist begins his ministry, Matt, iii. 29 

4034 Jesus Christ baptized by John, Matt, iii. 30 

4037 Jesus Christ crucified, and rose from the dead, Matt, xxvii., xxviii. 33 

4039 Paul converted—Saul, his Jewish name, Acts ix. 35 

4048 James beheaded by Herod; Peter liberated by an angel, Acts xii. 44 

4064 Paul sent a prisoner to Rome, Acts xxvi.-xxviii. 60 

4069 Paul, and, as is supposed, Peter also, suffered martyrdom at Rome. 

The Jewish war begins. 65 

4071 The Roman general raises the siege of Jerusalem, by which an 
opportunity was afforded for the Christians to retire to Pella 
beyond the Jordan, according to the admonition of Christ. 67 

4074 Jerusalem besieged and taken by Titus Vespasian, according to 

the predictions of Christ, when 1,100,000 perished by famine, 
fire, sword, and crucifixion; 97,000 were made captives and sold 
as slaves, besides innumerable multitudes who perished in other 
parts of Judea. 70 

4075 Jerusalem and its temple razed to the foundations.! 71 

4099 John banished by the emperor Domitian to Patmos, where he 

writes his revelation. 95 

4101 John liberated from exile and writes his gospel.'. 97 

4104 John dies, being about 100 years old. He was the last surviving 
apostle, and, as is believed, the only one of them who died a 
natural death. 100 


696 





















PRINCIPAL SCRIPTURE NAMES 


AND THEIR SIGNIFICATION. 


The Scripture names of both persons and things are generally remarkable 
for their signification. A knowledge of these cannot fail materially to assist 
the reader in understanding many passages in the Bible. In several in¬ 
stances names were given immediately by God; in others, they were imposed 
by a spirit of prophecy; and many, both persons and things, received their 
denomination from some particular circumstance in their history. 

Thus, God called our first parents Adam, which signifies earth, or red-earth, 
because from the earth man was created, Gen. ii. 7; v. 2. He changed the 
name of Abram, which signifies high-father, to Abraham, the father of a great 
multitude, or of nations, Gen. xvii. 5; and that of his wife, Sarai, my lady, to 
Sarah, lady or princess of a multitude, verses 15,16; and Jacob, a supplanter 
to Israel, a prince with God, xxxii. 28. 

By a prophetic spirit some names were imposed, as Noah, signifying com¬ 
fort, and Jesus, a Saviour. Many names were given on account of some pecu¬ 
liar circumstances in their history, as Isaac, laughter or gladness, Gen. xvii. 
17; xviii. 12; xxi. 3-6,—Bethel, the house of God, Gen. xxxviii. 17-19,—Moses, 
taken from the water, Exod. ii. 10. 

It should be observed that those names which begin or terminate with el, 
or begin with je, or end with iah, w r ere generally designed to express some 
relation to God:—as Bethel, the house of God; Israel, a prince with God; 
Jeremiah, the exaltation of the Lord. 

Some persons and things had tw 7 o or more names, and they are sometimes 
called by one and sometimes by the other. For example,—Jacob was called 
Israel; Jethro, the father-in-law of Moses, was called Reuel, Exod. ii. 18; iii. 
1. Uzziah was called Azariah, 2 Kings xv. 1; 2 Chron. xxvi. 1; Isaiah i. 1. 
Paul was the Roman name of the apostle, while his Jewish name was Saul. 

Many names also of persons are spelt differently in the New Testament, as 
they were taken from the Greek translation of the Old Testament:—as Noe, 
for Noah; Elias, for Elijah; Osee, for Ilosea; and Jeremy, for Jeremiah. In 
some of the names, also, in the New 7 Testament it will be observed that their 
Latin form has been retained in several places, by an oversight in the trans¬ 
lators:—as Timotheus, for Timothy; Silvanus, for Silas; and Marcus, for 
Mark. 


59 


697 



PRINCIPAL SCRIPTURE NAMES. 


Aaron, signifies, a mountain of 
strength, or a teacher. 

Abaddon, the destroyer. 

Abednego, servant of light. 

Abel, Adam’s son, vanity, a city, 
mourning. 

Abel-Mizraim, the mourning of the 
Egyptians. 

Abib, green fruits. 

Abiel, God my father. 

Abijah, the Lord is my father. 
Abijail, father of joy. 

Abimelech, father of the king. 
Abithar, excellent father. 

Abner, father of light. 

Abraham, lather of a great multi¬ 
tude. 

Abram, a high father. 

Absalom, father of peace. 

Achan, he that troubles. 

Adam, earthy, or red earth. 
Adonibezek, lord of lightning. 
Adonijah, the Lord is my master. 
Adonizedek, lord of justice. 

Ahab, brother of the father. 
Ahimelech, brother of the king. 
Ahithopel, brother of ruin. 

Ahitub, brother of goodness. 

Alleluia, praise the Lord. 

Amalek, a people licking or ill-using. 
Amaziah, strength of the Lord. 
Amnon, faithful or foster father. 
Anna, or Hannah, gracious. 
Annanias, the cloud of the Lord. 
Arabia, a desert. 

Areopagus, the hill of Mars. 

Asa, physican. 

Asher, blessedness or happiness. 
Azotus, or Ashdod, pillage. 

Baal, master, or lord, an idol. 
Baal-berith, lord of the covenant. 
Baalim, idols, masters, false gods. 
Baalzebub, or Beelzebub, lord of flies. 
Babel, or Babylon, confusion. 

Baca, mulberry-tree. 

Balaam, destruction of the people. 
Balak, a waster. 

Barnabas, son of consolation 
Beer, a well. 

Beershoba, the well of the oath. 

Bel, ancient, nothing. 

Belial, wicked, devil. 

Belshazzar, master of the treasure. 
Bethany, the house of humility, or of 
song. 

Bethel, the house of God. 

Bethesda, the house of affliction. 
Bethlehem, the house of bread. 

698 


Bethsliemesh, the house of the sun. 
Beulah, married. 

Boanerges, sons of thunder. 

Bochim, weepers. 

Cain, possession. 

Caleb, dog, basket, hearty. 

Calvary, the place of skulls. 
Capernaum, the field of repentance 
or pleasure. 

Carmel, vineyard of God. 

Cush, black. 

Cushan, Ethiopia. 

Dagon,corn, fish. 

Dan, judgment. 

Daniel, judgment of God. 

David, beloved, dear. 

Deborah, oracle, or bee. 

Diotrephes, nourished by Jupiter. 
Easter, the name of a Saxon goddess: 
the word in Acts xii. 4 is, properly, 
passover. 

Ebenezer, the stone of help. 

Eden, pleasure, delight. 

Edom, red. 

Egypt (in Hebrew, Mizraim), tribula¬ 
tion. 

El-bethel, the God of Bethel. 

Eliab, God my father. 

Eliezer, help of my God. 

Eliliu, my God himself. 

Elijah, God the Lord. 

Eliphas, endeavour of God. 

Elisha, salvation of God. 

Elizabeth, oath of God. 

Enoch, dedicated. 

Enos, fallen man. 

Ephraim, very fruitful. 

Ephratah, abundance. • 

Esau, perfectly formed. 

Eshcol, a bunch of grapes. 

Ethiopia, burnt face. 

Eye, living. 

Ezekiel, strength of God. 

Ezra, a helper. 

Felix, happy. 

Festus, joyful. 

Gabriel, God my excellency. 

Gad, a troop. 

Gedaliah, God my greatness. 

Gilead, heap of witness. 

Gomorrah, a rebellious people. 
Goshen, approaching. 

Habbakuk, a wrestler. 

Hagar, a stranger, fearing. 

Ilaggai, a solemn feast. 

Halleluliah, praise the Lord. 

Hainan, noise, preparation. 

Hannah (Anna), gracious.. 



PRINCIPAL SCRIPTURE NAMES. 


Heber, a passer over,—as Abraham 
over the river Euphrates, to dwell 
in Canaan, from which he was called 
the Hebrew. 

Hephzibah, my delight is in her. 
Herod, glory of the skin. 

Hezekiah, strong in the Lord. 

Hiram, exaltation of life. 

Hobab, beloved. 

Horeb, dryness, desert. 

Hosea (Hoshea), a saviour, or salvar 
tion. 

Jabez, sorrow, or trouble. 

Jacob, a supplanter. 

Jah, self-existent, everlasting. 

Jazer, helper. 

Ichabod, where is the glory ? 

Jebus, contempt. 

Jedidiah, well-beloved. 

Jehoiada, knowledge of the Lord. 
Jehoshaphat, judgment of the Lord. 
Jehovah, the incommunicable name 
of God, self-existing. 

Jehovah-jireh, the Lord will see, or 
provide. 

Jehovah-nissi, the Lord my banner. 
Jehovah-shalom, the Lord send peace. 
Jehovah-shammah, the Lord is there. 
Jehovah-tsidkenu, the Lord our right¬ 
eousness. 

Jemima, handsome as the day. 
Jeremiah, exaltation of the Lord. 
Jeroboam, fighting against the people. 
Jerubbaal, let Baal defend his cause. 
Jerusalem, vision of peace. 

Jeshuran, upright or righteous. 

Jesse, my present. 

Jesus, saviour. 

Jews, people of Judah. 

Immanuel, God with us. 

India, praise. 

Joanna, grace or gift of the Lord. 
Job, a weeper. 

Jochebed, glory of the Lord. 

Joel, willing, swearing. 

Johanan (John), grace of the Lord. 
Jonah (Jonas), a dove. 

Joseph, increase. 

Joshua, saviour. 

Isaac, laughter. 

Isaiah, salvation of the Lord. 
Iscariot, a man of the bag, or of mur¬ 
der. 

Ishmael, God will hear. 

Israel, a prince with God. 

Issachar, recompense. 

Ithiel, God with me. 

Jubilee, sounding of the trumpet. 


Judah, praise the Lord. 

Jupiter, a helping father, a heathen 
idol-god. 

Kadesh, holiness. 

Kedar, blackness. 

Kenaz, this possession. 

Kidron, obscurity. 

Korah, bald, frozen. 

Laban, shining. 

Lamech, poor, debased. 

Laodicea, just people. 

Lazarus, help of God. 

Lemuel, God with them. 

Levi, joined, associated. 

Lo-ammi, not my people. 

Lois, better. 

Lo-ruhamah, not having obtained 
mercy. 

Lot, wrapt up, or myrrh. 

Lucas, Lucius, Luke, luminous. 
Manasseh, forgetfulness. 

Manoah, rest. 

Mark, Marcus, polite. 

Mars’-hill, the court hall at Athens. 
Martha, becoming better. 

Mary, bitterness, or myrrh of the sea. 
Massah, temptation. 

Matthew, given of the Lord. 
Matthias, gift of the Lord. 
Melchizedek, king of righteousness. 
Mercurius, the name of an idol god. 
Messiah, anointed. 

Methuselah, he has sent his death. 
Micah, humble. 

Michael, Micaiah, Michaiah, w r ho is 
like God? 

Miriam, Mary, myrrh of the sea. 
Misraim, tribulation. 

Moab, of the father. 

Molech, Melek, king. 

Mordecai, contrition. 

Moriah, bitterness of the Lord. 

Moses, taken out of the water. 
Naaman, agreeable. 

Nabal, a fool, senseless. 

Nahum, comforter. 

Naomi, beautiful. 

Naphtali, my wrestling. 

Nazareth, separated. 

Nebuchadnezzar, Nebo’s conqueror 
of treasures, or groans of judg¬ 
ment. 

Nebuchadrezzar, Nebo’s roller of trea¬ 
sures. 

Nebuzadon, Nebo’s winnower of lords- 
Nehemiah, comfort of the Lord. 
Netliinims, given or devoted. 

Nimrod, rebellious. 


699 




PRINCIPAL SCRIPTURE NAMES. 


Nineveh, handsome. 

Noah, rest, or consolation. 

Nod, vagabond. 

Obadiah, servant of the Lord. 

Obed, servant. 

Obed-edom, servant of Edom. 
Onesimus, profitable. 

Onesiphorus, bringing profit. 

Othniel, the time of God. 
Padan-aram, the field or palace of 
Aram or Syria. 

Paul, a worker. 

Peniel, face or vision of God. 
Peninnah, pearl or precious stone. 
Peter, a rock or stone. 

Pharaoh, the revenger, the crocodile. 
Philadelphia, love of brethren. 
Philemon, affectionate. 

Philip, a lover of horses. 

Pihahirotli, the pass of Hiroth. 
Pisgali, a fortress. 

Potiphar, a fat bull. 

Quartus, the fourth. 

Rab. Rabbi, master. 

Rachel, a sheep. 

Rahab, proud. 

Ramah, lofty. 

Rameses, thunder. 

Rebekah, pacified. 

Rehoboam, enlarger of the people. 
Reuben, a vision of the sun. 

Rhoda, a rose. 

Rome, strength. 

Rufus, red. 

Ruth, satisfied. 

Salem, Salmon, Salome, peace. 
Samaria, guard, prison. 

Samson, his son. 

Samuel, asked of the Lord. 

Sarah, lady or princess. 

Sarai, my lady or princess. 

Satan, adversary. 

Saul, demanded, or sepulchre. 

Seth, placed. 

Sharon, a princely plain. 

Shem, name or renown. 

Shiloh, peace, salvation. 

Simeon, Simon, hearing, obedient. 
Sin, Sinai, a bush. 

700 


Sion, noise, tumult. 

Sodom, their secret. 

Solomon, peaceable. 

Stephanus, Stephen, a crown. 
Susanna, a lily, rose, or joy. 

Tabitha, clear-sighted. 

Tammuz, concealed, the name of a 
Hebrew month and of an idol god. 
Tekel, weight. 

Teraphim, images. 

Tertullus, an impostor. 

Theophilus, a lover of God. 

Timeus, honoui'able, admirable. 
Timothcus, Timothy, honoured of 
God. 

Titus, honourable. 

Tophet, a drum,—the name of a place 
near Jerusalem, where children 
were burnt as offerings to Molech, 
and drums beat to drown their 
cries. 

Trophimus, well-educated. 

Tryphena, delicious. 

Tryposa, very shining. 

Tubal, the world. 

Tubal-Cain, worldly possession. 

Ur, fire or light. 

Uriah, Urijah, light of the Lord. 
Uriel, the light of God. 

Urim and Thummim, lights and per¬ 
fections. 

Uz, counsel. 

Uzziah, the strength of the Lord. 
Uzziel, the strength of God. 

Yashti, a drinker. 

Zacchfeus, just, justified. 

Zachariah, memory of the Lord. 
Zadok, justified. 

Zebedee, abundant portion. 

Zedekiah, righteousness of the Lord. 
Zelotes, jealous. 

Zephaniah, secret of the Lord. 
Zerubbabel, stranger of Babylon. 
Zeruiah, chains of the Lord. 

Zidon, fishing, hunting. 

Zion, heap of stones. 

Zipporah, beauty, trumpet. 

Zoar, little, small. 

Zurisliaddai, the Almighty is mj r rock. 





















































































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